A sheriff’s SWAT sergeant responded to a shooting at a Denver-area high school while drunk, according to an internal investigation his agency conducted.
Anthony Hamilton, who has since resigned from the Jefferson County sheriff’s office, told investigating deputies he started drinking around 7 a.m. on Sept. 10 and had “maybe nine or 10 beers” before arriving at Evergreen High School. He was off duty at the time but decided to respond anyway.
In the attack starting around 12:30 p.m., 16-year-old Desmond Holly shot two other students before turning his gun on himself. He died; the two others survived.
Deputies responded immediately but Hamilton arrived at the scene about an hour late, according to investigative documents obtained by the Denver Post. In a series of interviews, fellow first responders reported that Hamilton appeared intoxicated in the way he walked and that he had bloodshot eyes and smelled of alcohol. He was wearing sunglasses inside and drinking coffee during an unusual time, they reported.
When he arrived, Hamilton directed a team to begin “randomly clearing rooms” that weren’t part of his assignment. Fellow deputies told investigators Hamilton was acting strange and “checked out” and was actively avoiding other first responders.
Hamilton’s commander said that he was surprised to see Hamilton at the scene that day because the sergeant had recently asked to be “offline” for a few days “to take care of family issues,” according to a summary of the investigation.
Hamilton told officials he had decided to respond because the school shooting was “pretty significant” and “he knew his team would need help.”
“He said that was the wrong decision, stating ‘That was the reason why, and I regret few things in my life more,’” according to the investigative documents.
He said he had gone to bed around 2 or 3 a.m. and started drinking “pretty much right away” when he woke up. He estimated his last drink was at 11 a.m.
In an emailed statement, a sheriff’s spokesman said that after the internal investigation, Hamilton resigned “in lieu of termination.”
“The Evergreen High School shooting was a tragic event for our community, and we are proud of the professionalism and dedication shown by the deputies and partner agencies who responded that day,” Mark Techmeyer wrote. “During the aftermath of the incident, our agency learned that a sergeant on the SWAT Team who responded to the scene while off duty was under the influence of alcohol. This conduct falls far outside the standards and expectations of the Sheriff’s Office.”
The internal investigation began nearly two weeks after the incident and was first reported by Denver7.