Boulder’s Police Oversight Panel has determined that a use-of-force complaint related to the December 2023 fatal shooting of Jeanette Alatorre by two city officers was unfounded.
Alatorre was shot and killed after a resident leaving the North Boulder Recreation Center reported that she had pointed what appeared to be a gun at him. According to footage of the incident, she ignored officers’ commands to drop the weapon and walked onto nearby residential streets. Officers fired less-lethal bean bags, but they appeared to have no effect. She was later shot eight times with a rifle and died at the scene. The weapon was later identified as an air pistol designed to resemble a 9mm handgun.
The oversight panel reviewed a complaint from a community member alleging that officers shot Alatorre in the back, a claim the complaint said conflicted with the autopsy report, according to a report by the city’s independent police monitor.
While the panel deemed the complaint unfounded, it recommended that the police department strengthen its commitment to de-escalation. It suggested incorporating de-escalation metrics into officer performance evaluations and urged the department to “take opportunities to recognize, celebrate, and reward officers for exceptional de-escalation.”
Last year, the Boulder County District Attorney declined to file charges against the officers, stating they were “legally justified” in using deadly force due to an “imminent risk of death or great bodily injury” to officers and bystanders. The officers said they believed the gun was real.
The shooting is also at the center of a lawsuit over the city’s fees for access to body camera footage. A recent court ruling found that Boulder cannot charge fees for body camera footage in cases of alleged officer misconduct under Colorado’s 2020 police accountability law. The city has appealed, and the case is now before the Colorado Court of Appeals.