defenders

Using public documents, well-placed sources and shoe-leather reporting, our investigative team finds out what’s really going on and brings the truth to light. Fair. Exact. Smart.

Reporters Dillon Collier and Tim Gerber think you deserve the truth and that the voiceless should be heard. Want to privately share a tip with the Defenders? Email defenders@ksat.com.

1 hour ago

Kerrville nursing home staffer details ‘missteps’ she believes led to deadly COVID-19 outbreak

4 hours ago

Warrant: San Antonio man took money to build new home, never started it

23 hours ago

Ex-Schertz police corporal accused of secretly recording teen faces federal child pornography charges

2 days ago

SAFD chief violated rules by posing for photo of him eating sushi off nude woman, investigation finds

A weeks-long investigation has determined that San Antonio Fire Department Chief Charles Hood violated SAFD rules and regulations when he was photographed eating sushi of...

2 days ago

Angry messages, some threats followed San Antonio’s hate speech resolution, records show

The enraged, often hate-filled messages were among more than 400 received by the mayor and council member’s offices in the days after they unanimously passed a resolution...

3 days ago

Bexar County employee promoted on same day co-worker she testified against was handed proposed termination

A Bexar County employee was promoted to a senior analyst position this summer, the same day officials handed a proposed termination to a co-worker she had recently testif...

Complaints detail ‘aggressive’ behavior from municipal court supervisor toward people she works with

A San Antonio Municipal Court supervisor was twice reported to court administration on allegations that she acted aggressively toward people she works with, personnel rec...

Complaint: SAFD district chief asked about woman’s breast size, likened room of women to ‘lesbian softball team’

A district chief with the San Antonio Fire Department asked if a female applicant had big breasts and described a room of women at a promotional event as ‘like a damn les...

Schertz cop in Zekee Rayford arrest previously suspended for botched arrest, records show

Personnel records obtained by the KSAT Defenders turned up a discipline history for one of the officers involved with Zekee Rayford's arrest.

SAFD district chief suspended for inappropriate comments during female firefighter job recommendation

Years-old comments from a district chief with the San Antonio Fire Department have led to him being handed a 15-day suspension, city records released to the KSAT 12 Defen...

SAFD firefighter suspended 90 days after writing ‘F--- the police’ on Facebook

A San Antonio firefighter who wrote "F--- the police" multiple times in a lengthy Facebook post in late August has been suspended 90 days without pay, SAFD suspension rec...

Bexar County hires ombudsperson following string of complaints from employees

Change in venue granted in theft trial for husband of Guadalupe County District Clerk

Seven dead as COVID-19 ravages Kerrville nursing home

Convicted San Antonio contractor accused of writing bad checks to outraged customers

Disgraced attorney who stole from clients accused of violating plea agreement

Footage shows Maverick County deputies tackling man who recorded them, asked for their names

Massive fine for SA nursing home housing COVID patients after state investigation uncovers long list of safety violations

Retired SAPD detective who pulled gun on man outside Home Depot arrested, released on bond

‘Very frustrating’: Renters who sought help from Bexar County describe disorganized process

SAPD fires veteran officer charged with sexual assault

Sex assault case dismissed against ex-Viva Tacoland bartender

Park police sergeant who avoided suspension after racist joke no longer with the department

Convicted thief from San Antonio who promised to never work in contracting again now accused of similar scheme

Deputy who shot Damian Daniels previously suspended for family violence, records show

Personnel records released by the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office reveal past discipline issues for two of the three deputies who struggled with Damian Daniels before the c...

Defenders Debrief: What BCSO is doing to reduce number of deputy DWI arrests

The Defenders' Dillion Collier joins GMSA@9 to discuss what the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office is doing to reduce the number of deputy DWI arrests.

Drink. Drive. Lose your job with BCSO: Sheriff says it’s that simple.

When Bexar County Sheriff’s deputy Michael Magana resigned in lieu of being terminated in July 2019, it had been nearly two years to the day since his arrest on a charge ...

BCSO investigating second rifle theft from deputy

Bexar County Sheriff’s officials said Monday the agency is investigating the theft of a rifle from a deputy, the second incident of its kind to afflict BCSO since late la...

1,150 NISD employees applied to work remotely this school year, nearly a quarter were denied

Nearly a quarter of all employees at San Antonio’s largest school district who applied to work remotely this school year amid COVID-19 concerns were denied, according to ...

Records detail deficiencies in San Antonio nursing home’s COVID-19 control practices

While a few complaints filed against the nursing home were cleared, the facility was still deemed noncompliant with multiple aspects of care.

Flight instructor written up twice by federal regulators months before fatal crash in San Antonio

A San Antonio pilot who was among three killed after his plane crashed near Stinson Municipal Airport in San Antonio this summer had twice been sanctioned by the Federal ...

Photos of arrested jogger and actual suspect prompt questions about description used by SAPD

The release of the mugshot of the felony family violence suspect San Antonio police were actually looking for when they detained and then arrested a jogger last week has ...

Medical Examiner: Bexar County Jail inmate died of methamphetamine overdose

Black jogger detained by SAPD wasn’t suspect they were looking for. Now he’s charged with felony assault on officers.

Lawsuit accuses father of top MLB draft pick of violent attack at Kerrville country club

Court filing accuses Texas’ largest police union of failing to make $1.3 million in pension contributions

Lawsuit: Nurse fired for reporting cooling issues at San Antonio nursing home for COVID patients

Bexar County mobile home park residents say management using bully tactics to force people out

SAPD detective who asked when ‘terrorist sympathizer’ Colin Kaepernick could be killed suspended 30 days

Defenders Debrief: Woman invests, loses nearly $400K in aviation engine venture

Ex-jailer accused of assaulting inmate in 2017 has charge dismissed

Bexar County employee still at work after felony drug arrest; sheriff asks she be kept away from BCSO

‘I feel cheated, angry’: Woman invested nearly $400K in aviation engine venture, lost nearly all of it

After Defenders report, SAPD amends state records for woman fatally shot by sergeant in 2019

Town of Hollywood Park attempting to recover nearly $200,000 stolen in 2019 cyber theft

Suspect in gruesome cold case murder dies months after charge was dismissed

The primary suspect in a gruesome 2013 cold case murder in San Antonio has died, months after a charge in the case was dismissed, court records confirm.

Federal lawsuit: Multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme targeted retired SAPD officers, other first responders

A Kendall County man swindled millions of dollars from retired San Antonio Police officers and other first responders as part of a multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme, acco...

Second BCSO deputy in a month issued proposed termination after inappropriate Facebook comment

For the second time since late last month the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office has proposed terminating a deputy behind a racially-charged post on Facebook.

Edgewood ISD trustee’s refusal to resign costs district partnership with prestigious mentorship program

Dina Serrano’s decision to not resign from the Edgewood Independent School District board of trustees after sharing a controversial picture on Facebook late last month ha...

San Antonio nursing home housing COVID-19 patients reduces number of residents in effort to improve care

City officials confirmed Thursday the East Side nursing home designated earlier this year to house COVID-19 positive patients has reduced its number of residents as the f...

Constable’s budget proposal would shift 100+ positions from Bexar County Sheriff’s Office to his agency

A budget proposal submitted by Bexar County Precinct 3 Constable Mark Vojvodich calls for more than 100 positions to be shifted from the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office to ...

SAFD firefighters suspended for leaving scene of crash; one accused of threatening BCSO deputy

Two San Antonio firefighters received terminations last month that were later reduced to lengthy suspensions after they fled the scene of a car crash in far north Bexar C...

Emerick’s personnel records from Oregon reveal clashes with another health executive

Eighteen months before she resigned as San Antonio’s health director amid tensions with an assistant city manager here, Dr. Dawn Emerick clashed with another health depar...

Bexar County officials defend horse auction scheduled for next week at Freeman Coliseum

County officials on Friday defended a horse auction at the Freeman Coliseum scheduled for next week that will move forward despite an ongoing surge of COVID-19 cases in S...

No anticipated completion date for Precinct 1 audit as costs climb past $28K

More than three months after Bexar County Justice of the Peace Ciro Rodriguez requested a forensic audit of court cases heard in his precinct, county officials say they h...

Records: San Antonio lawmakers criticized Gov. Abbott’s COVID-19 response as cases started surging

Diego Bernal, who represents Texas House District 123, notes a pattern recently in which Abbott’s staff asks for questions to be submitted only to have the Governor not a...

Murder suspect accused of critically injuring inmate in jailhouse attack

An inmate is in critical condition at an area hospital and a second inmate faces a felony assault charge after an attack at the Bexar County Jail Monday.