Updated March 31, 2018 16:15:11

A white Louisiana police officer has been fired and a second suspended for the killing of Alton Sterling, a black man shot in a 2016 incident that inflamed the US debate on racial bias in law enforcement, a police official said.

Baton Rouge officer Blane Salamoni was dismissed for violating department standards on use of force and for losing his temper in the deadly incident, Police Chief Murphy Paul told a news conference.

The second officer involved in the confrontation, Howie Lake, was suspended for three days for violating the command of temper standard.

The decisions followed an administrative review of the July 2016 shooting, and both officers plan to appeal, Police Chief Paul said.

The decisions are designed "to bring closure to a cloud that has been over our community for far too long", he said.

Photo: Sterling's death inflamed the debate on racial bias in law enforcement. (Reuters: Jonathan Bachman)

Sterling, 37, was shot outside a convenience store after a resident reported he had been threatened by a black man selling CDs.

Police said Sterling was trying to pull a loaded gun out of his pocket when Mr Salamoni opened fire.

Louisiana attorney-general Jeff Landry said this week that Mr Lake and Mr Salamoni would not be charged in the shooting since evidence showed their actions were justified.

Reuters

Topics: law-crime-and-justice, crime, race-relations, community-and-society, united-states

First posted March 31, 2018 10:48:06