Alexander, an African-American, died October 22, 2005, at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas after being treated for injuries sustained five days earlier, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his M2 Bradley in the city of Samarra.

A 1989 graduate of Chilton County High School, Alexander spent two years working as a construction labourer before joining the military as Desert Storm began.

The United States media noted this death above many others, as it was the 2,000th since the start of active combat, a number generally recognized as significant.

In contrast, the Pentagon downplayed the death — Lt. Col. Steven Boylan, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Iraq, told the Associated Press that "the 2,000 service members killed in Iraq supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom is not a milestone, it is an artificial mark on the wall set by individuals or groups with specific agendas and ulterior motives.

Immediately following the report of his death, six hundred anti-war protests and candlelight vigils were held in the United States on October 26, 2005.