A man accused of fatally shooting a 15-year-old last year was beaten by members of the teen’s family during a courtroom melee in San Antonio, authorities said.

Victor Rivas, 18, who is charged with murder in the May 2022 death of Ethan Soto, was in a Bexar County courtroom Friday awaiting a preliminary hearing when he was attacked.

Rivas’ attorney, Adam LaHood, said his client was “going to be bruised and swollen” but was not otherwise injured.

Four people — two men and two juveniles — were arrested and will be charged with assault and disrupting court proceedings, the Bexar County sheriff’s office said. Their names haven’t been released.

  • AllonzeeLV@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    They’re lucky they didn’t kill him.

    His life was already over, with a quick death by beating possibly even an unintentional mercy on the part of the victims.

    If their assault killed him, one of the adults might have claimed his future cell.

    • deweydecibel@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      This was a preliminary hearing, too. They can’t even use the excuse that the justice system has failed them and they need to take matters into their own hands, because the justice system had not had an actual chance to do anything yet.

      Like, for fucks sake, he’s there, in the court room, about to face justice and you idiots can’t even wait to see how it plays out first? Would the world end if he didn’t take a beating right that second?