A 69-year-old Army veteran known for turning his California property into a Trump-themed display died days after authorities say he was violently attacked outside the home, leaving his wife and friends questioning whether his politics made him a target.
Kerry Sheron died Sunday evening at Palomar Medical Center after spending days in critical condition from the May 20 assault outside his Escondido home, according to police.
The house had become locally known for its American flags and Trump memorabilia, but investigators have not determined what motivated the confrontation or whether Sheron and the suspect knew each other.
Police said officers were called to the home shortly after 2 p.m. local time on May 20 after a report of an assault.
When they arrived, they found Sheron suffering from major injuries, along with another injured person who had tried to intervene.
Prosecutors said Thomas Caleb Butler, 32, allegedly punched Sheron in the jaw before striking him repeatedly in the head.
“It was a single punch to the jaw,” Deputy District Attorney Ross Garcia said to the press on Friday.
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“The victim then falls to the floor, and there are subsequent hits to the victim’s head area.”
A bystander who stepped in during the assault was also hurt and taken to the hospital.
Security footage captured shortly before the attack showed Sheron standing outside his home before the suspect approached and assaulted him, NBC 7 reported.
Afterward, a witness told police Butler ran away on foot. Investigators later found him nearby and took him into custody.
Butler, a U.S. Navy veteran, remains jailed without bail. He pleaded not guilty to attempted murder, elder abuse, making criminal threats and battery after his arrest.
Sheron was in critical condition after the attack and died four days later. His cause and manner of death remain pending a determination by the medical examiner.
The case could now change because Butler entered his plea before Sheron died.
“The case is in the process of being presented to the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office, which is reviewing the circumstances to determine whether charges will be amended,” police said Monday.
Sheron’s wife, Maria Moreno, told local reporters outside the couple’s home that she believes her husband may have been targeted because of the pro-Trump decorations outside their property.
Just months earlier, Sheron had posted videos online showing vandalism to the displays, including torn American flags and other damage around the home.
‘I want my husband back, I want my husband back because he was my partner, a beautiful man,’ Moreno said through tears to NBC 7.
She also defended the patriotic displays that had become part of the home’s identity.
“A lot of people – they don’t like the flags. I don’t know why. I support America – my husband is a veteran,” she told CBS 8.
Butler’s estranged wife, Breanna Butler, later told the New York Post that he frequently mixed medication with alcohol and was violent with his family members.
He is due back in court on June 3.
Sheron’s death came as another veteran’s family was grieving after a separate confrontation allegedly turned deadly months after a neighborhood dispute.
Lloyd Poole, 75, died after spending months in a coma following what authorities described as an attack by a DoorDash driver in a Wixom, Michigan, neighborhood.
Poole had been hospitalized since December with a brain bleed and had part of his skull removed, according to a FOX 2 Detroit report.
Police identified the accused driver as 40-year-old Ryan Turner, who allegedly punched Poole after the older man complained that Turner was driving too fast through the neighborhood.
Poole’s daughter, Jen Shaw, said her father had been walking his dogs, as he regularly did, when Turner drove through too quickly.
With no sidewalks in the neighborhood, longtime residents like Poole often had to walk along the street.
“The guy sped past, and my dad called out to him that he needed to slow down,” she explained.
Shaw said Turner continued with his delivery, then drove through the neighborhood again. Poole yelled for him to slow down.
The confrontation that followed was reportedly caught on a neighbor’s surveillance camera.
According to Shaw, her father left his porch to write down the driver’s license plate number.
Turner stopped his car, got out and exchanged words with Poole before allegedly sucker-punching him.
“Then out of nowhere, the guy punches my father on the side of the head,” Shaw said.
“He doesn’t even try to defend himself. I don’t think he saw it coming.”
Poole hit the pavement and suffered a serious head injury. Shaw said Turner got back into his vehicle and drove away while her father remained lying in the road.
Turner later acknowledged to police that he struck Poole and drove off afterward.
Turner has claimed he acted in self-defense because he allegedly felt threatened, an explanation Shaw rejected.
Poole underwent emergency surgery for the brain bleed and remained unconscious for months after the alleged attack.
Court records show Turner had been arrested in 2022 in connection with another alleged road-rage incident.
Turner faces an aggravated assault charge and is scheduled for a pretrial hearing on June 17.
He was initially released on $3,500 bond after the alleged attack, and it was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney.
Prosecutors said they are reviewing whether to upgrade the case after Poole’s death.
“Our office was saddened to learn of Lloyd Poole’s passing,” prosecutors said. “We will continue to seek justice for the Poole family. We are reviewing the case against his alleged assailant and may amend charges as appropriate based on the evidence.”
