Editor’s Note: This article contains details regarding the killing of a person as well as an obscenity allegedly stated by an individual involved in the case. Reader discretion is advised.
SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) — A San Antonio man has been found guilty of murdering a Junction resident in 2023 and sentenced to life in prison for what a district attorney’s office described as an “inexplicably violent” encounter.
According to a media report issued by 452nd District Attorney Tonya Alschwede, 26-year-old San Antonio man Keanue Swan Pratt was found guilty by a Kimble County jury on June 12 of the murder of 32-year-old Junction resident Christopher Gates following two days of testimony. He “was subsequently sentenced by the Honorable Judge Rob Hofmann to Life in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Institutional Division.”
Ahlschwede prosecuted Pratt’s case alongside her trial team, which included Assistant District Attorneys Havana Schmidt and Andy Murr. Junction Police Department Detective James Stewart led the investigation in the case, being assisted “by other officers from the Junction Police Department, Kimble County Sheriff’s Office, and the Texas Rangers.”
Ahlschwede’s report states that evidence presented during the case showed that Gates moved in as a resident at an RV park in Junction “around midday on July 24, 2023.” Pratt “was an existing resident at the park,” and he and Gates’ trailers “occupied adjacent spots.”
Pratt and Gates met “sometime after 10:15 p.m.,” after which they walked to a nearby convenience store. Gates bought alcohol at the store, and the two returned to Gates’ trailer “to continue socializing and drinking.”
The report reads that “what began as a friendly encounter turned inexplicably violent around 2:30 a.m. on July 25, 2023, after the parties moved to Pratt’s trailer.”
It states that “Pratt described losing consciousness due to the amount of alcohol he consumed” and that he “was assaulting Gates” when he regained consciousness. In a statement provided to a Texas Ranger, Pratt said, “I was beating his a– and I didn’t realize why,” according to the report.
The report reads that Pratt “dragged Gates back towards his trailer and continued to assault him” after he realized Gates was unconscious.
“The evidence showed that Pratt punched and kicked Gates,” Ahlschwede’s report reads. “The evidence further showed that the prolonged assault continued as Pratt stomped on and struck Gates’ face with a heavy glass ashtray, even as Gates lay unconscious.”
As per the report, “Pratt only ceased the assault when the owners of the park, awoken by the violence and observing the assault, confronted him and called 9-1-1.” He also “attacked the park owners before fleeing.”
Gates was pronounced dead at the scene. A medical examiner testified that Gates’ death was caused by “blunt force trauma to the head with possible manual strangulation.”
In reports issued in late July 2023, the Junction Police Department stated that Pratt was taken into custody after the incident following his return to the scene and confession to the crime.
During Pratt’s sentencing, evidence presented “showed that Pratt’s criminal history began as a juvenile.” A forensic psychiatrist for the State “testified that Pratt exhibited anti-social traits and had a long history of drug abuse since the age of 13, explaining the volatility and randomness of the brutal murder.”
“Chris Gates was a kind soul and cherished by those who knew him. But for the heinous acts of the defendant, he would still be with us today,” Ahlschwede said. “This conviction and sentence reflect our commitment to justice for victims and the security of our community.”