Parks and Recreation alum Jonathan Joss died at age 59 in June 2025.
The actor’s husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, confirmed his death in a Facebook post at the time.
“My husband Jonathan Joss and I were involved in a shooting while checking the mail at the site of our former home in San Antonio, Texas. That home was burned down after over two years of threats from people in the area who repeatedly told us they would set it on fire,” the statement shared via Joss’ Facebook read at the time. “We reported these threats to law enforcement multiple times and nothing was done.”
Kern de Gonzales alleged that the incident was a hate crime after he and Joss experienced “openly homophobic” harassment.
Keep scrolling for everything to know about Joss’ death so far:
When Did Jonathan Joss Die?Police confirmed that Joss died on June 1, 2025, following an apparent altercation with a neighbor. Joss was lying “near the roadway,” according to authorities, who were dispatched to a shooting. “Life saving measures” were attempted at the scene before Joss was pronounced dead.
In his Facebook statement, Kern de Gonzales claimed they found “the skull” of one of their dogs and its harness while visiting their former place of residence, which caused “severe emotional distress” for the couple.
“We began yelling and crying in response to the pain of what we saw,” the statement continued. “While we were doing this a man approached us. He started yelling violent homophobic slurs at us.”
What Is the Cause of Jonathan Joss’ Death?Kern de Gonzales claimed that Joss was shot by their apparent neighbor, which led to his death.
“Jonathan and I had no weapons. We were not threatening anyone. We were grieving. We were standing side by side,” the post read. “When the man fired Jonathan pushed me out of the way. He saved my life.”
Kern de Gonzales concluded his post with a message to Joss fans, whom he saw “as family.”
“My focus now is on protecting Jonathan’s legacy and honoring the life we built together,” the statement concluded. “If your concern is how someone coped with trauma or how loudly they speak when recounting injustice and being ignored by authorities then you never truly cared about my husband. Jonathan saved my life. I will carry that forward. I will protect what he built.”
Will There Be an Investigation Into Jonathan Joss’ Death?Authorities found nothing to back Kern de Gonzales’ claims that Joss’ death was the result of a hate crime.
“Our investigation has found no evidence whatsoever to indicate that Mr. Joss’s murder was related to his sexual orientation,” the San Antonio Police Department told People in a statement on June 3, 2025. “We take such allegations very seriously and have thoroughly reviewed all available information. Should any new evidence come to light, we will charge the suspect accordingly.”
