The Latest: Crowd holds vigil for slain Whittier officer

WHITTIER, Calif. – The Latest on the shooting of two California police officers as they responded to a traffic accident (all times local):

10 p.m.

A huge crowd has gathered outside Whittier police headquarters to remember a veteran officer gunned down while responding to a car crash.

Hundreds of people showed up for Monday night’s candlelight vigil honouring Officer Keith Boyer.

Authorities say a 26-year-old gang member recently released from jail killed his cousin, stole his car and then hit another car in Whittier Monday morning.

When police arrived and tried to search him, investigators say he pulled a gun and opened fire. They shot back.

Boyer, a 27-year veteran, was killed, and Officer Patrick Hazell was wounded along with the suspected gunman.

Both are expected to live.

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4:10 p.m.

Authorities say a parolee who allegedly shot and killed a Whittier policeman had slain another man and stolen his car only hours earlier.

Veteran Officer Keith Boyer was shot and his partner, Patrick Hazel, was wounded around 8 a.m. Monday in the Los Angeles suburb.

Whittier Police Chief Jeff Piper wept as he recalled his friend, a 25-year veteran.

The suspect also was wounded in the resulting shootout. His name hasn’t been released.

He and Hazel are expected to live.

The officers had answered a report of a traffic accident.

Investigators say a 26-year-old gang member who had been released from jail only a week or 10 days ago had killed a man earlier Monday in East Los Angeles and stolen a car, which struck another car in Whittier.

Authorities say the man pulled a gun as they prepared to search him.

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3:20 p.m.

Authorities say a gang member who had been out of jail for less than two weeks has shot and killed a Whittier police officer and wounded another before being wounded himself.

Los Angeles County sheriff’s Lt. John Corina says it happened around 8 a.m. Monday in the Los Angeles suburb when the officers answered a report of a traffic accident.

He says the officers didn’t realize that a car that hit two others at a stoplight had been reported stolen. Corina says the officers confronted the driver, noticed he was covered in gang tattoos, and were going to search him for weapons when he pulled a gun.

Both officers were shot and returned fire, wounding the gunman. One officer died at a hospital. The other officer and the suspect are in stable condition.

Corina says the alleged gunman is a known gang member who had been paroled from jail only about 10 days ago.

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12:35 p.m.

Officials say a California police officer was killed and another wounded in a shooting while they were trying to help a man who had been in a traffic accident in Whittier.

Lt. John Corina of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said the two city police officers had responded to a report Monday of a traffic accident and approached the vehicle when they were shot.

Police returned fire, wounding the suspect. His name was not released and his condition was not immediately available. The slain officer’s name was not released.

The condition of the wounded officer was not immediately available.