01/11/2026
Vigil, Protests Held For Renee Good and for Keith Porter Fatally Shot by ICE Agents
LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Thousands of people staged marches, demonstrations
and vigils today to protest the recent shooting deaths of a Minneapolis
woman and a Northridge man by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
A National Day of Action protest that started at 2 p.m. Saturday in
Pershing Square downtown was a dual rally against the Trump administration
intervention in Venezuela and the shooting death of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minnesota.
Protesters marched through the downtown area to City Hall and past the
Edward Royball Federal Building. It led to the closure of streets in the
area, including Alameda, Temple and Aliso streets.
The Los Angeles Police Department issued a dispersal order about 6:30
p.m. for Alameda Street from Aliso to Temple streets, and a police skirmish
line moved a group of demonstrators south on Alameda to Temple.
One suspect was detained for suspicion of battery on a police
officer, the LAPD stated. The suspect had fled from the original incident, then
returned.
KCAL reported others were detained as well during efforts to break up
the crowd.
Other demonstrations were held around Southern California, including
Long Beach, Woodland Hills and Pasadena.
As the downtown L.A. protest wound down, relatives of a man who was
fatally shot by an off-duty ICE agent in Northridge on New Year's Eve and civil
rights advocates held a candlelight vigil in his memory in Carson that also
honored the life of Renee Good.
Najee Ali, director of Project Islamic Hope and one of the vigil's
organizers, said the shootings of Renee Good on Wednesday and Keith Porter Jr.
on New Year's Eve ``are not isolated incidents.
``They reflect a dangerous pattern of excessive force, poor judgment
and a lack of accountability that is costing innocent people their lives,'' Ali
said in a statement. ``We are coming together to mourn, to demand truth and to
call for justice.''
The vigil was also organized by Clergy and Laity United for Economic
Justice (CLUE Justice), which bills itself as bringing ``together clergy and
lay leaders of all faiths with the marginalized, the unheard and the least
protected -- low-wage workers and immigrants -- in strategic campaigns for
dignity, justice, and a more sacred and just society.''
Good, 37, was killed by an ICE agent who fired into her moving Honda
Pilot SUV during an immigration operation.
The events leading up to the shooting are in dispute.
``This latest footage corroborates what DHS has stated all along,''
Tricia McLaughlin, the Department of Homeland Security's assistant secretary
for public affairs, wrote on social media Friday. ``This individual was
impeding law enforcement and weaponized her vehicle against .
``The officer dutifully acted in self-defense.''
According to The New York Times, ``When agents approached her SUV on
foot and demanded that she get out, Ms. Good disobeyed and began to drive away.
A video analysis showed that Ms. Good's vehicle appeared to be turning away
from the officer who opened fire.''
Bill Essayli, the first assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central
District of California, which includes Los Angeles County, wrote on social
media, ``Federal agents are justified in using deadly force to defend their
lives. A vehicle is considered a deadly weapon. Do not drive at an officer.
It's dangerous and you will also be charged with a felony.''
Porter, 43, was fatally shot shortly after 11:30 p.m. Dec. 31 in the
17700 block of Roscoe Boulevard, near White Oak Avenue, by an unidentified ICE
agent. The DHS issued a statement saying the agent ``bravely responded to an
active shooter situation'' and ``exchanged gunfire with'' Porter.
Local activists, however, said Porter was not an active shooter,
although he was firing a weapon into the air to celebrate New Year's Eve -- a
practice routinely condemned by law enforcement officials.
During Friday's Los Angeles City Council meeting, Councilwoman
Eunisses Hernandez introduced Porter's mother, Franceola Armstrong, who
described her son as a man with a wonderful soul and big heart.
``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.''
Porter's family has created a GoFundMe page to support his two
surviving daughters, along with a college fund, at
gofund.me/c452ce740?sfnsn=mo.
Photos by: Cesar Arredondo Special tonthe San Fernando Valley Sun/el Sol
