David Grejtak, 56, a Texas man, brutally murdered his neighbor over loud noises in 2023. On Friday, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison, as announced by the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office. The incident unfolded on September 12, 2023. A year later, Gretjak learned where he would be spending the upcoming three decades for his crime.
On September 12, 2023, Lydia Morales, 44, invited a few family members over to her apartment in San Antonio. According to the San Antonio Express-News, they were having a good time with some drinks and music. However, little did Morales know that this would be the reason for her death.
According to testimony read at the trial, the woman and her family heard a noise coming from the downstairs apartment at one point in the night. It was later revealed to be David Grejtak’s unit. Some of the people at Morales’ apartment began leaving at that time, but almost everybody made it before passing by Gretjak’s apartment.
According to the DA’s office, a man who was said to be the boyfriend of Morales’ daughter was waiting outside Gretjak’s door for his girlfriend to come downstairs. At that time, he made a “gesture” to the peephole when the 56-year-old came outside with a gun.
✅ Colin King – 38 years for the murder of a co-worker.
✅ Fernando Gonzalez Canedo – 30 years for the murder of a teenager.
✅ David Grejtak – 30years for the murder of a neighbor.
— Bexar County Criminal District Attorney’s Office (@BexarCountyDA) September 19, 2025
Gretjak was reportedly not happy about the loud music coming from upstairs, and he got into a “verbal altercation” over the matter with the young man. When Morales left her apartment with her daughter, she found Gretjak on the ground, who reportedly had fallen. She tried to put herself between him and her family members, presumably to solve the altercation. However, this is when Grejtak fired the shot.
According to a courtroom video obtained by KSAT, Melissa Rust said at the trial, “Mr. Grejtak had had enough of Ms. Morales not doing what he wanted her to do, which was be quiet. The video evidence is so clear that we’re talking about seconds from her coming down those stairs to being shot.
MISTRIAL | A jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict in the murder trial of David Grejtak, leading to his release. https://t.co/YqFGTAFKgt
Grejtak, 56, was accused of fatally shooting his neighbor, Lydia Morales, 44, on September 12, 2023. pic.twitter.com/3gMGzZ3LFp— News 4 San Antonio (@News4SA) May 10, 2025
The prosecutor added, “All she can say is ‘what’s going on’ before the defendant shoots her. He shoots her in the right side of her chest.” The DA’s Office noted that Grejtak claimed that his action was a form of self-defense as he believed that Morales was going to stab him first.
The trial for the case initially began in May. However, at that time, the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict, resulting in a mistrial. In July, another trial began, where Gretak was found guilty of murdering Lydia Morales, after the jury found the “evidence presented did not prove his actions were justified.”
“Though today’s sentencing is a painful reminder of an act of senseless violence, it proves that we will never waver in our fight for justice,” Joe Gonzales, a Bexar County DA, said in a statement. Grejtak has now been sentenced to 30 years in prison.
