Anthony Alvarez

COPA Releases Full Report on Fatal Police Shooting of Anthony Alvarez

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Chicago's Civilian Office of Police Accountability on Wednesday released the full report of its investigation into the fatal police shooting of Anthony Alvarez in March 2021, more than a month after the Chicago Police Board's one-member review sided with Supt. David Brown on lesser discipline for the officers involved.

The report reveals new details about the shooting, which sparked protests and in part prompted the creation of a new foot pursuit policy that the Chicago Police Department unveiled earlier this year.

While on patrol just after midnight on March 31, 2021, in the city's Portage Park neighborhood, Officers Evan Solano and Sammy Encarnacion spotted 22-year-old Alvarez, who they recognized from prior encounters, including the previous night.

The officers told investigators that they had seen Alvarez the night before, driving a white Jeep with a temporary plate. They said they ran his plate and found his driver's license was suspended. That night, Alvarez drove away and they did not pursue him, per COPA's report.

But the following night, the officers said they spotted him walking northbound on Laramie Avanue slightly south of Addison Street and attempted to stop him because of the suspended license. Once they activated their emergency lights, Alvarez began to run, holding the waistband of his jeans.

The officers followed him in their vehicle before Encarnacion exited the car and began a foot pursuit, Solano doing the same shortly thereafter.

Solano surpassed Encarnacion in the chase through an alley, turning after Alvarez onto Eddy Street. Solano told COPA he saw Alvarez on the ground with a firearm in his right hand and believed he was positioning to shoot them. Solano told Alvarez to drop the gun before firing five shots, striking Alvarez once in the back and once in the leg.

The investigation corroborated that Alvarez had a weapon in his hand, but COPA said in its report that a "reasonable officer should have recognized" that Alvarez "was not an imminent threat," labeling Solano's use of deadly force as "without justification" and in violation of CPD policies.

"Here, the offense for which there was evidence was driving on a suspended license from the day prior, which is minor and not on-going," the report reads, saying it was "not a threat to public safety, unlike a foot pursuit."

The agency added that the officers' training indicated that an arrest on a later date for the "minor, non-violent, traffic crime" may have been a more advisable option, because they knew Alvarez's identity and where he lived.

COPA also said it gave "significant weight to the fact that it was Encarnacion who initiated the foot pursuit," saying it went against his training and was "not reasonably justified, adding that Alvarez's death "was the conclusion that flowed" from that decision to give chase.

The agency also sustained allegations that both officers failed to activate their body-worn cameras in a timely manner, and that they both failed to properly load their firearms.

The report, completed in January of this year, recommended Solano be fired - calling the improper use of deadly force "an egregious act requiring severe consequences." COPA also recommended that Encarnacion receive a "substantial suspension up to and including separation" from the department.

Chicago Police Supt. David Brown disagreed with COPA's finding, instead recommending a 20-day suspension for both officers. That disagreement went to the Chicago Police Board, and in July, the board's one-member review sided with Brown.

In between COPA's recommendation and the Police Board's review, Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx announced in March that neither the officers involved in the shooting of Alvarez, nor those involved in the shooting of 13-year-old Adam Toledo, also during a foot pursuit two days prior, would face criminal charges.

“Based on our investigation, COPA found that the preponderance of the evidence in this case shows that Mr. Alvarez was attempting to flee without the use of force and does not support that his actions were likely to cause death or great bodily harm,” COPA's First Deputy Chief Administrator Ephraim Eaddy said in a statement on Wednesday's release. “COPA firmly stands by our investigation, findings, and recommendation of discipline of Officers Evan Solano and Sammy Encarnacion in this incident."

When reached for comment Wednesday, an attorney for Solano and Encarnacion said the report shows COPA "once again misunderstands the state of the law and police law enforcement use of force."

Chicago police did not respond when asked if the officers have served their suspensions.

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