A year after homeless man was shot at gas station, family frustrated by lack of fees

San Antonio – The meeting of the two men lasted only a few seconds, but had lifelong consequences. At least for one of her.

A year after 35-year-old William Hawkins was shot in a downtown gas station parking lot near McCullough Avenue and U.S. 281, his family is frustrated by what they see as a lack of justice. . The shooting on October 14, 2021 took place in broad daylight and was captured on camera. The shooter is currently not charged.

“I will never forget that day. When I met with SAPD, they said to my face, ‘Trust the legal process.’ Because that’s where you find justice. Brother Hawkins.” said at a memorial service for Hawkins held at the Ministry of Christian Support (CAM) on Thursday.

The shooter reportedly said he was threatened by police. The head of her CAM, whose surveillance cameras recorded the shooting from across the street, said the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office told her that a grand jury refused to indict the man.

The DA’s office told KSAT on Thursday it “cannot comment on pending cases,” but confirmed that no one has been arrested or charged so far. I sent a follow-up email asking for clarification on the grand jury’s decision, but did not receive a response.

CAM president and CEO Dawn White-Fosdick said Hawkins has experienced homelessness and uses the services of her group. She describes him as having a “mild demeanor” and believes he was approaching other men asking for money.

“And it never seemed like he was doing anything violent or scary,” White Fosdick said.

CAM’s office is across the street from a gas station. One of the cameras recorded the shot at 10:11 am that day.

Recordings show Hawkins approaching a man dressed in orange as he exits a downtown food store on the 500 block of Elm Street. Hawkins can be seen approaching another man for a few seconds on the driver’s side of his pickup truck.

After one gunshot rang out, the other man roamed the Hawkins grounds and drove off.

The man was reportedly parked nearby and was questioned by SAPD. EMS took Hawkins to Brooke Army Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 10:59 a.m.

White-Fosdick said he shared with police what appeared to be a video the SAPD incident report was referring to and what appeared to be additional video. In describing “on-site video surveillance,” the rapporteur wrote:

“V-1 (Hawkins) Seemed to be walking very aggressively towards S-1 (another man) It seemed to startle him. S-1 was unable to unlock the vehicle door because S-1 walked backwards when V-1 approached. S-1 drew his concealed weapon to create distance. S-1 slammed V-1 in the chest, knocking him to the ground. S-1 walked around V-1’s body, got into his car, and left the scene. ”

The SAPD report makes no mention of Hawkins carrying a weapon.

Adam Hawkins said his family isn’t going anywhere.

“We are not going to stop until justice is done for William and all of the homeless communities who are still part of this community,” Hawkins said.