A new report shows a drop in family violence-related homicides in Bexar County in 2025, but the head of a local nonprofit says one is still too many and education is key.
The Collaborative Commission on Domestic Violence has published its 2025 annual statistical report, which shows 28 people killed in family violence incidents reported by either the San Antonio Police Department or Bexar County Sheriff’s Office.
The tally does not include another three men and one woman considered “alleged actors.”
The number of homicides is lower than the 32 people killed in 2024, the 33 in 2023, or the peak of 36 in 2020. However, the 24 homicides in 2021 and 27 in 2022 were lower, as were several other years further back.
Family Violence Prevention Services President and CEO Marta Prada Peláez, whose organization runs the Battered Women and Children’s Shelter, says “one fatality is one too many.”
“Why? Because that fatality was preventable. Because that was predicted,” she said. “That fatality should not have happened.”
Understanding that domestic violence is a progressive pattern of controlling behaviors — whether emotional, psychological, physical, financial, or sexual — can make someone better prepared for when they encounter it, Prada Peláez says.
“Because domestic violence is not putting a gun to someone on their head. That’s the end of the cycle of domestic violence,” she told KSAT. “But domestic violence also has to include everything that has happened before where prevention could have acted.”
Intimate partner-related violence was the cause of most of the deaths last year, 16, though the report notes three of those were bystanders.
Two boys and a girl were killed in child abuse-related homicides, and a combination of nine adults and children died in other forms of family violence.
Men made up the largest share of the 28 victims in 2025, with 12.
Prada Peláez noted that along with seeing more large families, babies, and seniors needing shelter, her organization is also sheltering more men than they ever have.
She says her group is keeping tabs on this year’s deadly incidents, too, and they expect the 2026 numbers will be higher than 2025.
Asked about what people should look out for in their own relationships or circle of friends and family, Prada Peláez said if a relationship is respectful, all kinds of emotions are understandable, except for fear.
“If the person who claims to love you scares you with some of his or her behaviors, if that person causes fear in you, please declare yourself an abused person,” she said.
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic violence, there is so much help for you. KSAT has a list of resources on its Domestic Violence webpage, which also explains how to identify different types of abuse.
Survivors in unincorporated Bexar County who are not in current emergencies can fill out an online form to get in touch with STAR specialists. Anyone in immediate danger should call 911.
For wrap-around services, including the Battered Women and Children’s Shelter, call Family Violence Prevention Services at (210) 733-8810.
You can also contact the Bexar County Family Justice Center, which also provides wrap-around services at (210) 631-0100.
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