More Protests Planned Friday Following Emergency Meeting in Anaheim

Anaheim police are concerned about unrest after two fatal police shootings over the weekend and a non-fatal police shooting on Friday

After Anaheim's police chief held an emergency meeting Friday morning about keeping the peace in the wake of two fatal weekend police shootings that sparked protests, more marches and rallies were planned Friday evening.

The meeting and planned rallies came just after police shot at burglary suspects early Friday morning.

Protests -- apparently associated with the Occupy movement -- were planned for Anaheim and in the Westlake area of Los Angeles. Meanwhile, federal officials agreed to review the shootings.

Chief John Welter met with 22 members of his advisory board. An attendee said they shared ideas on how to keep calm in the city. They plan to reach out via bilingual Spanish speakers to churches, schools and businesses.

David Lopez, an Anaheim resident and advisory board member, described the closed-door meeting as "intense." He complimented the chief on being "progressive."

The meeting was followed by Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait's meeting with officials from the U.S. Attorney's Office and the FBI. Both federal agencies agreed to do an independent review of the two shootings. City officials will also provide information on all of its officer-involved shootings this year.

"All allegations involving either law enforcement misconduct or abuse under the color of law are assessed and reviewed before federal civil rights investigations are initiated," said FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller in a statement. "The FBI will review evidence and reports by the Orange County District Attorney's Office to determine whether further federal review and/or investigation is warranted."

The city also intends to ask the Office of Independent Review to review and evaluate the city's policies regarding the use of force by police. That's the same firm Fullerton officials hired to do an internal investigation following the in-custody death of schizophrenic transient Kelly Thomas last year.

The Anaheim Police Department, meanwhile, has doubled the number of patrol officers on the street and said they are "committed to the safety of the citizens no matter how long it takes," department spokesman Bob Dunn said.

The protests were prompted by the July 21 shooting of Manuel Angel Diaz, who was unarmed when police shot him after a foot chase through an Anaheim alley.

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Tensions were heightened when Anaheim police fatally shot a second man, Joel Acevedo, in a separate incident on Sunday.

Anonymous, a loose network of hackers, meanwhile, joined in solidarity with the victims of police shootings in Anaheim. Anonymous called for a tourist boycott of Disneyland, which is located in Anaheim, and has threatened to attack city websites as part of "Operation Anaheim."

There were unconfirmed reports that some of Chief Welter's personal information was posted online, Dunn said.

City News Service contributed to this report.

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