Family attorney says agent walked into danger rather than calling LAPD

attorney for the family of Keith Porter Jr.

He claims he heard gunshots were getting closer to his apartment, but rather than staying at a position of safety, he left his apartment and went downstairs to what would be a position of danger.
Open source (opens in a new tab)Keith Porter: Family of man shot and killed by off-duty ICE agent in Northridge seeks answers at LA Police Commission meeting · ABC7 Los AngelesABC7 Los Angeles, Jan. 13, 2026

Source and context

Reporting

Keith Porter: Family of man shot and killed by off-duty ICE agent in Northridge seeks answers at LA Police Commission meeting (opens in a new tab) · ABC7 Los AngelesABC7 Los Angeles, Jan. 13, 2026

About this source

Covers the Jan. 13, 2026 LA Police Commission meeting where Porter's family and community advocates sought answers and demanded the agent be identified, arrested, and charged.

Archived copy (opens in a new tab)

Before the quotation

Tooson spoke to reporters as Porter's family and community advocates attended the January 13, 2026 Los Angeles Police Commission meeting demanding the agent be identified, arrested, and charged.

After the quotation

Tooson added that the agent made "the premeditated and calculated decision to grab a firearm" instead of waiting for LAPD to respond, a decision the family argues created the confrontation rather than resolving one already underway.

How this statement is classified

Challenged the characterization

Case context: Was ICE Agent Brian Palacios justified in fatally shooting Keith Porter Jr.?

The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.

Why this label?

Tooson does not deny that shots were fired near the agent's apartment, but he rejects DHS's framing of the agent as a defender forced to act; he argues the agent's own choice to leave a position of safety undercuts the claim that shooting Porter was a necessary defensive response.

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People and groups discussed
Brian Palacios, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Candles and flowers surround a photograph of Keith Porter Jr. at a Northridge memorial.
Credit: Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times

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Jamal Tooson

If it actually happened the way the officer said it did, it would have been an open and shut case.
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Karen Bass

This purposeful campaign of fear and intimidation by the administration is unacceptable.
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Franceola Armstrong

He didn't deserve this. 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.
Read statement