Officer Gilbert Richard Chavez was 22 when he and a partner were dispatched to a radiator business on June 16, 1975 after an anonymous tip reported a burglary in progress. The officers confronted two juvenile suspects inside; a struggle followed and a 16-year-old shot Chavez near the heart. Chavez radioed for help but died of his wound. He had served with the Phoenix Police Department for one year.

Both suspects were taken into custody. The 16-year-old was convicted of murder and assault with a deadly weapon and sentenced to life; he was paroled in 2000 and, according to later records, received a 56-year prison term for new violent crimes in 2004 and remained incarcerated as of late 2022. The 17-year-old was convicted of second-degree murder and burglary, given 15 to 25 years, and paroled on August 17, 1981.

Are there family members, colleagues, or witnesses who remember Officer Chavez or the night of June 16, 1975 and can share what they recall?