By Joanna Putman
Police1
SALINAS, Calif. — A Salinas man has been convicted on all charges for the killing of Officer Jorge “JD” Alvarado, KSBW reported.
Gustavo Morales shot and killed Alvarado on Feb. 25, 2022, during a traffic stop. Morales pulled over, immediately got out of his car and shot Alvarado while he was still in his patrol car, according to the report.
Gustavo Morales shot and killed Alvarado on Feb. 25, 2022 during a traffic stop. (Officer Down Memorial Page)
Morales testified that he was acting in self-defense, thinking that Alvarado would have killed him if he had seen the loaded firearm in his car.
“It was him or me. That’s how I saw the situation,” Morales said. “If I didn’t act in that moment, that was my last chance to save myself.”
The prosecution testified that Morales was drunk driving on a suspended license, was on probation and was carrying a loaded gun.
Morales was convicted of first-degree murder, shooting at an occupied motor vehicle, assault on a peace officer with a semiautomatic firearm, unlawful firearm possession and carrying a loaded firearm, according to the report. He faces life in prison without parole.
Alvarado’s older brother, Jorge Ernesto Alvarado, served at the same department. He died off-duty last month due to a medical emergency.
