This security footage at the Cenex gas station in Black Diamond shows Anthony Chilcott on his phone before entering, and driving off with, Carl Sanders’ Ford Raptor and Monkey, his poodle, in the front seat.

This security footage at the Cenex gas station in Black Diamond shows Anthony Chilcott on his phone before entering, and driving off with, Carl Sanders’ Ford Raptor and Monkey, his poodle, in the front seat.

King County will review 2019 deputy killing of Black Diamond man

County Council members will be briefed Aug. 31 about the Sheriff’s Office handling of the case

King County will present a public review of the fatal 2019 deputy shooting of a Black Diamond man during a virtual meeting the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 31, the county council said in an Aug. 27 press release.

The King County Office of Law Enforcement Oversight, tasked with holding the King County Sheriff’s Office accountable, will deliver the presentation to the county council’s Law & Justice Committee, which is made up of six County Council members.

The review will center on the death of 36-year-old Anthony Chilcott, who was fatally shot by detectives George Alvarez and his partner Josh Lerum in November 2019.

Chilcott, deputies say, had stolen an unlocked truck several days before the shooting, prompting a “be on the lookout” law enforcement alert for him. Alvarez and Lerum found Chilcott on Nov. 25. When they confronted and tried to arrest Chilcott, who was in the truck, a struggle ensued in which both deputies fired their weapons at him.

This April, King County Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht fired one of those detectives, George Alvarez, concluding the deputy’s tactics unnecessarily escalated that situation and likely risked the safety of himself, Lerum, and bystanders nearby. (Lerum was not fired but was reprimanded for not wearing a protective vest and raid jacket during the arrest attempt, a sheriff’s office representative told The Seattle Times.)

Neither Alvarez nor Lerum used excessive or unnecessary force when they shot and killed Chilcott, who could have struck and injured or killed the deputies while trying to drive away, the sheriff concluded. But Alvarez, who led the duo’s tactics in the encounter, should have waited for backup and surveilled Chilcott from a distance, rather than drive up next to him suddenly and escalate the situation, the sheriff found.

“The urgency here was created by your actions, not the actions of the suspect,” Johanknecht wrote in a March 25 notice of termination letter to Alvarez.

“Your actions demonstrated a disregard for the public, your partner and yourself,” she concluded.

Cooper Offenbecher, a Seattle attorney representing Alvarez, told the Seattle Times after the firing that Alvarez planned to challenge his termination. The deputy’s actions that day were necessary and justified due to the danger Chilcott posed to the community, Offenbecher told The Times.

The meeting this Tuesday will go over the Sheriff’s Office’s overall handling of the shooting.

It is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. It will be streamed live and available on King County TV Channel 22 (Comcast Channel 22 and 322 HD).

Public comment can be sent to kcccomitt@kingcounty.gov, or by visiting https://kingcounty.gov/council/committees/law_justice.aspx. Comments submitted before by 8 a.m. on the day of the meeting will be distributed to staff and council members prior to the meeting.

Comments can also be delivered orally by joining the meeting via Zoom. The meeting ID will be 997 4560 2933, and the password will be 210362, according to the press release.

The County Council’s Law & Justice Committee is chaired by Girmay Zahilay and vice chaired by Kathy Lambert. Its members also include Claudia Balducci, Rod Dembowski, Jeanne Kohl-Welles, and District 9 representative Reagan Dunn.


Talk to us

Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.

To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website http://kowloonland.com.hk/?big=submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.

More in Northwest

t
Suspect sought in State Route 167 road rage shooting near Renton

Driver reportedly frustrated when unable to pass another car during March 25 incident

A red-light camera sign at Pacific Highway South and Kent Des Moines Road in Kent. File photo
New state law gives green light to more traffic cameras

The move comes as roadway deaths in the state have hit historic highs.

Sen. Javier Valdez, D-46
Bill providing support for victims of hate crimes signed into law

Hotline to be created to report hate crimes and bias incidents; bill sponsored by state Sen. Valdez

t
Man, 66, dies in Renton crash

Police say it appears the man had a medical episode; officers identify stolen vehicle backed up in traffic

Tacos from the Mariners Food Preview Event. Ben Ray / The Reporter
Mariners unveil new ballpark eats for 2024 season

A couple of our reporters headed to T-Mobile Park to see if the Mariners’ food budget was as tight as their player free agency budget.

t
Police arrest suspect in shooting of two men in Federal Way

On March 20, officers arrested a 52-year-old Federal Way man.

Courtesy of Sound Transit
Stride Bus Rapid Transit Line on I-405 corridor.
Future Renton, Tukwila transit centers get millions in federal funding

The rapid bus transit centers are intended to help reduce congestion along the I-405 corridor.

t
Auburn Food Bank officially opens new home

$800,000 anonymous gift gives the food bank about five times as much space.

Ideal Option treatment center and lab building. (Photo courtesy of Ideal Option)
New addiction treatment center opens in Renton

Overdose deaths see record numbers in King County.

t
One dead, one injured in Federal Way shootings

Federal Way Police say they have found a connection between the two incidents.

File Photo
KC Sheriff’s Office sues over Burien encampment ban

Office of Law Enforcement Oversight director calls Burien’s ordinance “unconstitutional.”

The state Capitol Building in Olympia. FILE PHOTO
Legislature OKs initiatives on police pursuits, income tax, parental rights

Few restrictions on police pursuits; income tax prohibited; parental rights clarified