A 22-year-old man was shot and killed by Cody police on Monday night after he allegedly led officers on a pursuit and then "advanced toward" them with a knife.

The deceased, Lucas James-Erick Alvesteffer, had previously lived in Cody and Michigan, but had more recently been living in Gillette, records show.

The Cody Police Department said the roughly 15-minute-long encounter began at 8:02 p.m. Monday, when an officer attempted to pull Alvesteffer over in the 2600 block of West Avenue.

Court records show Campbell County authorities had been seeking Alvesteffer’s arrest for months. Prosecutors allege he battered his fiance in March and then failed to show up for an April sentencing hearing related to previously battering the woman.

However, police say those warrants didn’t factor into Monday’s shooting: Cody Police Lt. Juston Wead said his department didn’t learn Alvesteffer’s identity until after the incident was over; Wead said an officer initially tried to stop the truck because he’d noticed it had no registration.

Alvesteffer reportedly refused to pull over and continued driving. Wead said the truck did not reach high speeds, describing it as “just a pursuit, failure to yield situation.”

Alvesteffer eventually made his way onto the Greybull Highway (U.S. Highway 14/16/20E). He was about 3 miles east of city limits when police say his truck apparently broke down.

Alvesteffer didn’t respond to officers’ commands to exit the vehicle, Cody police said in a Wednesday news release, so they “cautiously” approached and opened the passenger side door.

Alvesteffer continued to be “non-compliant,” so an officer reached into the vehicle from the passenger side in an attempt to detain him, police said. At that point, “Alvesteffer produced a knife in an aggressive manner,” according to the release.

The officer who’d reached inside began to retreat, police said, while Alvesteffer “started to exit the vehicle and advanced toward the officers.”

One of the Cody police officers — not the one who’d reached into the vehicle — then shot Alvesteffer, Wead said.

An ambulance was dispatched at 8:17 p.m., but Alvesteffer died at the scene. No officers were injured.

The Greybull Highway was closed around milepost 58 from shortly after the shooting until 6:30 a.m. Tuesday as a result of the incident, the Park County Sheriff’s Office said.

Pending warrants

Though Cody police didn’t know it at the time, court records show Alvesteffer had pending legal trouble that dated back to a July 2024 arrest in Gillette. His then-pregnant fiance told Gillette police that Alvesteffer had grabbed her by the hair, thrown her around, struck her in the face and made it hard for her to breathe by pressing on her neck and mouth.

In late January, Alvesteffer pleaded guilty to a felony count of aggravated assault and battery on a pregnant woman, admitting he’d recklessly struck his fiance in the face and neck several times. Under a deal with Campbell County prosecutors, Alvesteffer was set to receive three years of supervised probation.

Alvesteffer was allowed to resume contact with his fiance while awaiting sentencing, but Campbell County District Judge Matt Castano warned Alvesteffer that “rarely does something happening between a change of plea and a sentencing work out well for the defendant.”

“So now’s the time to make sure that you are abiding by all of the restrictions that are on you,” Castano said at the Jan. 22 hearing.

About two months later, Alvesteffer’s fiance reported that he had battered her again, charging documents say.

Gillette police immediately attempted to find Alvesteffer, but he reportedly fled, allegedly running out of a dentist’s office during a March 10 appointment. A warrant was issued days later on two misdemeanor charges of domestic battery.

Campbell County prosecutors also announced they would no longer be honoring the plea deal in the still-pending felony case — meaning prison time was potentially back on the table.

Another warrant followed after Alvesteffer failed to respond to inquiries from a probation and parole agent and was a no-show at an April sentencing hearing.

His $50,000 surety bond was forfeited to the state government in May and Alvesteffer remained at large until Monday night.

DCI investigation

As a part of the department’s standard procedures, the Cody officer who shot Alvesteffer has been placed on paid administrative leave, and the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) is handling the investigation of the incident.

In a Tuesday news release, DCI said it will conduct “an objective and thorough investigation of the shooting and surrounding circumstances.”

“All available resources will be made available to Agents conducting this investigation to ensure the facts of what happened are collected in a timely, accurate and thorough manner,” the release said. 

The division’s findings will ultimately be provided to Park County Attorney Bryan Skoric for his review.

In a Tuesday morning Facebook post, Rep. Rachel Rodriguez-Williams, R-Cody, said she was “praying for all of the law enforcement personnel that responded, the family of the decedent, and first responders impacted by the [officer-involved shooting].”

“May God continue to watch over and protect our brothers and sisters in blue that serve our community,” Rodriguez-Williams wrote. 

Witnesses to the incident — including those with video footage or photographs — are asked to contact DCI at 307-777-7181.

(Editor's note: This story has been updated multiple times as additional information became available.)