In a statement a spokesperson said: “The Long Beach Police Department is aware of the image posted to social media of a crowd control police officer and a man with a child on his shoulders during Sunday’s civil unrest.
“We agree the image is disturbing and we all share the community’s concerns for the safety of the child, the peaceful demonstrators, and the officers.
“While the review of the incident is underway, we do know that this image was taken at the time that violent disrupters were throwing bottles and pyrotechnics that could cause great bodily injury to anyone in the area.
“We are reviewing all of the related video footage to determine the facts of the situation. The item depicted in the image is a less than lethal launcher.”
They added: “LBPD will continue to protect and support individuals expressing their Constitutional rights, but will not tolerate violence against our community members or officers.”
Dontae earlier told how he found the police’s behaviour “uncalled for”.
“It did very much upset me,” he said. “It was a peaceful protest and, yes, there were looters down the street that were doing God who knows what.
“But at the same time, I feel it’s uncalled for – I don’t think they should be firing any type of weapons especially in a crowd where there is a peaceful protest and there’s a child near by.