A violent Mother’s Day incident at the Ayres Halfway House left two staff seriously injured, police say. Suspects allegedly used a fire extinguisher and toilet lid.
SAN ANTONIO — As many people were getting ready to celebrate Mother’s Day at the Ayres Halfway House for juvenile offenders in northeast San Antonio, police say some of the residents locked in the secure facility had something else in mind—something violent.
A few minutes after 2 a.m., the first call for help crackled on the fire dispatch channel. Medic units were dispatched to the Nacogdoches Road facility for trauma victims.
What they found was disturbing.
The police report indicates two staff members were suffering from significant head trauma.
The first victim officers spoke to told them he had entered a room and was hit in the back of the head. The weapon used by one of the residents was the porcelain lid of a toilet, and the blow was so significant that the lid broke into pieces.
The first victim’s head was bleeding and the 41-year-old officer needed immediate transfer to a hospital, where he was stitched up, according to the report.
The report indicates the second victim, who is listed as 35-years-old, was rendered unconscious for a time with multiple skull fractures when he was hit in the head with a fire extinguisher.
Significant swelling was noted on the victim’s face; he was bleeding from this mouth, and he reported that he could not hear out of his right ear.
The narrative outlines how it took a large contingent of detention and police officers to gain control of a group of unruly juveniles who led the attacks.
The notes said one of the teens spit on the officer placing him in handcuffs.
When a detective arrived to evaluate evidence, video of the attack was reviewed.
The video confirmed that when the first victim was hit in the head, the toilet lid shattered on impact. The report stated that even though he was injured, the victim was able to warn other officers to react.
When the first victim left the room, the tally was one officer in the room with 18 juveniles, with at least two of the assailants continuing to fight and punch him.
The report states that other objects were used to hit the downed man and,at some point, the attackers sprayed the victim with the fire extinguisher.
Because the teens are all listed as being 16 years old, their names are not subject to release. But there was one 17-year-old who was booked into the adult jail on a misdemeanor charge of criminal mischief with damage between $750 and $2,500.
Bond for that suspect, Daniel Flores-Cervantes, was set at $3,500. Online records indicate he made bond eight days after his arrest, walking out of jail by making a 10% payment of $350 with a small processing fee.
Online court records indicate he has a court-appointed attorney and is scheduled for an arraignment hearing June 9.
Because juvenile records are not subject to release, it’s unknown what consequences those accused of the assault are subject to, but one insider did say they had been moved to a more secure facility.
KENS 5 did reach out to the Texas Juvenile Justice Division by email and by telephone for an explanation of what led to the critical incident and what they’re doing to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
If they respond, we will share their remarks.