San Francisco police officers showed their support for Chief Greg Suhr during a Police Commission meeting late Wednesday.
It was the first time officers have gone public with backing Suhr, who has been the target of angry protesters calling for him to be fired in the wake of the police shooting death of Mario Woods.
"I want all the facts just like everyone here," said Sgt. Tracy McCray, who works the Bayview neighborhood where Woods was shot.
About 100 police officers turned out for the meeting to get their message across, but some people did not want to hear it. A raucous and rowdy crowd tried to shut down officers at the meeting.
When hecklers attempted to shut McCray down she responded: "You don't have to tell me about being black, I'm black. But you know what? I have another family. I have a family of blue too and I got out and I protect -- I protect them, I protect the citizens."
Meanwhile, Woods' family is urging the U.S. Department of Justice to examine whether there is pervasive racism in the policies and practices of the San Francisco Police Department.
Woods' shooting on the afternoon of Dec. 2 has spurred outrage after several videos of it were posted to social media in the subsequent days.
Police said Woods was a suspect in an earlier stabbing of a victim who arrived at San Francisco General Hospital at 3:49 p.m. and said he had been stabbed near the corner of Third Street and Le Conte Avenue.
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Police said officers arrived to find Woods, still holding a knife and with blood on his clothes, near a T-Third San Francisco Municipal Railway stop. In the videos, Woods can be seen against a building, surrounded on two sides by officers with their guns drawn.
He motions toward the officers, staggers, and then tries to walk away along the building as one of the officers moves into his path. A moment later, numerous shots ring out and Woods falls to the ground as the gunshots continue. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Bay City News contributed to this report.
