On April 7, 2023, NBC’s Dateline will investigate the details of the Texan native’s tragic case. He is one of three children born to Pam and John Cruise. His father was a lawyer and priest, while his mother stayed home to raise him and his siblings. The 27-year-old learned how to shoot a pistol while visiting his grandfather in Montana and even has his own SIG Sauer 9mm.

According to D Magazine, “He grew into a tall, lanky teenager. He played the bass and listened to Ozzy Osbourne and Green Day—until he discovered that his mother liked them too. He was quiet, easygoing, with strangers, Big smile.” Cruise graduated from Baylor University in 2009 with a degree in history, where he lived with a friend, Jacob Ramsey, whom he has known since ninth grade.
“I’m kind of jealous of him growing up,” Ramsey told the outlet. “He’s a handsome guy with super athletic ability. And he has the ability to be this good guy forever. Especially during the study period, there is absolutely no way I can be mad at him.”
Who is Jonathan Cruise dating?
At the time of his death, Cruise, who was an operations manager in an emergency room, had only been dating Brenda Lazaro, then 26, for just three months. The couple met at Wuyi Shaolin, a martial arts school in the Coppell shopping center where his sister Dani and mother Pam took classes. “He’s the type of guy who enjoys being around other people,” Ramsey told D Magazine.
“He’s always been down hard and giving his best and a lot of money for a new relationship. He’s been looking for a wife.”
What was the cause of the death of the crew?
On February 2, 2014, Cruise was found dead at his home in Coppel, Texas, from a heart gunshot wound. Around 11:30 p.m. that night, Lazaro called 911, saying her boyfriend had shot himself to “prove” how much he loved her.
According to D Magazine, Brenda explained to authorities that Cruise had told her, “Baby, I love you so much. You are my world and I will prove it to you.”
When paramedics arrived, he was found lying in bed, shot by a SIG Sauer 9mm pistol in his possession.