Before police ever named a suspect, the man who fired the fatal shot was already talking. He confided in friends, tried to get rid of shell casings, and even called officers himself to report his Beretta handgun stolen.
Prosecutors say those conversations, combined with digital messages and ballistics, helped them secure a 35-year prison sentence for 25-year-old Nicholas Hernandez. He pleaded guilty in a Texas state court to killing 31-year-old Julie Marie Butcher, a mother of four, during a road rage confrontation on a San Antonio interstate in late 2024, according to an account published by Law & Crime that cites local court records and media reports.
The Night on Interstate 35
Shortly after dark in early November 2024, Butcher was driving on Interstate 35 in San Antonio when she became involved in what investigators later described as a heated road rage dispute with another driver, identified as Hernandez, according to reporting referenced by Law & Crime and based on a San Antonio Police Department arrest affidavit.
Exactly what sparked the encounter has not been fully detailed in public records. Law & Crime notes that the affidavit outlines the confrontation but states that the underlying reason for the dispute remains unclear. What police and prosecutors have said is that during the encounter, Hernandez fired a 9 mm handgun into Butcher’s vehicle, striking her in the head while both cars were still moving.
Her vehicle left the roadway and ended up overturned in a ditch near the interstate. Officers found Butcher inside and pronounced her dead at the scene, according to the same summary of the affidavit. She had been on her way home to a family that included four children.
How Investigators Built the Case
With no immediate arrest at the scene, detectives turned to witness accounts and physical evidence. According to Law & Crime’s review of the affidavit and local television reports, at least four people independently approached investigators with information that pointed to Hernandez.
One witness told detectives that Hernandez had tried to involve him after the killing. According to that account, Hernandez asked the man to dispose of two 9 mm shell casings. Another person provided text messages that allegedly showed Hernandez discussing the shooting in the days after it happened. Those messages, summarized in the Law & Crime report, were described by police as self-incriminating.
Investigators say Hernandez also made contact with law enforcement on his own. About 15 hours after Butcher was killed, Hernandez called the San Antonio Police Department to report that his Beretta 9 mm handgun had been stolen, according to coverage cited by Law & Crime. Detectives viewed that call as an attempt to distance himself from a weapon that matched the model used in the killing.
Officials have not publicly released full forensic findings. Law & Crime reports that prosecutors connected the Beretta 9 mm to the fatal shot and used the witness statements, digital messages, and Hernandez’s own reported admissions to build a murder case in the Bexar County district court.
A Plea Deal With a Hard Ceiling
In Texas, murder is generally punishable by a sentence of 5 to 99 years in prison or life imprisonment, under Section 19.02 of the Texas Penal Code and the corresponding general punishment range for first-degree felonies. Within that range, prosecutors and defendants frequently negotiate plea agreements that set both a floor and a ceiling for potential prison time.
According to Law & Crime, Hernandez chose to plead guilty to murder in the Bexar County state district court rather than take the case to trial. The plea agreement capped his possible sentence at 35 years. At a hearing in January 2026, a judge imposed that maximum, effectively selecting the harshest outcome available under the negotiated deal.
⚠️ WARNING: This post contains descriptions of a fatal shooting and road rage violence.
Nicholas Hernandez, 25, has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for the 2024 road rage murder of 31-year-old Julie Marie Butcher.
The sentencing took place on Friday, January 23, 2026,… pic.twitter.com/E5enLDI9JZ
— True Crime Updates (@TrueCrimeUpdat) January 26, 2026
Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales framed the sentence as a measure of accountability for the family. In a statement to San Antonio television station KSAT, quoted by Law & Crime, he said, “Julie’s life was tragically taken, and we hope her loved ones can take some measure of solace in the sentence imposed today.” The district attorney’s office has not publicly disclosed why it agreed to a cap of 35 years instead of seeking a longer term at trial, and court transcripts that might illuminate those discussions were not immediately available on public dockets at the time of this writing.
Under Texas law, parole eligibility rules for murder convictions depend on a range of factors, including whether the court makes a specific deadly weapon finding and how time credits are calculated. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles publishes general eligibility guidelines online, but the exact date when Hernandez could be considered for release will depend on formal judgments and credit calculations that are not yet publicly detailed.
Family Grief and Community Response
Butcher’s relatives spent several weeks waiting for answers as detectives worked through witness interviews and evidence. After Hernandez was arrested, her family issued a public statement through local media, thanking community members who had supported them.
“This Thanksgiving, our family is profoundly grateful for the progress toward justice for Julie Marie Butcher,” the statement read, according to Law & Crime’s article, which cites local coverage. They described the arrest as “an important step forward in this difficult journey” after weeks without clarity about who would be held responsible.
The family added, “While the pain of her loss is still with us, we take comfort in the dedication of law enforcement and the overwhelming support from our community. Your prayers, kindness, and solidarity have been a source of strength for us.”
In an online fundraiser hosted on GoFundMe, friends and relatives sought help covering funeral and family expenses. The campaign, organized on behalf of Butcher’s father, David Delgado, described her as a “beloved wife, mother, daughter, and friend” and noted that she worked as a general manager at a Papa John’s restaurant in New Braunfels, north of San Antonio. “She leaves behind her devoted husband, Michael Butcher, and their four precious children,” the fundraiser stated, with the page hosted on GoFundMe’s website.
Public records indicate that Butcher’s children range from elementary school age to their teens. The family has not released detailed personal information about them, and this outlet is not naming their ages to protect their privacy.
What the Sentence Means in Texas
Hernandez’s 35-year sentence sits within the lower half of the range Texas law allows for a murder conviction, which runs up to 99 years or life. It is, however, substantially higher than the statutory minimum of 5 years. Because the case was resolved through a plea agreement, there was no public trial testimony about the road rage encounter, no cross-examination of witnesses in front of a jury, and no narrative closing arguments recorded in full transcripts.
Without a trial, some critical details about the confrontation on Interstate 35 remain contained within police reports and plea paperwork rather than fully aired in open court. The arrest affidavit described by Law & Crime suggests a fast escalation on a crowded highway and a single shot that ended a driver’s life and left four children without their mother. That document has not been published in full by the Bexar County District Clerk’s Office or the San Antonio Police Department on their public sites, leaving portions of the narrative available only in summary form through media reporting.
What is clear from court records, as reported by Law & Crime, is that Hernandez is now serving a decades-long sentence in the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Butcher’s family has spoken of gratitude for the case’s resolution and of a loss that cannot be undone. The legal proceedings have concluded, but key aspects of what unfolded in those minutes on the interstate, and how close anyone came to preventing it, remain largely confined to the case file.
