King County Detective Terminated After
Investigation into November 2019 Shooting
Sheriff Mitzi G. Johanknecht has terminated the employment of Detective George Alvarez for policy violations and extremely poor tactical and officer safety decisions leading up to the fatal shooting of Anthony J. Chilcott in Cumberland on November 25, 2019. Several days prior, Chilcott had stolen a black Ford Raptor and a Poodle dog belonging to the truck’s owner. The attached Loudermill letter, sent to Detective Alvarez, details the reasons for the Sheriff’s conclusion that Detective Alvarez’s “…ability to serve the public is irrevocably impaired.”
To be clear, the termination decision is not based on the use of force / shooting of Chilcott by both Alvarez and Detective Josh Lerum. At the specific point in time when both detectives used deadly force, both detectives feared they could be injured or killed by Chilcott’s actions. The Sheriff and an internal Critical Incident Review Board found the use of force within KCSO policy, based on the fact that Chilcott had pulled Alvarez part way in to the truck’s cab, at one point grabbed Alvarez’s gun and was actively revving the engine of the truck. Alvarez and Lerum feared one, or both, of them could be injured or killed if the truck became dislodged from a rock and managed to drive away. After reviewing the independent investigation, the King County Prosecutor’s Office declined to file criminal charges against Detectives Alvarez and Lerum.
Sheriff Johanknecht’s termination of Detective Alvarez is based on his decisions leading up to the use of force. The Sheriff found by “clear and convincing evidence that the tactics used here were substantially below what is required in our de-escalation policy, expectations based on your years of training, experience level and organizational knowledge from lessons learned from prior events.“ Instead of waiting for backup, which was only minutes away, Alvarez initiated contact with Chilcott despite the fact Alvarez was driving an unmarked vehicle, without lights and siren, and was not wearing a ballistic vest marked “SHERIFF” or clothing identifying himself as law enforcement. This violated KCSO standard operating procedure, specifically updated in April 2019 after lessons learned from the fatal shooting of Mi’Chance Dunlap-Gittens in 2017. The Sheriff found Alvarez’s decision to initiate contact with Chilcott in an unmarked vehicle and without clothing identifying him as law enforcement put himself, his partner Lerum, and perhaps members of the community standing nearby, at risk.
Detective Alvarez’s termination is effective April 2, 2021.
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Sergeant Tim Meyer
Tim.Meyer@KingCounty.gov
206/255-0778
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