50 Attend Vigil for Slain Deputy : Memorial: African American leaders call for healing, truth about shooting during training exercise.

Prayers for truth and justice were combined Tuesday night with calls for peace and community healing as about 50 people gathered for a candlelight vigil in honor of Sheriff’s Deputy Darryn Robins, who was shot and killed one month ago by another officer during an impromptu training session.

The vigil was organized by a coalition of Orange County African American leaders and was held in the mall alleyway where Robins was killed on Christmas Day.

On a drizzly evening, the group prayed for the families of the slain deputy, who was black, and the deputy who fired the fatal shot, who is white.

“We come together in peace,” said the Rev. John McReynolds of the Second Baptist Church of Santa Ana. “We come together in love.”

Robins, 30, who was married and the father of an 18-month-old daughter, was killed when fellow Deputy Brian Scanlan, 32, shot him in the face during what authorities described as an impromptu field training session behind an El Toro Road shopping complex and movie theater.

Authorities have called the shooting an accident, but have released few details about what happened, citing an ongoing investigation by the district attorney’s office. The office routinely reviews all officer-involved shootings and will determine if criminal charges are warranted.

Sheriff Brad Gates has said Scanlan’s use of a loaded gun during the drill appears to have violated department training regulations.

The lack of public information after the shooting prompted the coalition of black community leaders to call for an investigation by the state attorney general’s office, but their request was turned down.

The coalition, representing some 15 groups from various facets of the county’s black community, has vowed to remain active in the case.

The Rev. Van D. Roberson of the Greater Light Baptist Church of Santa Ana prayed that the truth of the tragedy will soon be made public.

“If it was an accident, at least let it be known what truly happened,” he said.

Tuesday night’s vigil was designed as a break from the anger and criticism surrounding the tragedy, said Eugene Wheeler, president of 100 Black Men of Orange County.

“This is essentially a period of healing and prayer so that we can ask God’s blessings for the two families,” Wheeler said.

Those gathered for the vigil remembered Robins for his dedication in helping young people avoid drugs and stay out of gangs.

“This was a very special person,” Lake Forest Mayor Marcia Rudolph said. “The lights of the candles he lit around the city will never go out.”