'King Of The Hill' Star's Husband Claims He Was Killed By Neighbor In Homophobic Attack

Tristan Kern de Gonzales, the husband of slain actor Jonathan Joss, says his death was homophobic hate crime.

Joss, best known as the voice of John Redcorn on King of the Hill and his recurring role as Chief Ken Hotate on Parks and Recreation, was fatally shot over the weekend near his home in San Antonio.

Witnesses reported that Joss and the suspect in his murder, neighbor Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez, were in a "heated argument" at the time of the shooting. Ceja Alvarez has been charged with murder.

In a Facebook post on Joss's account, Kern de Gonzales said the shooting came after years of harassment by Ceja Alvarez, who "did not accept" his and Joss's relationship.

In his Facebook post, Kern de Gonzales wrote:

"We reported these threats to law enforcement multiple times and nothing was done."

"Throughout that time, we were harassed regularly by individuals who made it clear they did not accept our relationship. Much of the harassment was openly homophobic."

Police records show that law enforcement was called to Joss' home dozens of times over the years leading up to his murder.

Joss' home had burned down in January, which Kern de Gonzales attributed to the harassment:

"That home was burned down after over two years of threats from people in the area who repeatedly told us they would set it on fire."

Neighbors, however, tell a different story, telling local media that Joss was "erratic," a "bad neighbor" and was frequently heard screaming in the street. That behavior seems to have been part of what sparked the altercation with Ceja Alvarez

Kern de Gonzales explained in his Facebook post that while visiting the site of their former home to get the mail, they saw the skull and harness of one of their dogs that died in the house fire, which they found distressing and "began yelling and crying."

That behavior seems to have been part of what sparked the altercation with Ceja Alvarez. Kern de Gonzales said they were approached by Ceja Alvarez as they were crying over their dog, who called them "homophobic slurs" before opening fire.

A neighbor who spoke to the media, on the other hand, blamed Joss for his own murder. In a statement that seems to corroborate the hostile environment Kern de Gonzales describes, the neighbor told local media that Ceja Alvarez killed Joss because he was "fed up" with his "antics."

Kern de Gonzales seemed to obliquely reference this characterization in his Facebook post, writing:

"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."

On social media, people were deeply disturbed by the incident and the attitude shown toward Joss and Kern de Gonzalez by their neighbors and people online.

San Antonio police say there is no evidence that the murder was motivated by Joss's sexual orientation, but that the investigation is ongoing.

As for Kern de Gonzales, he stated that his "focus now is on protecting Jonathan’s legacy and honoring the life we built together."