A candlelight vigil was held Sunday night at the Village Pointe complex in Northridge to grieve Keith Porter Jr.
Friends, relatives and co-workers of his from Home Depot joined the impromptu memorial service and wrote messages to Porter on a small board above his photo.
Porter was shot by another resident of the complex, an off-duty ICE agent.
The unidentified agent claimed that he heard the sound of “multiple” gunshots from within his home that seemed to be getting closer. He said he confronted Porter, identified himself as law enforcement, and Porter then fired towards him, prompting the officer to return fire.
LAPD arrived on scene and found Porter deceased.
Witnesses to the event say Porter was firing a rifle into the air to celebrate the new year, not aiming it at anyone.
Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told CBS News that the agent confronted Porter after hearing the gunshots.
Najee Ali of Project Islamic Hope said, “We believe that Keith Porter Jr. was unjustly shot and killed by an overzealous off-duty ICE agent. In a public statement, the Department of Homeland Security claimed that Porter Jr. was an ‘active shooter.’ That claim is false and misleading.”
Black Lives Matter, of which Porter was a member, organized Sunday’s vigil and is calling for an independent investigation and is demanding a federal investigation into the agent responsible for the killing.
Firing guns into the air is a felony due to the risk of people being hurt or killed, and the shooting is under investigation by LAPD Robbery Homicide, as well as the FBI, Department of Justice and Homeland Security since a federal agent was involved.
