Not guilty verdict returned in trial of man previously accused of killing man in 2016

John Rodriguez claimed he shot Joshua Alvarez in self-defense

SAN ANTONIO – During closing arguments in John Rodriguez’s murder trial Wednesday, his lawyers asked the jury to find their client not guilty.

The lawyers insisted that Rodriguez shot Joshua Alvarez, 19, to death in self-defense.

“It was reasonable for John to pull out his weapon and act in self-defense because that is exactly what the law allows you to do,” defense attorney Freddy Ruiz told the jury.

Alvarez had gone to the mobile home of Rodriguez’s girlfriend on the night of July 10, 2016, and confronted Rebecca Dominguez, the daughter of Rodriguez’s girlfriend.

Dominguez was in a relationship with Alvarez and was the mother of his three children.

Witnesses said that the couple had been arguing, and when Rodriguez asked Alvarez to leave, he advanced toward Rodriguez "in an aggressive manner."

Rodriguez fired three shots, killing Alvarez.

“Nobody said that Josh was reaching for a gun and that he didn’t have a gun,” prosecutor Evan Patterson argued. “There’s no gun found, no knife. There’s no weapon.”

After deliberating for about three hours in Rodriguez’s trial in Judge Frank Castro’s 399th District Court, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty, apparently validating his self-defense claim.


About the Author:

Paul Venema is a courthouse reporter for KSAT with more than 25 years experience in the role.