The Shreveport police officer charged in the death of Alonzo Bagley, an unarmed Black man, was previously suspended twice in the same year, according to documents obtained by CNN. Earlier this month, Officer Alexander Tyler was placed on administrative leave after he was charged with negligent homicide for fatally shooting Bagley in the chest.
On Feb. 3, Tyler, 23, and another cop responded to a domestic disturbance call at an apartment complex in the Shreveport, Louisiana area. When law enforcement arrived, Bagley jumped from the balcony and attempted to flee, state police reported. Bodycam footage of the incident released by authorities on Feb. 17 showed Tyler in a short pursuit of Bagley. Once he found him, he shot Bagley in the chest. Last week, Tyler’s attorney Dhu Thompson spoke with the news site and stated that he hopes the video is reviewed carefully and that, “a decision is made based on facts and evidence.”
“Officers are always faced on a day-to-day basis with dangerous situations like that and at times where they have to make split-second decisions where they’re in a potential life-threatening situation,” Thompson added.
The 450-plus pages of personal files obtained revealed that Tyler previously served a total of 30 days on suspension during his 21-month tenure with the Shreveport Police Department. His first suspension occurred in November 2022 and was followed by a second one in December, just a month later. Tyler’s November suspension was for “conduct that is unbecoming during an incident that occurred in September 2022,” the records showed. As a result, he was suspended without pay for 15 days. The 23-year-old received an additional 15 days of suspension. However, the documents did not elaborate on why.
In February 2022, Tyler was transferred to a new patrol area and shift before both suspensions after a “personnel action notice” was issued. Later that year, Shreveport Police Internal Affairs opened an investigation into Tyler after they received a complaint that he allegedly “violated department policy related to vehicle pursuits and operation of in-car cameras, as well as state law related to speed limits during a pursuit” on July 23, 2022. Last week, after Tyler was charged with Bagley’s death, Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith spoke with the news channel about his fellow officer.
“Disciplinary-wise, I would not say he has been a disciplinary issue, or at least not to the point where things would rise on our radar,” Smith said. “We do have a procedure in place called an early warning system when an officer gets so many incidents that [it’s] brought to our attention. His history with our department had not reached the level where the early warning system would have picked it up and brought him in front of our radar.”
According to his files, Tyler has no previous law enforcement experience in Louisiana, nor was he a part of the military. His highest level of education is graduating high school. Bagley’s family has since filed a federal wrongful death suit against Tyler, seeking over $10 million in damages. The lawsuit alleges that the officer violated Bagley’s Fourth Amendment rights.