Activists and supporters of a man shot to death by an off-duty ICE agent in Northridge aired their concerns at the Los Angeles Police Commission Hearing on Tuesday morning.
Keith Porter Jr. was shot and killed on New Year’s Eve at an apartment complex on Roscoe Boulevard. In a statement to ABC News, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said that an off-duty ICE officer “heard what he suspected were multiple gunshots” and that he went outside with his “ICE-authorized firearm.”
McLaughlin continued that the officer saw a man with an object that appeared to be a long rifle, and that when the man didn’t comply, the officer shot him “to disarm him.”
Porter’s family and activists, however, say he was firing a gun to celebrate the new year. Jamal Tooson, an attorney for the family, told the Los Angeles Times that multiple people were firing shots in the air at that apartment complex and that “only one person was murdered.”
“What should have been an arrest and possible citation has turned into a death sentence and potentially cold-blooded murder from an ICE agent who was not equipped to handle the situation,” he told the outlet.
During Tuesday's meeting, activists told the commission they believe the LAPD is protecting and collaborating with ICE.
"ICE is very much in hand in glove with the LAPD," one man said. "This is the myth of the sanctuary city that we've been talking about. These are the lies because LAPD is providing sanctuary to ICE. LAPD is providing safety to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Patrol.
They also called on police to identify the off-duty agent.
"We know he's an off-duty ICE agent, and we want this investigation done in a timely fashion - in 30 days," another man said.
The Los Angeles Police Department is still investigating the shooting of Keith Porter.
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