King of the Hill star Jonathan Joss has died aged 59 after a neighbor fatally shot him during an argument, police have said.
The actor appeared in numerous TV shows, including Parks and Recreation, Ray Donovan and Tulsa King, but his most well-known role was that of John Redcorn on the long-running and popular cartoon show.
According to San Antonio Police, Joss is said to have gotten into a dispute with his neighbor, Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez, on Sunday (June 1), which led to Alvarez, 56, shooting Joss.
Variety reports that police were called to respond to a shooting on Sunday at around 7pm, where they found the 59-year-old at the side of the road after being shot numerous times. He was later pronounced dead at the scene.
Alvarez was taken into custody shortly after the incident and has since been charged with murder, the San Antonio Police Department confirmed on Monday (June 2).
Police have not yet revealed what led to the disagreement; however, Joss’s husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, has since taken to Facebook to share his version of events.
Jonathan Joss (right) in Parks and Recreation (Ben Cohen/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)
He wrote: “Jonathan and I had no weapons. We were not threatening anyone. We were grieving. We were standing side by side. When the man fired, Jonathan pushed me out of the way. He saved my life.
“Jonathan is my husband. He gave me more love in our time together than most people ever get. We were newlyweds. We picked Valentines Day.
“We were in the process of looking for a trailer and planning our future.”
Kern de Gonzales had previously described the incident as a hate crime, claiming that the couple were allegedly harassed because they were gay.
He alleged: “He started yelling violent homophobic slurs at us. He then raised a gun from his lap and fired.”
According to The New York Times, Kern de Gonzales further claimed that the couple had reported the alleged harassment to the authorities several times; however, it apparently continued.
In a statement released on Twitter, San Antonio Police said that ‘no evidence’ had yet been found to indicate the dispute had been due to Joss’s sexual orientation.
Jonathan Joss played John Redcorn (left) on King of the Hill (20th Century Fox)
They said: “SAPD Homicide is currently investigating the murder of Mr. Jonathan Joss. 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.
“SAPD investigators handle these allegations very seriously and have thoroughly reviewed all available information. Should any new evidence come to light, the suspect will be charged accordingly.”
Kern de Gonzales said that his focus is now on ‘protecting Jonathan’s legacy and honoring the life we built together’.
He continued: “If your concern is how someone coped with trauma or how loudly they speak when recounting injustice and being ignored by authorities then you never truly cared about my husband.
“Jonathan saved my life. I will carry that forward. I will protect what he built.”
