Relatives of the man shot to death by an off-duty federal immigration agent in Northridge on New Year’s Eve gathered with dozens of supporters Tuesday to call for criminal charges against the agent involved.
An unidentified agent with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement fatally shot Keith Porter Jr., 43, around 11:30 p.m. Dec. 31 in the 17700 block of Roscoe Boulevard in the northwest San Fernando Valley.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, the agent “bravely responded to an active shooter situation” and “exchanged gunfire with (Porter).”
The Los Angeles Police Department was continuing the investigation of the shooting Tuesday.
Local activists and Porter’s family have said he was not an “active shooter” but also indicated he was firing a gun into the air to celebrate New Year’s Eve. Law enforcement has consistently warned against shooting into the air as a means of celebration, saying the practice often leads to people being injured or possibly killed by falling bullets.
Activists and relatives of Porter attended the LA Police Commission meeting Tuesday, calling for the agent involved in the shooting to be identified and arrested.
“Keith was one of the most loving, kindest people on this Earth, and everyone has attested to that fact,” Jsane Tyler, Porter’s cousin, told the commission. “The only mistake that he made on New Year’s Eve was thinking that he had the right to celebrate the way many Americans have from the beginning of time. The same way my grandfather did. And we learned that behavior from the people that brought us here.
“So when are we going to press charges on this murderer? When is he going to be named? When is he going to be arrested? The night that my cousin lost his life, no procedures were followed,” Tyler said.
Porter’s death has led to increased criticism of federal immigration agents operating throughout Southern California since June. The Jan. 7 fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good, 37, in Minneapolis by an ICE agent renewed discussion of the Porter case. The agent who killed Good reportedly fired into her moving Honda Pilot SUV during an immigration operation.
During the Los Angeles City Council meeting Friday, several council members discussed the shooting of Good. Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez said Porter’s death should not be forgotten.
Franceola Armstrong, Porter’s mother, spoke during the council meeting.
“He didn’t deserve this,” Armstrong said. “He was on his way back. He didn’t even get to pop the champagne. He didn’t get to say goodbye. I just want to touch my baby one last time, kiss his face and hold him. I don’t have him. His life was snatched from us. Lord, please, I just wish you could get justice for my child.”
Najee Ali, director of Project Islamic Hope and among the organizers of a vigil to mark Porter’s death, said last week the shootings of Good and Porter were “not isolated incidents” and “reflect a dangerous pattern of excessive force, poor judgment and a lack of accountability that is costing innocent people their lives,” he said in a statement. “We are coming together to mourn, to demand truth and to call for justice.”
According to federal officials, an ICE agent fatally shot Good in self-defense. They accused her of attempting to “weaponize” her vehicle and run down law enforcement officers after interfering with an immigration-enforcement operation.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Good’s actions were an “act of domestic terrorism” and part of an escalating trend of assaults and attempted attacks against immigration agents throughout the U.S. Noem said an ICE agent was injured by Good’s vehicle and treated at a hospital.
ICE operates in Downey
Over the weekend in Downey, federal immigration agents conducted enforcement operations Saturday, as ICE opponents protested in downtown Los Angeles and throughout Southern California against the deaths of Good and Porter.
The city of Downey did not provide details of the operations because federal agencies are not required to report their actions to cities, according to a city of Downey statement.
The city noted its police department does not assist or collaborate with ICE, neither does it interfere or obstruct federal law enforcement activities, adding that police officers were prepared to respond to any illegal or unsafe activity that might arise. “Our priority is the safety and dignity of every member of our community, said Mayor Claudia M. Frometa. “We support the rule of law while ensuring that the rights of all residents are upheld.
“Our immigrant neighbors are an essential part of our city’s life,” Frometa said. “We encourage the community to review the city’s `Know-your- rights’ webpage and ask for cooperation in maintaining a safe environment for all by not interfering in federal operations.”
It was unclear if the ICE operations had concluded, or were still ongoing.
“ICE is not just targeting undocumented immigrants. For these agents, anyone who is Latino is fair game,” LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn, who represents Downey, said in a statement Monday. “These two landscapers are here legally — they did everything right. But that didn’t stop ICE from trying to drag them into an unmarked SUV. It could not be clearer they are racially profiling our residents, and this is an assault on our entire Latino community. I continue to call on Homeland Security Kristi Noem to pull ICE out of LA County.”
ICE detainee dies in Indio hospital
A 68-year-old undocumented immigrant from Honduras in ICE custody has died at John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Indio, the agency reported Friday.
Luis Beltran Yanez-Cruz died of heart-related issues at 1:18 a.m. Jan. 6 at 47111 Monroe St., according to a statement from ICE.
On Jan. 4, Yanez-Cruz, who was held at the Imperial Regional Detention Facility in Calexico, was transferred to the facility’s medical unit to be evaluated for chest pain. He was later taken to El Centro Regional Medical Center, then to the Indio facility on a helicopter for a higher level of care, authorities said.
Yanez-Cruz was taken into custody Nov. 16 during an ICE enforcement operation in Newark, New Jersey, and was being held in federal custody pending removal proceedings, officials said. He was arrested in 1993 in Texas on suspicion of illegal entry and reentered the U.S. at an unknown date without authorization.
As of Monday, Yanez-Cruz was one of four detainees to die in ICE custody in the past year, the agency reported.
A GoFundMe webpage was established to collect donations to help his family return his remains to Honduras.
Updated Jan. 14, 2026, 9:01 a.m.
