Court records describe earlier assault allegations involving the same woman killed in the Stone Oak home.
SAN ANTONIO, TX — A man accused by police of killing his estranged wife and wounding a San Antonio police officer before taking his own life has been identified as Albert Nixon Richter IV, authorities and local reports said.
The woman killed was identified as Brianna Nicole Richter, whose death was ruled a homicide by the Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office. Albert Richter’s death was ruled a suicide. The case has drawn new attention because previously filed affidavits allege earlier violence, including an April arrest that accused him of choking, hitting and pointing a gun at Brianna Richter.
The shooting unfolded Friday, June 19, at a home in the 100 block of Red Hawk Ridge, near Hardy Oak Boulevard in the Stone Oak area on San Antonio’s far North Side. San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said officers were called to a disturbance involving a firearm after a man forced his way into the home. McManus said the man shot through a glass door and entered with a handgun. “He gets inside, kills his estranged or soon-to-be estranged wife, and barricades himself in one of the rooms,” McManus said at the scene.
Police said the first emergency calls came around noon to 1 p.m., and the situation quickly became a large police response. A responding officer was shot in the lower abdomen, in an area McManus described as below the vest and above the belt. The officer, a seven-year veteran of the department, was taken to Brooke Army Medical Center and underwent surgery. Police later said the officer was recovering from injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening. The officer’s name had not been released as of the latest reports.
Two children were inside the home during the shooting and standoff. Reports from police and witnesses placed their ages between 8 and 12. McManus said officers were able to get both children out safely. He said investigators could not immediately confirm whether Albert Richter was their father. Neighbor Randall Ashmore said he saw an officer shielding the children as they were led from the home. “He had both of them pretty much bear-hugged, and he was covering them,” Ashmore said. “That’s what he was trying to do.”
The barricade lasted nearly three hours as SWAT officers and negotiators surrounded the home. Police used loudspeakers and later fired tear gas into the residence in an effort to force the gunman out. Around 3 p.m., officers breached the home. Tactical teams found Albert Richter and Brianna Richter dead inside, both with gunshot wounds to the head, according to reports citing authorities. Investigators recovered a pistol at the scene. Police said they were also looking into reports that Albert Richter may have had gang ties, but no final finding had been announced.
The identification of the suspect brought renewed focus to earlier court records. Local reports said affidavits described prior domestic violence allegations involving Albert Richter and Brianna Richter, including an April case accusing him of choking her, striking her and pointing a gun at her. Police Chief McManus initially said he was not aware of a domestic violence history in Bexar County when asked at the scene Friday. The newly surfaced affidavits indicate investigators had earlier allegations to review as they piece together the events that led up to the fatal shooting.
Domestic violence advocates said the case fits a pattern seen in many escalating abuse cases. Marta Parda Pelaez, president and CEO of Family Violence Prevention Services, said domestic violence is “a pattern of progressive power and control behaviors.” Her comments came as police continued to sort through the earlier allegations, the forced entry, the officer shooting and the deaths inside the home. Officials have not released a full timeline of the couple’s separation, the status of earlier cases or whether any protective orders were in effect.
The shooting shook residents in the quiet neighborhood near Hardy Oak Elementary School and Lopez Middle School. Several neighbors told local reporters they were stunned by the police presence, which included patrol units, SWAT vehicles and crime scene investigators. Some residents were evacuated as officers worked to secure the area. Neighbor Erica Kennedy-Garcia said the deaths left the neighborhood grieving for the children. “It’s such a tragedy,” she said. “Those children just lost their parents.”
The San Antonio Police Department said the case remains under investigation. Because the suspected gunman is dead, no criminal prosecution is expected against him, but police still must complete reports on the homicide, suicide, officer shooting, SWAT response and prior allegations. The next public updates are expected to come through police records, medical examiner findings and any completed investigative summaries.
Author note: Last updated June 21, 2026.