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 One Whittier police officer has died and another officer was wounded following a Monday morning shootout with a recently paroled "known gang member" who is suspected of the fatal shooting of another man hours earlier, authorities said. 
 
 The police shooting, which also left the suspect injured, occurred around 8:30 a.m. in the area of Colima Road and Mar Vista Street in Whittier, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said in a news release. 
 
 The officer killed was identified Monday afternoon as Keith Boyer, a veteran of the Whittier Police Department. 
 
 “He was the best of the best,” Whittier police Chief Jeff A. Piper said. 
 
 Piper teared up as he described Boyer, saying the two had played music together and had been friends for a quarter-century. 
 
 The other officer, who is expected to survive, is Officer Patrick Hazell, Piper said. 
 
 Boyer was killed when he and Hazell were responding to a traffic collision, sheriff's Lt. John Corina said. 
 
 The gunman had rear-ended a car and then got out of his vehicle and asked the occupants of a car he hit to help him push his vehicle out of the road and around the corner onto Mar Vista Street, a sheriff's news release stated. 
 
 When the officers got there, they first went to talk to the occupants of the vehicle that was rear-ended, who in turn pointed them to the suspect's vehicle. The officers then went around the corner to that car and made contact with the driver, asking him to get out of the car. They were going to pat him down to check for weapons when the gunfire began, Corina said. 
 
 "When they're doing that, that's when he pulls out a gun and he engages them in a gunfight. And that’s when both officers get shot, and the suspect gets shot," Corina said. 
 
 It was not known how many shots were fired during the close-range gun battle, which took place in what Corina described as a "nicer area" of Whittier. 
 
 Once other officers arrived on scene, the shooter was taken into custody. He was driving a stolen car and was a known gang member from Los Angeles with an extensive rap sheet, Corina said. 
 
 Authorities have identified the 26-year-old Hispanic suspect, but have not named him yet. 
 
 He was released from custody about a week before Monday's shooting and was on parole, Corina said, calling it an "early release." It's not yet known why he was released or what charge he had been serving time for. 
 
 The car had been stolen out of East Los Angeles, where the suspect may have been involved in another killing earlier Monday morning, Corina said. 
 
 "Unbeknownst to the Whittier police officers, when they went to pull the car over, they had a murder suspect ... in a stolen car," Corina said. 
 
 Witnesses have identified the suspect as being responsible for that other killing, which was also a shooting, Corina said. The lieutenant did not provide many details about the earlier killing, but said investigators had been told the victim was a male relative of the suspect. 
 
 The family of the victim said the suspect was the man's cousin. 
 
 The man's killing occurred about 5:30 a.m. in the 1400 block of Volney Drive, the Sheriff's Department said later Monday in a brief news release. 
 
 Shortly after the police shooting, aerial video from Sky5 showed a Whittier police SUV with shattered rear and passenger windows. A sedan directly in front of the SUV had front-end damage, and a firearm was visible on top of its trunk. 
 
 Corina said it appeared the suspect had been armed with a semi-automatic handgun. 
 
 “It’s extremely tragic," Corina said. "You’ve got a couple officers who just responded to a traffic accident, and they think they’re there to help out people involved in a traffic accident. Next thing they know, they got this guy shooting at them. He shoots both of them and kills one of them.” 
 
 After identifying Boyer as the victim, Piper said he'd seen an increase in violence against officers during arrests. He referred to ballot-box propositions that he said were increasing crime. 
 
 "Everybody needs to know what these officers are dealing with on a daily basis," Piper said. "You have no idea how it's changed in that last four years. ... People don't want to follow rules. People don't care about other people. ... This is a senseless, senseless tragedy that did not need to be." 
 
 Sheriff Jim McDonnell spoke alongside Piper, also remarking on early release and rehabilitation programs. 
 
 "We're putting people back on the street that aren't ready to be back on the street," McDonnell said. 
 
 Speaking at a news conference shortly before 2 p.m., Corina told reporters the injured officer was in stable condition. The suspect, he added, was in the intensive care unit; video from the scene showed him conscious and handcuffed. while being placed into an ambulance. 
 
 In the afternoon, hundreds of law enforcement officers accompanied the Boyer's body in a procession from UC Irvine Medical Center to the Orange County coroner’s office. After a van holding the officer’s remains arrived at its destination, fellow officers lined up and saluted the flag-draped casket as it was wheeled inside. 
 
 Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the sheriff's Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Those who would like provide a tip anonymously are asked to contact Crime Stoppers by dialing 800-222-8477, or by visiting the website lacrimestoppers.org. 
 
 KTLA's Jennifer Thang contributed to this story. 
 
 Correction: An earlier version of this article included an incorrect spelling for Patrick Hazell's last name. The post has been updated. 
 
 Please enable Javascript to watch this video ||||| (CNN) A longtime California police officer was killed Monday when a recently paroled gang member involved in an auto accident opened fire, authorities said. 
 
 The fallen officer was identified as Keith W. Boyer, a 27-year veteran of the Whittier Police Department. Whittier is about 17 miles southeast of Los Angeles. 
 
 A second Whittier officer who responded to the accident was wounded, according to Lt. John Corina of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. 
 
 The unidentified suspect was injured in an exchange of gunfire. He was in intensive care, police said. 
 
 Our deepest condolences & prayers go out to family & friends of @whittierpd Ofcr. Keith W. Boyer. #EOW 02/20/17, RIP brother. #LASD pic.twitter.com/iulgGOsinn 
 
 Authorities said the suspect and another driver were involved in the accident about 8:30 a.m. Monday. Corina said the two Whittier officers responded to the scene. They ordered the suspect out of the car. 
 
 Corina said officers went to check the suspect for a weapon because they could see he had tattoos over his face and neck and had "gang attire." 
 
 "As they went to pat him down for any weapons, that's when he pulled out his gun and that's when he started shooting," Corina said. 
 
 The suspect was driving a stolen car from East Los Angeles, Corina said. The suspect was identified as being involved in an earlier fatal shooting there, the lieutenant said. 
 
 Corina said the officers, who were wearing protective vests, didn't know the car was stolen or that the driver may have been involved in criminal activity. 
 
 Authorities said the suspect was released on parole about a week ago. Officials did not reveal details on his conviction or his parole. 
 
 "I won't speak about the suspect, because frankly I don't think he's worth speaking about," Whittier police Chief Jeff Piper said. 
 
 Officer was 'best of the best' 
 
 "I can honestly say on behalf of all the officers, he was the best of the best," Piper said of Boyer. "Our community knows him, and they would say the same thing." 
 
 Boyer, who died at a hospital, was a "a fantastic officer" who climbed the ranks from a job as a dispatcher. "Keith was very humble," Piper said. 
 
 A divorced father of grown children, Boyer had recently talked about retirement, Piper said. 
 
 The chief said he had played in a band with Boyer, who was a drummer. 
 
 At one point, Piper broke down. 
 
 "It's really hard for me to hold back my tears because all of us have been grieving since 10 this morning, and I didn't think I had any tears left," he said. 
 
 Piper said Boyer was the first officer the department has lost since the late 1970s. He was at least the fifth US law enforcement officer to be fatally shot in the line of duty this year, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund 
 
 Condolences for Boyer and best wishes for Hazell's recovery poured in from law enforcement. 
 
 #LAPD is mourning the tragic loss of @whittierpd ofcr & offers our deepest condolences to family & colleagues. Speedy recovery to 2nd ofcr. pic.twitter.com/Br3EBC1OkA — LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) February 20, 2017
– "This is a senseless, senseless tragedy that did not need to be," says a California police chief after a gang member paroled earlier this month allegedly killed a relative and a police officer. At least two officers had responded to the scene of a vehicle accident in Whittier around 8:30am Monday and were told the 26-year-old man, with tattoos on his face and neck, had rear-ended another vehicle, authorities tell KTLA. Noting the man's "gang attire," the officers—who were wearing bulletproof vests—ordered him out of his vehicle and were about to pat him down "when he pulled out his gun and … started shooting," a rep for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department tells CNN. Keith Boyer, a 27-year veteran of the Whittier Police Department, died at the hospital while Patrick Hazel, a three-year veteran, was admitted in stable condition. Neither officer had realized the suspect—who was injured in the gunfight and is in intensive care—had been driving a car stolen from East Los Angeles, where he'd fatally shot his 46-year-old cousin around 5:30am, authorities say, per the Los Angeles Times. The gunman's identity has not been released, nor have details about his prior criminal record. Whittier's police chief says the man was released from jail early because of new laws meant to reduce prison stays, which he says actually make cities less safe. "We need to wake up," he said through tears, describing Boyer as "the best of the best."