Houston mother wants son's ex-girlfriend to be charged in his killing
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- A mother believes charges should be filed against her son's ex-girlfriend in yet another family violence murder in our area.
Artuiro Magee, 34, was shot and killed outside the Lakeview Apartment Homes early Monday morning. Investigators with the Harris County Sheriff's Office said Romanus Robertson III shot and killed Magee after the pair got into two separate disputes.
A charging document said Robertson is reportedly in a relationship with Jasmine Johnson, who Magee dated off and on for years.
Another charging document said Johnson's 11-year-old daughter called Magee, whom she considers a father, after a dispute with her mother. The victim reportedly went to the apartment complex in the 16700 block of Ella Boulevard to help her.
Denise Magee, the victim's mother, called the shooting "senseless" and said she got numerous phone calls at her home in Mississippi from Johnson prior to the shooting.
"The last thing I could understand that she said real clear is, 'Your son is going to die in Houston tonight,'" the mother recalled.
After the shooting, Robertson and Johnson took two children and left the area, triggering an Amber Alert. They were found by Nacogdoches Police Monday around 10:30 a.m. The children were unharmed.
READ MORE: 2 Houston children found safe after deadly shooting
Robertson was detained for the murder and Johnson was taken into custody for active warrants. Magee's mother believes Johnson should be charged in her son's murder.
Court records show both an assault of a family member charge and aggravated assault of a family member have been filed against Johnson. Both cases list Magee as the victim. In one case, he was granted an emergency protective order.
"If there wasn't no Jasmine, that man wouldn't have tried to kill my son," Denise said.
The sheriff's office said Tuesday that investigators do not intend to file charges against her. During a probable cause hearing for Robertson on Tuesday in Harris County, a prosecutor said Magee had a gun on him but did not display it during the confrontation.
Robertson originally told detectives that he saw Magee reach for the gun, according to the prosecutor during the court hearing, but later said the lighting was bad in the area and he could not tell what Magee was reaching for.
"The witness then saw the defendant get out of a vehicle," a prosecutor read from a charging document in court. "When he heard the defendant say quote, 'What's up' to the complainant then shot a firearm two times striking the complainant."
The murder suspect is being held on a $100,000 bond.
This homicide adds to the growing list of family violence cases in our area this year.
The Harris County Sheriff's Office reported 15 family violence homicides year-to-date in 2019 versus 28 this year.
Houston police has seen a 4.5% increase in overall domestic assault incidents this year compared to last, which figures out to roughly 1,300 more.
Statistics show a 30% increase in the more violent assaults, but homicides are down for the year.
Meanwhile, the city of Houston has launched a new campaign to get ahead of the problem. They have posted billboards and are running TV, radio and social media ads for a newly established helpline.
"We wanted to design an intervention that was aimed at specifically abusers, where mental health services were available to people before they explode to help manage those emotions," said Minal Patel Davis, the director of the Mayor's Office of Human Trafficking and Domestic Violence.
The Alliance runs the helpline. They said since the media campaigns were launched on Dec. 1, they have seen a drastic increase in call volumes.
Dan Stoecker, the president and CEO of The Alliance, said 80% of callers are victims and 20% are classified as abusers.
He said they are able to connect callers to counselors immediately to get them the help they need right away.
