SAN ANTONIO – The mother of a man shot dead by San Antonio police downtown last Thursday says her son had been struggling with mental illness.
Nathaniel Moreno, 19, was driving a car at the time, which crashed into a building on West Commerce Street and then burst into flames.
A second person in the car, identified as 15-year-old Nicholas Rodriguez, was also shot by police. He died this past weekend, according to the Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Police say the car that the pair was in had been reported stolen.
When officers attempted to stop the car and box it in, they say Moreno rammed into several patrol cars and drove in the direction of officers.
After Moreno was wounded, he then slammed into the building, where the car caught fire.
The shooting and crash happened in the middle of the afternoon rush hour, with onlookers recording video of the incident on their phones.
Moreno’s mother spoke to KSAT 12 News Monday morning, saying she does not want those images to be the extent of what people know about her son.
“What he did was not who he was. What he lived with was not who he was,” said Lisa Marie Rodriguez, who is not related to the other teen who was killed.
Rodriguez admitted that Moreno had trouble with the law.
However, she said Moreno also struggled with mental illness most of his life.
She said Moreno had recently made statements about wanting to end his life.
Although Rodriguez said she called police and mental health workers to her home several times, as recently as the week before his death, she was never able to get Moreno the proper care.
On one occasion, Rodriguez said she even went with Moreno to get the medication he needed, but he was turned away and offered an appointment for a later date.
“There are so many components here that have me questioning, “At what point was he failed?” Or, you know, when did we drop the ball?” Rodriguez said.
Still, Rodriguez said she does not harbor any ill will for SAPD and will continue to “back the blue.”
In fact, Rodriguez said Moreno had always wanted to be a police officer. However, his mental health struggles and criminal record crushed that dream.
“He literally made the statement, ‘Mom, if I can’t be a police officer, what purpose do I have?’” she recalled.
Rodriguez described the other teen who was killed, Nicholas Rodriguez, as her son’s best friend.
She said despite the age difference, the two had a close relationship that extended to their families.
“Nicholas Rodriguez was always either here at the house with Nathaniel, or Nathaniel was at his house,” she said.
The deaths, Rodriguez said, have left both families equally devastated.
A spokesman for SAPD told KSAT 12 News the shooting case is still under investigation.
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