HOUSTON (AP) — A grand jury in Texas has indicted the man accused of killing “King of the Hill” voice actor Jonathan Joss on a murder charge.
But it is unclear whether Joss’ killing will be considered a hate crime. Police in San Antonio did not immediately return an email seeking comment Wednesday on whether its investigation had determined that Joss’ sexual orientation played a role in his shooting, and the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the matter.
Police allege Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez, 57, confronted Joss and his husband on June 1 as they were checking their mail at their San Antonio home, which had been burned down in January.
Joss’ husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, has claimed the person who killed the actor yelled “violent homophobic slurs” before opening fire.
Ceja Alvarez’s attorneys did not immediately return emails seeking comment Wednesday.
In June, Alfonso Otero, one of Ceja Alvarez’s attorneys, said his client was innocent and denied making any homophobic statements.
The grand jury returned the indictment Monday, and Ceja Alvarez remains free on a $200,000 bond.
A friend of the 59-year-old Joss has said that Joss and Ceja Alvarez were neighbors and the two had argued for years.
Initially, San Antonio police had said there was no evidence indicating the shooting was related to Joss’ sexual orientation. But San Antonio Police Chief William McManus later walked back that statement, saying it had been “premature” and that whether Joss’ sexual orientation played a role in the shooting was “part of the investigation.”
The district attorney’s office said in a statement Wednesday that Ceja Alvarez “is charged with murder, which is the most serious charge applicable to this crime under Texas law. As the case is still pending, no additional details or information can be released at this time.”
Under Texas law, a hate crime — if there’s a conviction — would be handled as an enhancement during sentencing and not as a separate charge.
Joss was the voice of John Redcorn, a Native American character on the popular “King of the Hill” animated series, which ran for 13 seasons from 1997 to 2008. A reboot of the show, which Joss had already worked on, premiered in August.
Joss also had a recurring role on the television show “Parks and Recreation,” playing Chief Ken Hotate. He appeared in two episodes of the series “Tulsa King” in 2022.
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Follow Juan A. Lozano: https://x.com/juanlozano70
