His friendships were short-lived, she said. Reyes said she could recall about five times that Ramos had fistfights with peers in middle school and junior high. The grandmother told him she was in the process of evicting Ramos’s mother because of her drug problems, Flores said. He said he last saw the grandmother on Sunday, when she stopped by the Hood Street property, which she also owned. Ramos moved from the Hood Street home to his grandmother’s home across town a few months ago, Flores said. Ramos’s mother could not be reached for comment. Multiple people familiar with the family, including Flores, said Ramos’s mother used drugs, which contributed to the upheaval in the home. He described seeing police at the house and witnessing blowups between Ramos and his mother. He’d brush it off in the moment, Mia said, then complain later to his grandmother that he didn’t want to go back to school.Īs he grew older, problems at home became more acute and more apparent to neighbours, Flores said. Ramos’s cousin Mia said she saw students mock his speech impediment when they attended middle school together. He missed long periods of high school, classmates said, and was not on track to graduate with them this year.
He started wearing all black, Garcia said, and large military boots. When Garcia left, Ramos dropped out of school. “He kept getting worse and worse, and I don’t even know.” But when Garcia and his mother relocated to another part of Texas for her job, “he just started being a different person,” Garcia said. Garcia said he tried to stand up for him. One time, he posted a photo of himself wearing black eyeliner, Garcia said, which brought on a slew of comments using a derogatory term for a gay person. He just needed to break out of his shell.” “He was the nicest kid, the most shyest kid. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.