Santinorey Adalberto Gonzalez, a 28-year-old Hispanic man, was found fatally shot inside a residence at 411 South Pine Avenue in Hastings, Nebraska, after officers were dispatched around 9:54 p.m. on July 23, 2021. Police and the Nebraska State Patrol began their investigation that night; officials said early on that there was no ongoing threat to the public, and no arrests were immediately made. An autopsy was scheduled as detectives worked to piece together what happened inside the home.
In the days that followed, authorities said a person of interest who had been detained at the scene was later released. Court records and local reporting indicated that a man present during the incident was charged with misdemeanor domestic assault connected to the domestic disturbance call that brought officers to the address, but there were still no charges tied directly to the shooting itself. The following spring, that defendant identified in local coverage as 26-year-old Jacob Lewellyn was convicted of attempted third-degree domestic assault and received a 30-day jail sentence stemming from the July 2021 altercation; the conviction was not for the shooting.
After roughly three months of investigative work, Hastings Police announced their conclusion: the shooter acted in self-defense when Gonzalez entered the home to confront a resident over a personal matter. With that finding, no homicide charges were filed, and officials reiterated that there was no danger to the wider community.
