NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas – A New Braunfels teenager who was shot and killed inside his home on Easter was involved in another family violence incident before he was killed, records show.
New Braunfels police issued a news release Monday morning, saying they had arrested Felix Antonio Nieves’ stepfather, George Coryell, 46, in connection with the killing of the teen.
“You have an unarmed 17-year-old who's killed by a 46-year-old with a shotgun. To us, that equals a murder charge,” said David Ferguson, a spokesman for the New Braunfels Police Department.
The news release said Coryell fired a shotgun just after 7 a.m., hitting Nieves twice and killing him inside their home in the 2400 block of Dove Crossing.
Police spent hours investigating the case and determined that Nieves had been involved in a fight with his mother before he was shot.
“The mother pulled out a hand-held stun gun device that Nieves was then able to wrestle away from her,” Ferguson said. “He then used that device on his mother several times."
Police believe Coryell witnessed the incident, then took matters into his own hands after the fighting had died down.
“(Coryell) withdrew a .45-caliber handgun from a nearby nightstand, attempted to fire it unsuccessfully, then retrieved a double barreled, 12-gauge shotgun and fired twice," Ferguson said.
Police said Nieves was no longer using or holding the stun gun or any other weapon when he was shot.
The deadly shooting appears to be the latest episode of violence involving Nieves and his family. Police declined to comment on Nieves’ prior history.
However, Guadalupe County jail records show the teen was arrested last October on a charge of aggravated assault. Additional online records indicate the arrest specifically had to do with family assault.