Woman accepts plea offer in killing during playful banter at Fort Worth motel
Nicholas Hernandez was shot to death in room 228 of the Delux Inn.
A bullet entered his armpit and devastated his chest.
Hernandez, who was 37, died on the floor of the south Fort Worth motel.
Each of three other people who were in the room at the time told the Fort Worth Police Department patrol officers who arrived on June 9, 2024, that Hernandez had shot himself.
In interviews with a detective at the Homicide Unit office, their stories changed, albeit consistently.
Ashley Gonzales, one of the people in the room, said that she and Hernandez were previously romantically involved and had recently broken up, Detective Michael Sones wrote in an affidavit supporting Gonzales’ arrest warrant for manslaughter.
Gonzales was staying in the room in which Hernandez died. The motel is at 4451 Interstate 35W.
Gonzales said that she and Hernandez began engaging in playful banter while standing near the bed. Gonzales picked up a pistol that was on the bed and waved it around.
Gonzales said that she was holding the grip of the pistol with her finger on the trigger while pointing the gun at Hernandez, according to the affidavit. She said that she pulled the trigger and fired a bullet that struck Hernandez.
“She claimed not to know that the pistol had been loaded,” Sones wrote in the affidavit.
Last week, Gonzales reached an agreement with the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney’s Office on a plea bargain.
Gonzales, who is 34, pleaded guilty to manslaughter, a reckless killing. Under the terms of the agreement, Judge Steven Jumes, who presides in the 485th District Court, on June 5 sentenced Gonzales to seven years in prison, with credit for the 349 days Gonzales has served since her arrest.
She will be eligible for parole after serving half of the sentence term.
Had Gonzales had been found guilty of manslaughter at trial, a jury or judge would have assessed punishment at between two and 20 years in prison.
The two other people who were in the room were, in interviews with Detective Sones, consistent with Gonzales’ account. The others said that Gonzales and Hernandez were engaged in a discussion that the witnesses characterized as playful. Gonzales fired the pistol, the witnesses said.
Assistant District Attorney Owen Dewitt represented the state. Defense attorney Zach Ferguson was appointed to represent Gonzales.
This story was originally published June 9, 2025 at 3:29 PM.
