Police Chief Regrets Saying There Was No Evidence Jonathan Joss' Death Was Hate Crime

Yahoo

06-06-2025

The San Antonio Police Department is walking back statements made while investigating the death of actor Jonathan Joss, noting that it had been premature to say there was 'no evidence' the shooting was a hate crime.
Joss, known for his roles on 'King of the Hill' and 'Parks and Recreation,' was shot and killed during an encounter with a former neighbor on Sunday night. The admission from police comes after scrutinization for their handling of the case. They had been accused of ignoring long-standing threats of violence that Joss and his husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, said they had faced.
The shooting, according to a Facebook post from de Gonzales, followed years of harassment and took place after a man — identified by police as Sigfredo Alvarez Ceja — hurled 'violent homophobic slurs' at the couple.
In a Monday statement on X, San Antonio police pushed back on de Gonzales' claims.
'Despite online claims of this being a hate crime, currently the investigation has found no evidence to indicate that the Mr. Joss's murder was related to his sexual orientation,' the department wrote.
San Antonio Police Chief William McManus admitted in a Thursday press conference, however, that the department's prior statement was 'way, way, way premature.'
'Shouldn't have done it, it was way too soon before we had any real information,' he told reporters in a press briefing. 'It was way too early in the process for any statement of that nature to be issued.'
McManus said officers were continuing their investigation and looking into if Joss' sexual orientation played a role in the attack.
He also explained that hate crimes are not treated as separate charges in Texas and are 'enhancements' on an existing charge that would be added during the sentencing process.
'We don't charge with hate crimes, we gather the facts and we give those facts to the District Attorney's office and then that hate crime designation is determined at sentencing,' McManus said.
Joss was shot while he and de Gonzales were returning to their former neighborhood to pick up mail, according to de Gonzales' statement on Facebook. The two visited the site of their old home, which had burned down, and were crying in response to seeing a dog's skull, believed to be one of their pets, 'placed in clear view,' he said.
As they were crying, their former neighbor, Ceja, allegedly confronted them, yelled homophobic slurs and pulled out his gun, fatally shooting Joss.
Ceja has reportedly confessed to police, stating after the incident, 'I shot him.'
Joss' death followed years of threats from Ceja and other neighbors, says de Gonzales, who noted that the couple was 'harassed regularly by individuals who made it clear they did not accept our relationship.' McManus said police were also investigating the fire that burned down Joss' home, a blaze the actor had previously accused Ceja of starting.
'People in the area… repeatedly told us they would set it on fire,' de Gonzales wrote. 'We reported these threats to law enforcement multiple times and nothing was done.'
McManus noted that police had a record of conflict between Joss and his neighbors and that they had received 70 calls over the last two years about related disturbances.
'Sometimes [Joss] was the caller, other times the neighbors were calling on him,' McManus said, adding that police repeatedly mediated conflicts between parties in the area.
Joss was the longtime voice of John Redcorn in 'King of the Hill,' and was also known for his role as Chief Ken Hotate on 'Parks and Recreation.'
The Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ rights advocacy group, called on Tuesday for a 'complete investigation' of Joss' death.
'We know the heaviness and fear that comes with seeing reports of anti-LGBTQ+ violence in your social media feeds. We feel it too,' the group wrote in a Blue Sky post.