Police investigating the shooting death of actor Jonathan Joss have not ruled out his sexual orientation playing a role in his killing, despite an earlier statement suggesting otherwise.
During a dispute Sunday night near his San Antonio, Texas home, Joss was shot and killed; a neighbor, identified by investigators as Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez, was taken into custody and charged with murder.
Following Joss’ death, the King of the Hill voice actor’s husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, said on social media that they were approached by the neighbor who began yelling homophobic slurs and fired his gun. “Jonathan and I had no weapons. We were not threatening anyone,” said de Gonzales. “We were standing side by side. When the man fired, Jonathan pushed me out of the way. He saved my life.”
The day after Joss’ killing, the San Antonio police wrote on social media that “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.” However, during a press conference Thursday, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said that statement was “premature.”
“I will own that and simply say again that we simply shouldn’t have done that. It was way too early in the process for any statement of that nature to be issued,” McManus said, adding that authorities are investigating the actor’s sexual orientation as a possible motive.
“The loss of Jonathan Joss was tragic, most heavily felt by the LGBTQ+ community,” McManus said (via the Associated Press). “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.”
Joss’ King of the Hill and Parks and Recreation co-stars and creators paid tribute to the actor following news of his death. King of the Hill’s co-creators, Mike Judge and Greg Daniels, and revival showrunner Saladin Patterson shared a post on Instagram alongside images of Joss and his character, John Redcorn. “Jonathan brought King of the Hill’s ‘John Redcorn’ to life for over a dozen seasons, including in the upcoming revival,” they wrote. “His voice will be missed at King of the Hill, and we extend our deepest condolences to Jonathan’s friends and family.”
