Shavano Park, Texas Joseph Martin Finnegan, 27, has been arrested and charged with murder after authorities say a mental health crisis turned deadly inside a quiet suburban home in Bexar County on Wednesday evening.
Deputies with the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office said the incident began just before 5 p.m. in the 98 block of Long Bow Road, when the victim reached out for urgent help through a specialized mental health response unit.
Officials said the woman had contacted the SMART Unit, a crisis team trained to handle mental health-related emergencies, hoping help would arrive quickly.
A deputy reportedly communicated with her by text message while en route from Lackland Air Force Base, but the messages suddenly stopped, raising immediate concern among responders.
By around 5:30 p.m., deputies arrived at the home and looked through a window, where they saw a man inside covered in blood.
Authorities moved in and took Joseph Martin Finnegan into custody at gunpoint without resistance or further incident.
Inside the residence, investigators found the victim on the floor suffering fatal injuries. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Law enforcement believes she was either stabbed or beaten during the same window of time deputies were actively responding to her call for help.
Sheriff Javier Salazar said Finnegan had prior interactions with law enforcement and was known to experience violent episodes tied to mental health struggles.
Officials have not publicly released the victim’s identity, pending confirmation by the medical examiner’s office.
The scene quickly escalated into a full homicide investigation, with specialized detectives and crime scene units deployed to process the residence.
Local officials said the case was transferred to Bexar County investigators to ensure additional resources and forensic support were available.
Shavano Park, typically seen as a quiet and affluent community northwest of San Antonio, has been shaken by the violence.
The investigation remains active as authorities work to piece together exactly what led to the fatal confrontation.
