SAN ANTONIO — With the Brandeis High School community still struggling to cope with the unexpected death of a staff member, the Northside ISD police chief said now is an important time for parents to give their kids extra care.
"Society is different than what it was years ago but the needs are still there and it all starts in the family," Chief Charlie Carnes said.
Carnes said the death of 73-year-old Alfred "Mr. Fred" Jimenez has impacted students and staff alike and listening carefully is critical.
"The more a parent can be involved, that's very important. It could be a determination of pass or fail if you will. In life. Absolutely. In life," Carnes said.
School officials said the instructional assistant died Feb. 17 from a head injury he sustained after an interaction with a student with cognitive disabilities.
Carnes said because the death was ruled a homicide, his department is working with others to complete a thorough investigation, but what happens ultimately is out of his hands.
"We are here to find the facts. We put them in a package, then we present them to the District Attorney and then from there, it's up to the District Attorney what they want to do," Carnes said.
Carnes said they are in no rush to complete the case.
"We're going to do a thorough investigation and work in collaboration with SAPD investigators and there are so many other entities that we are dependent upon and their timeline as well. The Medical Examiner. The hospital. The fire department. Anyone who had anything to do with this case," Carnes said.
Jimenez's son, Dañal Jimenez said he was a caring father and grandfather. Dañal currently lives in South Carolina. He said his uncle called him on February 7 about his father's injury. Within hours, he was in San Antonio.
"He was actually talking that day to the administration about putting his retirement paperwork to retire before this happened," Dañal said.
He said he father had already retired when he chose to get involved with public education. He specifically helped children with disabilities.
"He was dedicated to it," Dañal said. "He loved doing it. He did it because that was the kind of man he was."
He said he wants his father to be remembered as the outgoing man who loved to cook, help his community and spend time with the people he loved.
“They all described him as having infectious smile and that’s one of the things I love and I remember about him," Dañal said.
Meanwhile, Carnes said he is proud the district has a policy of seeing to the mental health needs of everyone at times like this.
"This is a hard time for everyone. We think of the victim. The family because there's a lot of victims involved. There's a lot of teachers and students and that's not only with this case but with a lot of cases," Carnes said.
Carnes said his department just recently completed in service training for mental health issues to make sure his officers can cope with the demands of the job.
With regard to the deceased, funeral arrangements have been set for Jimenez with Sunset Northwest Funeral Home.
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