An Austin man has been slapped with a 36-year prison stint for the murder of a woman at a northeast Austin apartment complex in 2022. John Steven Hernandez, 36, was convicted of fatally gunning down Marisela Gonzalez, 32, who was found shot in a bedroom at the Rise at the Cameron apartments on Reagan Hill Drive. CBS Austin reported that the jury delivered their verdict on March 1, following a trial that kicked off with jury selection on February 26.
The tragedy took a sharper turn when officers were called to the scene just south of U.S. Highway 183 and east of Cameron Road on September 15, 2022. Here, they discovered Gonzalez shot inside an apartment unit. She was swiftly taken to a hospital but later succumbed to her injuries. KXAN noted that Austin Police, through their investigation, learned Gonzalez had been involved in an altercation that tragically escalated to become a fatal shooting.
Hernandez was hunted down and arrested on October 4, 2022, for his role in the gruesome killing. It was only a couple of months later on December 21, that he was officially indicted. It's been a grueling process for all parties involved as the case made its way through the courts, ultimately culminating in the lengthy 36-year sentence handed down by the Travis County jury.
In the words obtained by CBS Austin, the jury took seriously their duty to render a just sentence, one that aims not simply to punish but to reflect upon the loss of what was, and what can never be recovered.
