The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) has “historically been a paramilitary organization, more like an army of occupation than a police force”, says Dave Lindorff, an author and investigative journalist in Philadelphia.

Lindorff said ex-cop and Navy veteran Christopher Dorner was fired from the LAPD because he complained about ethnic discrimination and police brutality in the police department.

“[Dorner] was fired after 3 years on the LAPD because he protested against the racism he saw among his fellow officers and against in particular a beating of an arrested man by his superior officer”, he said.

Christopher Dorner, 33, is accused of targeting law enforcement officers and their families in three killings committed in retaliation for his 2008 firing from the Los Angeles Police Department.

Although public statements by police have suggested Dorner was believed to be acting alone, the U.S. Marshals Service said in court documents filed last week that the agency “has also been tracking the movements of ... a known associate of Dorner”.

San Diego Police Sgt. Benjamin Kelso is warning all African-American men that they could be stopped and questioned as the manhunt for Christopher Dorner continues.

“He’s getting a lot of support from the public who see him as sort of a batman type hero who is seeking vengeance against a corrupt police force”, Lindorff said.