Cops investigating the murder of Jonathan Joss have told the Daily Beast that the King of the Hill star did not make a single report of being threatened before his death, contradicting his husband’s claims that they made “multiple” complaints which went ignored.
Joss, 59, was gunned down Sunday during a confrontation with his neighbor, Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez, with whom the voice actor had allegedly been feuding.
In the aftermath, Joss’s grieving husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales used the star’s Facebook page to claim the pair had been “harassed regularly by individuals [who were] openly homophobic,” suggesting Joss’ sexual orientation played a role in his murder.
A police source told the Daily Beast that the force had found no evidence that prejudice had played a part in the killing, and that homophobia had not featured in its report sent to the District Attorney.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source said: “We have found no evidence of homophobia as a motive during our investigation of this tragic incident.
“If that changes in the course of the investigation, our detectives will, of course, inform the District Attorney.”
The San Antonio Police Department cast doubt on such claims in a June 2 statement posted to X, writing, “Despite online claims of this being a hate crime, currently the investigation has found no evidence to indicate that ... Mr. Joss’s murder was related to his sexual orientation.”
However, in a Thursday press conference update, the police department appeared to wildly change its tune as Chief of Police William P. McManus apologized for releasing a statement on Joss’ case before a full investigation. McManus called the statement “way, way, way premature.”
“It was way too early in the process for any statement of that nature to have been issued” he added. “I will own that.”
Addressing calls for Joss’ murder to be treated as a hate crime, McManus explained during the brief update, which lasted around 7 minutes, that “hate crimes” are not treated as separate charges in Texas.
“Instead they are addressed through sentencing enhancements,” McManus said. “A hate crime designation can be attached to a charge and elevated.”
In his Facebook post, Kern de Gonzales alleged that Joss’ shooter had been “yelling violent homophobic slurs at us” before he shot Joss—who voiced John Redcorn in the popular and long-running animated show King of the Hill—in what he later described as a “hate crime.”
He added, “We reported these threats to law enforcement multiple times and nothing was done,” saying the home was burned down “after over two years of threats from people in the area who repeatedly told us they would set it on fire.”
The Daily Beast has attempted to reach Mr Kern de Gonzales for comment.
A spokesperson for San Antonio Police Department said in a statement issued to the Daily Beast Wednesday: “The San Antonio Police Department has responded to Mr. Joss’s residence over 70 times in the last two years for various incidents. None of these incidents involved reports of threats of any kind.”
Alvarez—who police said immediately admitted to shooting Joss—has been charged with murder and released under house arrest on a $200,000 bond, with a pre-trial hearing set for August 19.
He posted on his own Facebook account Wednesday: “Am I surprised the police investigated themselves and found out they did nothing wrong? Am I surprised they released my husband’s killer after I spoke out about them? No.
“I have no faith in the criminal justice system. I only have faith that those outside a uniform who loved my husband will see to justice that doesn’t cost the American taxpayers.”
Kern de Gonzales also posted a TikTok video the same day in which in which he said he “won’t stop talking about this.”
“I’m not going to let the SAPD or anyone else silence the fact that this was a hate crime, and I just won’t be silenced.”
Chief William. P. McManus will on Thursday evening attend a neighborhood forum featuring San Antonio Pride.
The police source said the force had decided to speak out, including releasing this statement to the Daily Beast, to reassure the public that it was handling the investigation sensitively and properly.
