‘King of the Hill' Star's Shooter ‘Maintains His Innocence'
An attorney for the man accused of killing King of the Hill actor Jonathan Joss said his client 'maintains his innocence.'
Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez, 56, was charged with murder in connection with the fatal June 1 shooting in San Antonio. Alvarez has since been released on bond pending an investigation into the circumstances around the shooting—which the San Antonio Police Department said is still ongoing.
In a statement issued Friday, Alvarez's attorney, Alfonso Otero, urged the public to 'withhold judgment' until all the evidence in the case has been reviewed.
'Mr. Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez maintains his innocence and categorically denies any accusations and statements made against him by individuals and the media,' Otero said in the statement.
Otero added, 'We have confidence and trust that the judicial process will be fair to all parties involved and request everyone to respect Mr. Ceja and his family's right to privacy and his constitutional right to a fair trial.'
A police report obtained by The Daily Beast, however, states that Alvarez told an officer on the scene, 'I shot him.'
Police were called to Joss' address around 7 p.m. having received reports of a shooting in progress. Officers reportedly found Joss near a roadway and started life-saving measures until emergency medical services arrived. He was pronounced dead at the scene, The San Antonio Express-News reported.
In a emotional Facebook post, Joss' husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, subsqeuently claimed the shooting was motivated by Joss' sexuality.
He alleged that Alvarez had been 'yelling violent homophobic slurs at us' before he shot Joss.
While the San Antonio Police Department had previously said they had 'found no evidence to indicate that the Mr. Joss's murder was related to his sexual orientation,' police chief William McManus said during a press conference on June 5 that the statement was 'way, way premature' and should not have been issued.
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