Charges filed after Texas child killed playing ding dong ditch

HOUSTON — Charges have been filed in connection with the deadly shooting of an 11-year-old boy who was playing ding-dong ditch at a family birthday party, according to Houston police.

The suspect in the case, Gonzalo Leon Jr., 42, has been charged with murder, according to Houston police. While HPD has identified him as Gonzalo Leon Jr., his name appears as Leon Gonzalo Jr. in other court documents.

Leon was taken into custody on Tuesday morning by members of HPD’s Special Weapons and Tactics Detail and Criminal Apprehension Team and booked into the Harris County Jail.

The victim has been identified as Julian Guzman, 11. Doctors pronounced him dead on Aug. 31 after he was taken to the hospital with multiple gunshot wounds.

The shooting unfolded around 11 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 30, on Racine Street near Mimbrough and Fidelity streets, just east of the East Loop, according to the Houston Police Department.

The boy and a group of kids had been ringing doorbells when they knocked on one home. Witnesses told police that someone came outside and opened fire as the children ran away.

“A witness says someone ran out of that house and was shooting at the kids running down the street, and unfortunately, sadly enough, one of the boys, who was 11 years old, was shot in the back,” HPD Homicide Detective Sgt. Michael Cass said.

The child was rushed to the hospital with multiple gunshot wounds and later died Sunday afternoon.

Police said a man was detained at the home where the shooting happened and questioned by homicide detectives on Sunday. That individual was later released as the investigation continued.

While executing a search warrant at the house, investigators seized several rifles and handguns as evidence. Detectives then identified Leon as the suspect and worked with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, which filed charges on Sept. 1.

Residents in the community are still stunned that a child’s prank ended in tragedy.

“What harm could they have done? Playing with a doorbell? That’s the part that really kind of hurts the heart,” one neighbor told KHOU 11. “For someone to shoot him in the back, they knew they were a kid. What’s the purpose of it?”

Another neighbor who didn’t want to be identified said, “Kids are just being kids. I feel like we’ve all played these ding-dong ditch (games).”

Others stressed the risks of pranks in today’s climate.

“You just don’t go knocking on people’s doors,” one neighbor said.

“I guess for parents out there, just be more cautious of the times we’re living in now,” Sgt. Cass added.

Allison Gatz told KHOU 11 she saw the group of kids pranking her neighbors earlier that day and tried to warn them.

“I warned them that they shouldn’t be doing what they were doing, that it was dangerous, and they had two minutes to go and leave the property or I would contact the police,” Gatz said. “They knew that they were doing something wrong.”

Neighbor George Skinner said the tragedy could have been prevented.

“It’s an innocent life taken. He could have avoided it. The parents maybe could have avoided it,” Skinner said. “You got to teach them and let them know what’s right and what’s wrong, and it’s wrong to knock on somebody’s door playing a prank.”

Sgt. Cass has already said the circumstances do not appear to support a self-defense claim.

“In my opinion, it does not look like any type of self-defense. It wasn’t close to the house, so it’ll more than likely be a murder charge,” Cass said.

Texas law includes the Castle Doctrine, which allows homeowners to use deadly force if they reasonably believe they are facing a threat.

“From what we know, it is difficult to imagine a homeowner reasonably believing children playing a centuries-old prank posed a legitimate threat,” KHOU 11 legal analyst Carmen Roe said.

A GoFundMe has been started for Julian Guzman. 

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