Family of man fatally shot in Steilacoom says he had boundless energy, ‘daredevil’ spirit
A 19-year-old man who was gunned down earlier this month while on a date with a woman in Steilacoom was identified Wednesday. Relatives of the victim described him as a man who had boundless energy and the personality of a daredevil.
Alexander Shaw of Steilacoom died of multiple gunshot wounds near the 1900 block of Commercial Street, according to a news release from the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office. His death was ruled a homicide. A former boyfriend of the woman Shaw was with has been charged with murder, attempted murder and assault in the Nov. 5 shooting, which seriously injured the 22-year-old woman.
Shaw’s mother, Cheryl Alatorre Bautista, said Tuesday that she has been surrounded by family since her son’s death and that the loss has been difficult for all of them.
“It’s just, it’s still so surreal for all of us,” Alatorre Bautista said. “We just keep thinking he’s going to walk in the door, but we know that’s not real. We know that he’s gone.”
Shaw was born and raised in the Tacoma area, family members told The News Tribune. Shaw attended Steilacoom High School, where he played soccer and football. He also enjoyed fishing. Shaw’s mother said he was studying mechatronics at Clover Park Technical College, and he would have earned his associate’s degree next spring. He was the youngest of three brothers and one sister, and he was the father to a 2-year-old girl named Lavender.
Police from multiple law enforcement agencies began investigating the morning after the shooting when Shaw’s parents found him in the driver’s seat of a car at the end of Commercial Street. Shaw was pronounced dead at the scene. Further investigation found that a woman was dropped off at St. Joseph’s Medical Center that night with a gunshot wound. According to court records, surveillance footage showed the woman’s former boyfriend dropping her off and leaving without speaking to hospital staff.
According to a Town of Steilacoom news release, the woman underwent intensive surgery and her condition has since stabilized.
Shaw’s brother, Thomas, said his brother was part of a big family that was very close. Every Saturday a group of seven to nine cousins would get together to spend time with one another, barbecue and play games like Uno or watch movies. One cousin, Terry Kelly, said he misses Shaw’s wild energy. He said the man only lived on two speeds in life — really fast or really slow. Shaw could also be caring, Kelly said. He said Shaw would be the first person to call one of their younger cousins if that person was in trouble.
Thomas Shaw shared a TikTok video of his brother made around the Fourth of July that he said was an example of what his brother was like. It showed Shaw running around a parking lot with a Roman candle-like firework in his hand while the “Jackass” theme song plays over it. Nearby, family and friends called his name and laughed.
“Sometimes it’s a little hard to handle, but, you know, it’s my little brother,” Thomas Shaw, 30, said. “It probably wouldn’t be a party without him.”
