SAN ANTONIO – In an unexpected turn of events, Jessie MacWilliams, the man accused of fatally shooting another man at a San Antonio gym in 2022, accepted a plea deal Wednesday after a key witness in his trial changed his assessment of MacWilliams’ mental competency.
MacWilliams had initially been ruled competent to stand trial for the August 2022 shooting of Brandon Broadnax, who was working out at an LA Fitness on Loop 410 and Blanco Road.
Broadnax was lifting weights when MacWilliams approached from behind and shot him in the back of the head.
During trial proceedings this week, the state expert who had previously found MacWilliams competent to stand trial disclosed, based on recent details revealed in court, that he now believed MacWilliams was incompetent, citing information he hadn’t known previously.
Following the doctor’s reversal, Judge Joel Perez accepted a plea from MacWilliams of not guilty by reason of insanity. MacWilliams was ordered to be committed to a state mental hospital where he will undergo regular evaluations.
The plea deal angered Broadnax’s family, who expressed frustration and disbelief in court.
“You decided to be a coward and go to a gym and kill my brother. I’m not buying this insanity plea,” Broadnax’s sister said.
“You had eye contact when you went to go do that to my husband,” Broadnax’s widow addressed MacWilliams directly. “Why? Why?”
MacWilliams’ commitment to the state hospital means he will be evaluated annually, but he may spend the rest of his life in the facility.
More coverage of this trial on KSAT: