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HOUSTON, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of people held on Wednesday night a vigil for Alton Sterling, a 37-year-old black man, who was shot and killed by two white police officers on Tuesday in Baton Rouge, the capital city of the state of Louisiana.
The participants, including Sterling's family members, politicians and religious leaders, urged those who gathered for the vigil to stay peaceful even as their words spoke of the hurt, anger and frustration following news breaks with updates on the killing of Sterling.
Sterling was selling compact discs outside a food store when he was gunned down following an altercation with two police officers early Tuesday morning, according to the state's daily newspaper The Times-Picayune.
So far, two videos have been released to show the shootings that killed Sterling from two different angles, with the first one released on Tuesday night which immediately fueled protests.
The second video, which was released on Wednesday afternoon, shows two Baton Rouge police officers were struggling with Sterling just before he was fatally shot.
The new angle shows Sterling's left arm was moving slightly as an officer pulls the weapon from his right pocket. Sterling can be seen struggling as officers hold him down.
Footage confirms some of the claims made by the food store owner, who told local press that Sterling was shot several times.
The shooting incident has triggered protests in Houston, the largest city of the state of Texas.
About 150 people gathered on Wednesday night at Discovery Green, a public urban park in downtown Houston, and speakers expressed sorrow over the loss of Sterling.
"We need black cops," a speaker said. "We need black lawyers and we need black politicians."
On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice began a civil rights investigation into Tuesday's officer-involved fatal shooting of Sterling while Louisiana state police also will supplement the investigation to determine if any criminal actions took place.
