CrimeWatch: Death of Jason John brings back painful memories for another family
CrimeWatch: Death of Jason John brings back painful memories for another family
The body of 30-year-old Jason John was found in Lady Bird Lake recently after he had disappeared after a night out on Rainey Street. But this isn't the first time this has happened to a young man in the Austin's popular nightlife district. FOX 7 Austin's Shannon Ryan spoke with one family member who says John's death brings back some painful memories.
AUSTIN, Texas - Last week, the body of 30-year-old Jason John was found in Lady Bird Lake.
He disappeared a week earlier after a night out with friends on Rainey Street.
But this isn't the first time this has happened to a young man in the city's popular nightlife district.
Three years after his brother Martin disappeared from Rainey Street and was found dead in Lady Bird Lake, Mitchell Gutierrez says John's death brings back painful memories.
"Kid was my best friend in the world, you know? Yeah. You couldn't tear us apart. We were like gravity together," Gutierrez said. "It was like talking in a mirror."
Gutierrez retraced his own footsteps helping Rinju John search for his brother Jason.
"I can empathize. I don't understand his pain, but I've been there," he said. "It is the worst nightmare for a family."
"I was just by myself, just trying to just do my part, because I wish – I wish I would have had somebody like me helping during my time with Martin. Somebody who knew, unfortunately knew."
RELATED: Families of missing Austin men call for lights, cameras on trail off Rainey Street
Jason, who had also spent the night out on Rainey, was found dead in the lake earlier this month.
"Just seeing Jason's family go through the same sh--. It's tough," he said. "It just tears apart everything that I've worked for in therapy and everything to get back to me. It's just not changing, you know? I just want change. Something to happen. The city needs to do something. Ignoring is not an option anymore. It never was."
Gutierrez begged city leaders to install better lighting and cameras around the nightlife district after his brother's death, but they never did.
"It hit like a truck, like it never stopped. It's like just ripped off the Band-Aid and everything was back. And that's because nothing's been done, you know?"
Now Gutierrez is helping Jason's family push for the same things.
"Can't sit on our as--- anymore. Can't. We can't. People are dying."