WHITTIER (CNS) - A public memorial viewing will be held tonight for Whittier police Officer Keith Wayne Boyer, who was killed in a gun battle that left a second officer and the suspect wounded.
Boyer, 53, was killed shortly after 8 a.m. Feb. 20. He had responded to a report of a traffic collision near Colima Road and Mar Vista Street, where one of the people involved in the crash pulled out a gun and opened fire.
Officer Patrick Hazell, a three-year veteran of the Whittier Police Department, was shot in the abdomen but survived. Boyer, a grandfather, musician and school resource officer, had been with the department for 27 years.
The viewing for Boyer will be held at 6:30 p.m. at Whittier Area Community Church, 8100 Colima Road.
Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Friday at Calvary Chapel Downey, 12808 Woodruff Ave., according to Whittier police. Following the service, a procession will carry Boyer's body to Rose Hills Memorial Park, 3888 Workman Mill Road, Whittier, for a graveside service.
The shooting suspect, Michael Christopher Mejia, 26, was shot in the back and hospitalized. He was charged Wednesday with capital murder.
The Whittier Police Officers Association has created a fund for people to make donations on behalf of Boyer and his family.
Donations to the WPOA Benevolent Fund can be made in person at the Whittier branch of the Credit Union of Southern California, 8028 Greenleaf Ave. Checks should be made out to WPOA Benevolent Fund and reference account number 488879.
Checks can also be mailed to Credit Union of Southern California, WPOA Benevolent Fund, P.O. Box 200, Whittier, CA, 90608, Attn: David Valencia.