SAN ANTONIO -- The parents of a 19-year-old soldier say their son was killed senselessly by a Bexar County Sheriff’s deputy.
According to sheriff spokesperson Louis Antu, Jose Alberto Guerra, also known as Joe, was walking along Culebra Road near FM 1560 around 1:30 a.m. Sunday, when he was approached by Sergeant Frank Bellino. Antu said the teen was acting suspicious and even erratic when the deputy shot him several times in self defense. But, Guerra’s father said “acting out of control” would have been “acting out of character” for his son.
“There are hundreds of people who would attest to my son's character," explained dad Joe Guerra. "He was a very meek, very humble, very sweet-spirited boy. He had a heart of gold, and he would give you the shirt off his back."
Above all, Guerra said his son had great respect for his country, which is why he was serving as a private first class in the army. He also had aspirations of serving his community.
“He was waiting one more year so he could become eligible to take the test, to the test for the San Antonio Police Department,” Guerra told us.
Guerra said his son had wanted to be a police officer ever since he could remember. The teen was pronounced dead at University Hospital hours after he was shot Sunday. But the family was not notified until Monday.
“Evidently, it takes almost 36 hours for anyone to be notified that their son has been murdered, murdered by a 26-year veteran. This coward found it necessary to use deadly force against my unarmed 19-year-old son,” said Guerra.
As the family now starts the process of planning for young Joe’s funeral, Joe Sr. said he wanted to make it clear that no uniformed sheriff’s deputies were welcome at the services.
