Civil Rights Attorneys Call for Independent Probe into Keith Porter’s Death
Civil rights lawyers are demanding an independent investigation into the killing of Keith Porter.
The 43-year-old father of two was shot by an off-duty immigration officer outside a Los Angeles apartment complex on New Year’s Eve.
At a news conference this week, civil rights attorney Ben Crump and co-counsel Jamal Tooson called on California Attorney General Rob Bonta to step in, saying Porter’s family doesn’t trust the Los Angeles Police Department to investigate one of the federal agencies it regularly works with.
“It has been over a month since Keith Porter’s death, and we still haven't gotten meaningful answers,” Tooson said at a recent news conference, Reuters reports.
Shortly after the shooting, the Department of Homeland Security defended the officer’s actions. Porter was almost immediately labeled by DHS as an “active shooter” who was killed in an exchange of gunfire with the off-duty agent.
However, the community and neighbors have shared a different story, saying Porter was firing his gun, which he legally owned, into the air to celebrate the new year. The agent, who has still not been publicly identified, was reportedly unharmed.
An autopsy showed Porter was shot three times, which Tooson said lines up with audio of three gunshots that his team has turned over to investigators. He also said canvassing has yet to turn up any witness who saw Porter fire a weapon.
Crump has previously represented the families of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown, among other high-profile civil rights cases. Though he is supporting Porter’s family, he is not their legal counsel, according to the LA Times.
“The family has not been confident that LAPD, with their close relationships with the ICE officials, that there’s going to be a fair and transparent investigation,” Crump said, as shared by The Times. “ Them trying to whitewash the investigation into the death of Keith Porter is a nonstarter. We’re not going to allow that to happen.”
Bonta’s office has declined to confirm or deny whether it has opened its own probe.
