In the last three months, Irma has visited the cemetery every evening. After she got home, the couple sat close together on a brown couch in the living room with one of their sons beside them. A large photo of Jesus Jr. smiling was placed next to them as they spoke about his life<\/a> in an interview with the Star-Telegram on March 9.<\/p>\n \u201cHis smile just brought so much joy to many people. He definitely was someone that you can lean on,\u201d mom Irma said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was he who made me the man that I am today, the man that stands before anybody. I heard a quote once that said, \u2018You don\u2019t raise your first child. Your first child raises you,\u2019\u201d dad Jesus Manuel Gonzalez said.<\/p>\n Jesus Jr. was a passenger in a Chrysler 300 driven by his friend Israel Suastegui, 18, on Jan. 3 when Fort Worth police officers tried to the stop the car going the wrong way on Exchange Avenue in the Stockyards, according to police. Suastegui fled from officers before crashing into a utility pole near the 1500 block of East 4th Street, police have said. Jesus Jr. died on the scene.<\/p>\n Suastegui was taken to Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth for treatment and was arrested on Feb. 12<\/a> after being released from the hospital, police said. He is accused of driving while intoxicated at the time of the crash and is charged with intoxication manslaughter.<\/p>\n Jesus Jr. had many friends, and on the day of a balloon release and his funeral, the family said they saw so many people including his friends and teachers show up to honor his memory.<\/p>\n \u201cHe just (would) bring so much joy, and ever since he hasn\u2019t been at school, it\u2019s been hard for a lot of kids to even be in class because they don\u2019t have that joy from him anymore,\u201d Irma said.<\/p>\n Every day Irma would get a call from her boy after he got home from school and he would tell her about his day. As her voice got heavy, his mother said, \u201cI miss him overall. But those little things.\u201d<\/p>\n Dreams of pursuing dad\u2019s footsteps<\/p>\n Like any other teen, the family said, Jesus loved playing video games and trying out new food. He would send TikTok videos of places that they could try together.<\/p>\n His family said the teen also was passionate about cutting hair. They set up a barber shop at the back of their house where Jesus helped friends and siblings get a fresh cut.<\/p>\n Jesus was a student at the Richard Milburn Academy in Fort Worth, and after graduation he wanted to follow in his dad\u2019s footsteps and join a trade school. Irma said, \u201cWe were all ready for graduation \u2014 that\u2019s all we talked about within the last couple of months.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe never thought we wouldn\u2019t get to witness him walking the stage or pursuing dad\u2019s career, because that\u2019s something he looked up to,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n A protective elder brother<\/p>\n The relationship that his eldest son had with his mother and siblings was special, said dad Jesus Sr. \u201cI used to always tell him that the day I leave, you\u2019re the man that\u2019s going to take care of your mom and your brothers \u2014 you\u2019re next in line,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Jesus Jr. drove his brother to school so they had their \u201cbrother moment\u201d every morning, their mother said.<\/p>\n Irma said her oldest was very close to all his siblings and held a \u201cspecial place in each of their hearts\u201d because of the bond he shared with them.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was like a dad to them. He was tough on them, like, \u2018Don\u2019t do this, don\u2019t do that.\u2019 But he was also very playful,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Jesus was very protective of his brothers, his dad said. \u201cI used to always tell them, blood is thicker than water. You may argue, you may fight, but at the end of the day, family is what matters.\u201d<\/p>\n Arian Gonzalez, Jesus\u2019s 15-year-old brother, could not hold back his tears as he was with his parents listening to the conversation.<\/p>\n \u201cMe and him were just, we were always together. He was always, bro, he needs a ride, I got you. Where are you gonna go? You want to go get food? I\u2019ll go pick you up,\u201d Arian said.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery day with him was fun,\u201d Arian said, crying. \u201cHe was just always there whenever you needed him and wanted to make sure you were happy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe just had our first daughter six months ago,\u201d Irma said. \u201cShe was only three months old, and as soon as she was born, she was like his little princess.\u201d<\/p>\n The mom said her 5-year-old son doesn\u2019t understand that his brother\u2019s not coming back. \u201cThat hurts because he doesn\u2019t understand my brother won\u2019t be back, and that\u2019s all he talks about at the cemetery.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe didn\u2019t just touch hearts \u2014 he stole hearts. If you had problems, you could come to him and he\u2019d sit there and listen to you, things that not anybody will sit there and do,\u201d said brother Isaiah Gonzalez, 16, in a phone conversation. \u201cIf you needed help with something, he\u2019d give you his last two cents just for you to make it out. He\u2019d worry about himself later.\u201d<\/p>\n Irma said she allowed her son to attend a party the night of the crash. Later that night she realized he was not back by the normal time that he would come home. Jesus, who the family said has been communicative in the past regarding his whereabouts, had not called or texted.<\/p>\n After texting and not hearing back, Irma said she checked his location and it had stopped loading. \u201cI was like maybe his phone died and he\u2019ll be home soon,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n It was almost 6 a.m. and Jesus was still not home. That is when his mom said she remembered his iCloud password and she noticed that his phone was at a police station. \u201cI was confused. I didn\u2019t know what\u2019s going on,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The parents said they started searching for him, as all these little things were leading them to keep looking for him. They finally came across a police officer who informed them about the fatal crash.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are days when I look back at that moment and I don\u2019t remember what happened after that,\u201d Irma said. \u201cI just know that they told me I had lost my son.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s something that you don\u2019t realize, because the day before was a normal Friday to us. He went to school, we went to work, we came home, we ate dinner like everything was so normal,\u201d Jesus Sr. added.<\/p>\n \u201cWe lost him, but we also feel like we lost all of us \u2014 we will never have our life the way it was before January 3. Our life will never be the same,\u201d Irma said.<\/p>\n \u2018It doesn\u2019t just affect one person\u2019<\/p>\n The family said Jesus Jr. and Israel Suastegui had been friends since Jesus was about 12 years old, and that they had always opened their doors to Israel.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can know somebody forever and so saying that (you should) know who your kids hang around with, that\u2019s not something we can say, because we knew who he hung around with, but it\u2019s still, it didn\u2019t change nothing,\u201d Irma said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not OK to get behind the wheel when you\u2019re drinking and when you\u2019re not fully conscious,\u201d said Jesus Sr. \u201cThere are far more consequences that we don\u2019t think of, because we\u2019re humans, and we just don\u2019t think ahead. It doesn\u2019t just affect one person. That affects generations.\u201d<\/p>\n Irma said she wants the driver to face consequences. Suastegui was released on bond with conditions that, according to court records, include that a camera-equipped ignition interlock device that tests for alcohol must be installed on any vehicle he drives.<\/p>\n \u201cHe has to understand that my son’s never coming back, and he gets to go home to his mom,\u201d Irma said. Jesus \u201cwasn\u2019t just a passenger. He was a first brother, a son, a grandson, a great-grandson and many things to people, but that one person was so selfish and decided to take his life. We want justice for him,\u201d Isaiah said.<\/p>\n Irma said going to the cemetery every day is a way the family has been honoring their child’s memory. While they are there, they sing his favorite songs, go on picnics with him or light a candle.<\/p>\n \u201cI was just praying on my way to work: \u2018God, I don\u2019t see the big picture, but I know I\u2019m going to get through it.\u2019 I went into work and talked to a friend, and he gave me this,\u201d Jesus Sr. said, holding a rubber bracelet in his hand that read, \u201cGod is big enough.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter how big the storm, God is big enough to get you through it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Irma and Jesus Manuel Gonzalez stand beside a framed photo of their 17-year-old son Jesus Jr. on March 9 at their Fort Worth home. Jesus Gonzalez Jr. was killed in a suspected drunk-driving crash in January. He was a passenger in a car driven by his friend Israel Suastegui. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com <\/p>\n
Irma Gonzalez talks about her son Jesus, 17, on Monday, March 9, 2026, at their Fort Worth home. Jesus Gonzalez Jr. was killed in a suspected drunk-driving crash in January. He was a passenger in a car driven by his friend Israel Suastegui. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com <\/p>\n
Irma and Jesus Manuel Gonzalez hold hands while talking about their son, Jesus Jr., 17, who was killed in a suspected drunk-driving crash. The names of her five sons run the length of Irma Gonzalez’s forearm. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com <\/p>\n
Jesus Manuel Gonzalez, left, comforts his son Arian as he talks about the loss of his brother, Jesus Jr., on Monday, March 9, 2026, at their Fort Worth home. Gonzalez was killed in a suspected drunk-driving crash in January. He was a passenger in a car driven by his friend Israel Suastegui. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com <\/p>\n
![\"Jesus](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/FTW_image2.JPG\" "\\"FTW_image2.JPG\\"")
Jesus Gonzalez Jr., far right, with his family which includes four brothers and a baby sister. Courtesy of Gonzalez family The night that changed everything<\/p>\n Arian Gonzalez holds a photograph of his brother, Jesus. Jesus Gonzalez Jr. was killed in a suspected drunk-driving crash in January. He was a passenger in a car driven by his friend Israel Suastegui. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com <\/p>\n
Jesus Gonzalez Jr. with his mother, Irma. Courtesy of Gonzalez family <\/p>\n
Jesus Gonzalez Jr., far right, with his family which includes four brothers and a baby sister. Courtesy of Gonzalez family <\/p>\n