Calls for Transparency After the Fatal Shooting of Keith Porter Jr. on New Year’s Eve

A vigil was held for 43-year-old Keith “Pooter” Porter Sunday in front of the Village Pointe apartment complex in Northridge. It was the place where the popular tenant had lived and where he had been shot and killed by an off-duty U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent on New Year’s Eve.

His co-workers from the Northridge Home Depot, where he worked, were the first to arrive, wanting to set things up to make it a little easier for his family.

They all spoke glowingly about Porter.

His cousin Jsane Tyler wore a burgundy hoodie with the words: “I hope I don’t get killed for being Black today.” 

She described the father of two as a “Girl’s Dad,” and said he was his mother’s only child, who nicknamed him “Pooter” when he was a little boy and the name stuck.  

“He’s his mom’s best friend,” said Tyler. “They had a super close relationship.” Tyler described him as a family man who “loved on those around him and was the life of the room.” 

His co-workers, neighbors, friends and family described him in the same way that Tyler did.

“He always had a kind word; he always had a joke. He was always the one in jovial spirits, uplifting everyone else.”

She told the San Fernando Valley Sun/el Sol that their family has retained attorney Jamal Tooson and they are hoping to find camera footage of what happened during the final hour of Porter’s life on New Year’s Eve. 

They questioned the statement released afterward by the Department of Homeland Security that lauded the ICE agent as a “hero,” and referred to Porter as “an active shooter.” 

Melina Abdullah, co-founder of Black Lives Matter Los Angeles, said Porter wasn’t “someone who was out to harm anyone.” He was shooting his rifle into the air on New Year’s Eve as it was getting closer to midnight, when confronted by an off-duty ICE agent who lived in the same building.  

Tyler said her cousin had moved to Northridge “for love,” to live closer to his girlfriend. They planned on having a few friends over to celebrate and she had left to pick up food. When she returned, Porter was dead. 

Jsane Tyler, the cousin of Keith “Pooter” Porter killed by an off duty ICE agent on New Year’s Eve, spoke at a Vigil held in Northridge. 

“I know it was foolish for him to shoot his rifle in an apartment complex,” said Tyler. “He thought he could go outside and celebrate the New Year like many other people do in the area that I live in.”  

“On New Year’s Eve, Dodger games, Laker games, … this is LA, and people have exercised their Second Amendment right by owning guns. And as foolish as it might be to some people, they go outside and they shoot in the air like fireworks on New Year’s Eve.”

Others at the vigil acknowledged the danger of firing a weapon into the air but questioned whether the deadly force used by the off-duty ICE agent was justified.

Tyler said the ICE agent has told three versions of the story.

They also believe that the ICE agent, whose name has still not been publicly released, was treated with kid gloves. 

“At the very least, that officer should have been told to relinquish his service weapon and should have been taken in for interrogation. He should have been given a sobriety test and a mental health exam,” said Tyler. 

“The first version of his story was probably the truth. You heard the gunshots, you wanted to be a superhero, or were under the influence of drugs or alcohol yourself. We don’t know. You went outside, confronting him and then you shot him to disarm him. That was his first story. Never was there an exchange [of gunfire]. He initially said, ‘I shot him to disarm him.’” 

Tyler said that, later, the story would change to say that the ICE agent, after initially confronting him, went back to his apartment and changed into his tactical gear and came back and actually exchanged fire with Porter. When he actually called 9-1-1 and what he told the emergency operator also doesn’t add up for Tyler. She said when the police arrived, they were yelling for Porter to come out and didn’t know he was already dead. 

The LAPD homicide department is currently investigating this case.

“Police lie, and it’s disgusting the way they assassinate Black life,” said Abdulla.

They are asking for evidence that Porter fired at the agent. The Department of Homeland Security claims the agent acted in self-defense.

Najee Ali of Project Islamic Hope said a coalition of civil rights leaders has requested a meeting with the director of the LA office of ICE and called for a full, independent investigation by the California attorney general, as well as the immediate release of all possible body-camera footage, ballistic evidence and witness statements.

“They treat us like we aren’t human,” said Tyler. “We really want answers, and we want justice for Keith.”