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.
