José Alberto Laurel Almonacid died that day at 12:15 hours, at the intersection of Avenida España and Salvador Sanfuentes, due to a gunshot wound to the cranium with an exit wound, as certified by his Death Certificate.

According to eyewitnesses who were with José Laurel, he was shot in the head from a distance of two meters by an individual dressed in civilian clothing, in a vacant lot located at Avenida España and Salvador Sanfuentes. Moments earlier, the stranger had reprimanded them because they were throwing stones at each other and bothering passersby, which had sparked an argument.

Carabineros from the Eighth Precinct, who arrived at the scene for the standard procedure, did not arrest the perpetrator of the shooting, who was still present. According to the statements provided by José Laurel's companions, the individual was a member of the Armed Forces dressed in civilian clothes.

The eyewitnesses stated that they were pressured to testify that the shooting had been accidental at a Military Prosecutor's Office where they were summoned to testify. Despite their efforts, the family members were never able to verify if the events had actually been investigated, nor could they learn the results of that investigation or the identity of the person allegedly involved in the events.

Information from the Legal Medical Institute indicates that it sent José Laurel's Autopsy Protocol to the Second Military Prosecutor's Office of Santiago; however, when this Corporation requested the investigation file from the Second Military Court of Santiago, it reported that the proceedings instructed by wartime Tribunals had been destroyed by fire in an attack.

Consequently, this Corporation was also unable to verify the existence of an investigation that would have established the identity of the shooter or determined his responsibility in the death of José Laurel.

The Superior Council, considering in particular the circumstance that the investigation fell under the jurisdiction of a Military Tribunal—which leads to the presumption of the involvement of individuals from that jurisdiction in the events—reached the conviction that José Alberto Laurel Almonacid died as a result of an act of abuse of power by a State agent who acted out of personal motives and to whom the authorities granted impunity, such that it was impossible to pursue or verify his responsibility for a grave act such as the deprivation of a person's life.

For this reason, it declared him a victim of human rights violations.