The off-duty federal immigration agent who shot and killed a Los Angeles man on New 12 months’s Eve allegedly whipped his sons with a belt and made racist and homophobic remarks prior to now, based on paperwork obtained by The Instances.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Officer Brian Palacios shot Keith Porter Jr. late on Dec. 31 at a Northridge condominium advanced, based on a sworn declaration submitted by legal professional Michelle Diaz in a custody dispute between Palacios’ girlfriend and her ex-husband, which was made public Thursday.
The doc alleges that Palacios is the shooter “based mostly on data and perception,” citing information and testimony figuring out him as an ICE agent who lives within the advanced.
A assessment of court docket transcripts, proof of service paperwork and motions associated to the custody battle exhibits Palacios is an ICE agent and confirms that he lives in a unit on the Village Pointe Residences. The unit quantity displays an condominium that’s only a brief distance from the placement the place neighbors say Porter was killed.
Stacie Halpern, an legal professional representing Palacios, mentioned her consumer acted in self-defense the evening that Porterwas killed. She denied that he had ever made racist remarks and offered experiences from the L.A. County Division of Youngsters and Household Companies and Los Angeles police that deemed the kid abuse allegations to be “unfounded.”
Nobody answered the door on the condominium listed for Palacios on Friday. An LAPD spokesman declined to remark and a DCFS spokeswoman mentioned she was barred from discussing the case by state legislation.
Mates and advocates say Porter — a 43-year-old Compton native and father of two — was firing a gun into the air to have a good time the brand new yr on the evening of his loss of life.
Tricia McLaughlin, the U.S. Division of Homeland Safety’s assistant secretary of public affairs, initially mentioned a suspected “energetic shooter” was killed following an change of gunfire with an off-duty ICE agent. In her assertion, McLaughlin mentioned the agent “bravely responded to an energetic shooter scenario at his condominium advanced.”
McLaughlin didn’t handle questions in regards to the agent’s id on Friday or the previous allegations towards him. Halpern mentioned her consumer remained on-duty for ICE as of Friday afternoon.
Los Angeles police mentioned nobody else was injured within the incident.
Jamal Tooson, an legal professional for Porter’s household, mentioned in a press release: “Ought to this particular person be confirmed because the individual liable for Keith’s loss of life, based mostly on his deeply disturbing previous allegations it’s unimaginable that any human being with a conscience on this earth may regard him as a hero.”
In a while Friday, Tooson recommended the killing was a racially motivated hate crime and mentioned he was contemplating asking for California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta to launch an unbiased investigation.
A spokesperson for the L.A. County district legal professional’s workplace mentioned the incident is below investigation by the Justice System Integrity Division, which investigates killings by legislation enforcement officers.
A gathering of the Los Angeles Police Fee was packed final week with offended activists and residents, a lot of whom known as for authorities to launch the ICE agent’s identify. Though the names of LAPD officers concerned in deadly use-of-force incidents are usually made public inside weeks, there isn’t a such rule for federal businesses.
The doc filed this week sought to briefly bar Palacios’ girlfriend from seeing her daughter from her first marriage, based mostly on the potential hazard posed by the ICE agent’s alleged involvement within the capturing. In accordance with L.A. County court docket orders reviewed by The Instances, a decide barred Palacios from having any contact with the youngsters from his earlier marriage final February. That order was upheld final June, even after DCFS and LAPD dismissed the abuse allegations, the county court docket filings present.
“Palacios is presently prohibited by Courtroom Order from being within the presence of the events’ minor youngsters due to his abusive conduct,” learn the Thursday submitting from Diaz, who represents the ex-husband of Palacios’ girlfriend. “There’s a very legitimate concern that the stress of getting shot and killed one other man on 12/31/2025, and the continuing aftermath, will materially and considerably impair Mom’s psychological well being, and impression her means to supply a secure and secure parenting schedule for his or her youngest youngster.”
The deadly New 12 months’s Eve incident follows a number of others in current weeks through which ICE brokers have used lethal pressure towards U.S. residents.
Final week, ICE agent Jonathan Ross shot and killed 37-year-old Minneapolis lady Renee Nicole Good. President Trump and different federal officers have accused Good of obstructing immigration efforts and mentioned she tried to hit Ross along with her automobile, however cellphone video from the scene exhibits Good was attempting to drive away and that Ross shot at her by means of the driving force’s aspect window. The killing has drawn widespread condemnation and protests; Trump administration officers have staunchly defended the agent and accused Good of weaponizing her car in “an act of home terrorism.”
Not like the Minnesota incident, which was captured on a number of movies, no recordings have surfaced from the confrontation that led to Porter’s killing.
It stays unclear precisely what occurred in Northridge round 10:40 p.m. on New 12 months’s Eve. Palacios was off obligation, so there isn’t a physique digital camera video. Not one of the constructing’s safety cameras captured the capturing both, based on a message from the property administration firm.
Two legislation enforcement officers, talking on situation of anonymity to debate an ongoing investigation, advised The Instances that Porter was present in possession of a rifle.
A kind of officers mentioned investigators additionally discovered proof of two bullet impacts behind the place the agent would have been standing on the time of the capturing, which might help federal authorities claims that he was fired upon by Porter. The official additionally mentioned the agent recognized himself as legislation enforcement earlier than opening hearth. Halpern additionally mentioned Friday that there’s proof that Porter shot at Palacios through the encounter.
Requested about these points on Friday, Tooson maintained that no witnesses have come ahead to corroborate claims that the agent confronted any hazard that evening.
Porter’s family and friends have argued he was firing a gun within the air to have a good time the brand new yr. Los Angeles police officers have warned folks towards the follow for years, and doing so is a felony. Nonetheless, Porter’s supporters contend that the agent overreacted and will have waited for the LAPD to reply.
Halpern mentioned these outraged over the killing have been far too fast to dismiss the hazard that Porter posed by capturing a gun in a dense residential space.
“This individual was capturing a firearm in his group. What goes up should come down,” she mentioned, alluding to previous incidents the place celebratory gunshots have injured bystanders.
Palacios had an “absolute proper to self-defense,” she mentioned.
Final yr, a Los Angeles County decide barred Palacios from being round his girlfriend’s youngsters from a earlier marriage within the wake of allegations that he had whipped his organic sons with a belt, based on a transcript of a 2025 listening to.
Via an legal professional, the youngsters additionally accused Palacios of utilizing homophobic slurs and making racist remarks about Black and Latino folks, based on a court docket transcript. Palacios additionally referred to the youngsters’s organic father as an “unlawful alien,” based on the allegations contained in court docket information.
Omar Escorcia, the ex-husband of Palacios’ girlfriend, advised The Instances that Palacios routinely made disparaging remarks about Latinos earlier than and after custody hearings, referring to them as “wetbacks.” Halpern denied her consumer made any such feedback.
Escorcia additionally described an alleged incident through which Palacios confirmed as much as a youth soccer recreation carrying a gun, which was seen to different mother and father and left a number of folks upset and anxious for his or her children’ security.
“What legislation enforcement officer who’s conscious of gun security, exhibits as much as a youngsters’s sporting occasion with a gun that isn’t holstered, however caught of their waistband, they usually’re holding a toddler?” requested Escorcia’s legal professional, Diaz, based on a transcript of a 2025 court docket listening to. “There are all types of crimson flags right here.”
