SAN ANTONIO – Deputies responding to a domestic violence call shot and killed a 39-year-old man outside a home in far North Bexar County late Tuesday night, according to Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar.
Deputies were called around 10:30 p.m. to a home in the 3700 block of Forsythia, not far from Bulverde Road, after receiving word of an altercation between a husband and a wife.
Salazar said when they arrived, they found a 41-year-old woman who appeared to be distraught just inside the home.
Deputies began talking to the woman outside when they say they then heard an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle being racked inside the house.
The sheriff said one of the deputies and the woman took cover between homes and became pinned on the side of the house, while the other took cover behind a vehicle.
That’s when, BCSO says, the man walked out onto the front porch and fired multiple gunshots at an unknown direction, in rapid succession.
The deputy pinned on the side of the house began giving orders to the man to drop the weapon, but he refused and appeared to re-engage the deputy, Salazar said.
The deputy then fired several shots, striking and killing the man. He was identified by the medical examiner’s office as 39-year-old Jake Pawelek.
BCSO said the woman was not injured in the incident and that two children were inside the home. They were not hurt.
Bexar County Precinct 4 Constable Kathryn Brown confirmed to KSAT that Pawelek started working at the constable’s office on Sept. 13, 2021 and left Nov. 30, 2022. She said Pawelek was suffering from PTSD and was getting help for it.
The two deputies who shot Pawelek have since been placed on administrative leave, pending the outcome of an investigation, Salazar said.
Multiple agencies are now handling the case.
Salazar said one of the deputies was a three-year veteran of BCSO, while the other had nine years of experience.
BCSO said the home had a prior history of domestic violence calls.