Compton Officers Were Killed Execution-Style : Violence: They had searched two men they had stopped when at least one suspect began firing, police say. A massive manhunt is under way.

The two Compton police officers killed after a traffic stop were shot several times in the head, execution-style, while they were on the ground wounded and never had a chance to remove their weapons from their holsters, police said Wednesday.

Witnesses told investigators that the officers had “patted down,” or searched, two men after pulling over their red pickup truck when at least one of the men began firing a 9-mm semiautomatic handgun, said Police Chief Hourie Taylor. After the officers were down, he said, they were shot in the head.

Police have the identity of one suspect but would not release his name. They would only describe him as an African-American, between 28 and 32 years old, who was wearing a green Army jacket. They have been unable to identify the other suspect. The truck was identified Wednesday as a “fairly new Chevrolet with either a stripe or body mold around it.”

Officers Kevin Michael Burrell, 29, and James Wayne MacDonald, 23, were killed late Monday night, shortly after stopping the pickup truck for what police called a possible traffic violation.

The officers never made contact with the dispatcher after the stop, leading investigators to believe that the officers knew the suspects. It is standard department procedure for officers to call a police dispatcher and report the vehicle’s license plate number.

“The officers stopped the vehicle . . . didn’t call dispatch . . . and didn’t pull their weapons,” Taylor said. “They felt somewhat at ease. . . . The officers were probably very familiar with the occupants of the vehicle.”

Compton police are conducting a massive manhunt, the largest in the department’s history. Wednesday, more than 100 people called a hot line set up by police to field information about the crime, and officers spent the day following up on the tips, chasing leads and interviewing residents.

After news of the killing spread, dozens of police departments offered to help.

“We’ve got agencies volunteering from San Diego to San Francisco, offering manpower or any kind of assistance,” said Sgt. William Wallace, supervisor of investigations. “We told most of them we’re all right now, but we’d keep them in mind if we needed help.”

But Compton police have accepted help from a number of local law enforcement agencies, including the Los Angeles Police Department, the county Sheriff’s Department, the FBI and the Department of Justice. Officers from the outside departments are working with a team from Compton that includes six homicide detectives aided by 18 investigators and dozens of other officers--some of whom are off duty and volunteering their time. Many of the officers working the case have placed black ribbons of mourning over their badges.

“We’re pretty much running this 24 hours,” said Compton Detective Dwight Dobbin. “The whole department’s on the case.”

As the pressure to find the killers intensified and tensions mounted, “the people on the street have been feeling the heat,” said Mooky, a Compton Crip. The gang member said he has been pulled over and questioned by police four times since the shooting. That is why on Wednesday morning he was walking--not driving--to visit his probation officer.

“The cops been sweating a lot of my boys,” he said. “They been shaking us down and jacking us up beside our cars. They been asking a lot of questions about the shootings. Basically they been making life miserable for us.”

So many police are patrolling the streets at night that Lamar Richards, 19, and his friends in their east Compton neighborhood won’t go outside now after dark.

“I never seen so many cops out on the street,” Richards said. “They’re driving down the streets after dark with their lights off and they’re hanging at street corners with their lights off. They’re definitely out in force. Then when someone rolls by . . . they’re on them, shooting plenty of questions at them.”

The Compton Police Officers Assn. donated $10,000 to a reward fund set up by the city of Compton and the County Board of Supervisors--upping the reward total to $35,000. Compton police ask that anyone with information about the killing call a toll-free information number--(800) 954-1000.

“I worked with the guys. . . . I had to do something,” said Arlene Partlow, a parking officer who volunteered to answer the telephone Wednesday. “I couldn’t sleep last night.”

A memorial service for the officers will be held sometime next week. Burrell’s funeral will be at 10 a.m. Monday in the Double Rock Baptist Church in Compton, and MacDonald’s service will be in Santa Rosa, his hometown.

At the site of the killings, near the intersection of Rosecrans and Dwight avenues, there was a modest memorial for the slain officers. On a small patch of grass beside the curb, between Hercules Burgers and Hank’s Barbecue, there were two red roses, a purple ribbon wreath, a small blue candle and a votive candle with a small painting of Jesus on the side.

Throughout the day people pulled up beside the memorial, crossed themselves or just stared out into the distance for a moment, then drove off.