President Obama meets family of slain TSA agent, wounded officers

President Obama met Monday night with the family of TSA officer Gerardo Hernandez, who was killed in a violent attack at LAX on Nov. 1, and with two fellow officers wounded by gunfire that day.

White House officials did not say which of Hernandez’s family members met with the president. The two TSA officers were identified as Tony Grigsby and James Speer.

The meeting occurred before Obama attended twin fundraising events in Beverly Hills, the first scheduled appearances in his two-day visit to Southern California. He will attend a third Democratic fundraising event Tuesday morning before meeting with entertainment industry officials at Dreamworks Animation in Glendale.

Earlier, the president attended fundraisers in San Francisco and a separate event meant to press Republicans in Congress to push forward with measures to allow a path to citizenship for millions in the country illegally. His remarks were interrupted by an audience member pleading for assistance for his family, separated by their legal status.

The meeting with the TSA agents and family members was not announced in advance.

Hernandez, 39, was killed after a gunman identified by authorities as Paul Anthony Ciancia, 23, burst into the airport and targeted TSA agents. Hernandez, married and the father of two young children, was struck 12 times, according to an autopsy released last week.

Besides the two officers who met with Obama, a schoolteacher also was wounded.

Ciancia was injured in an exchange of gunfire with law enforcement officers. He was released after weeks in Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and is in custody. He faces federal charges of murder of a federal officer and committing a violent act at an international airport, charges that could bring the death penalty.

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