The court hears testimony on Melissa Perez’s death, where officers are charged with murder in her June 2023 shooting.
SAN ANTONIO — Testimony continues in court Friday over the death of Melissa Perez after days of intense testimony from a lead detective.
Perez was killed on the night of June 23, 2023, when three former SAPD officers fired at her as she was armed with a hammer. She was struck by bullets from two of the officers. A warrant was issued for the officers’ arrest within 16 hours of the shooting.
Detective Ronald Soto was the one who arrested and executed a warrant for the defendants. Thursday, he testified for a grueling fourth day as defense attorneys grilled him about the process of issuing the arrest warrants. He conceded he was mistaken when he previously told a defense attorney that one of the officers was in a hallway when another officer fired the first shot. Slow-motion body camera video played in court Thursday showed Perez closer to the apartment’s patio area than Soto recalled.
Defense teams argue that detail is critical to their justification claim—maintaining that one of the officers had only a “split-second” to react as Perez moved quickly toward an open patio window with a hammer in her hand.
Background on the case
Alfred Flores and Eleazar Alejandro are charged with murder, while former officer Nathaniel Villalobos faces a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The case is believed to mark the first time Bexar County law enforcement officers have faced murder charges stemming from an on-duty shooting.
It was early in the morning of June 23, 2023, when authorities say Perez tampered with her complex’s fire alarm system, triggering a police response.
Later that morning, Flores, Alejandro and Villalobos fatally shot at Perez when authorities said she came at them with a hammer. Before 24 hours had passed, they were suspended from the force and jailed after Chief William McManus said their actions didn’t conform with protocols.
The issue of whether officers needed a warrant to enter Perez’s home continues to be a question in court. Prosecutors have argued the officers’ warrantless entry amounted to burglary of a habitation. Defense attorneys counter that Perez committed a felony earlier that morning when she threw a candle at an officer, allowing police to arrest her without a warrant.