Texas Lawmaker Demands Public Hearing Into Fatal ICE Shooting of San Antonio Man on South Padre Island

Fatal Shooting on South Padre Island in March 2025

A federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations agent shot and killed 23-year-old American citizen Ruben Ray Martinez on March 15, 2025, on South Padre Island during late-night immigration enforcement operations, according to internal ICE records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act.

ICE’s Significant Incident Report states that the shots were fired by a supervisory agent who was observing from a separate position. The report says this supervisory agent fired multiple rounds through the open driver’s side window of Martinez’s vehicle at point-blank range. The same report indicates that the agent who fired the fatal shots was not the agent allegedly struck by Martinez’s vehicle.

The Significant Incident Report also claims that an ICE agent was struck by Martinez’s vehicle with enough force to end up on the hood of the car. However, in the report’s “Damage” field, the entry is marked “No.”

Dispute Over Official Account and Delayed Disclosure

Newly released information describes that Martinez, a San Antonio resident, was pulled over by federal immigration agents in March 2025 while vacationing in South Padre Island. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security stated that agents were directing traffic when Martinez’s car was stopped and that he eventually accelerated and struck an agent who “wound up on the hood of the vehicle,” after which Martinez was shot and killed.

According to notes cited in the records, for nearly 12 months after the shooting, the Department of Homeland Security, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and the Texas Rangers did not disclose federal agent involvement in the incident to the public, the Texas Legislature, or Martinez’s family. Martinez’s family learned of the federal involvement approximately a year later, after news articles reported on the internal records.

The public became aware of the case only after a Washington-based watchdog group filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, which led to the release of information about the shooting. According to newly released details, state authorities took the lead on the investigation into Martinez’s death.

Martinez’s mother has stated that state troopers told her there is video evidence that contradicts the account provided by federal agents regarding the circumstances of the shooting. As of the latest information in the text, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security had not provided a statement in response to questions about the case.

Texas Representative Invokes House Rule for Public Hearing

Rep. Ray Lopez, a Democrat from San Antonio and vice chair of the Texas House Committee on Homeland Security, Public Safety, and Veterans Affairs, has formally invoked Rule 4, Section 6A of the Texas House Rules to compel a public hearing into the killing of Ruben Ray Martinez and the subsequent handling of information about federal involvement.

Lopez sent a formal letter to Committee Chairman Cole Hefner, a Republican from Mount Pleasant, demanding that the hearing be scheduled immediately. Under Section 6A, a rule created in the 89th Legislature, the committee chair is required to “promptly schedule” hearings designated by the vice chair. Lopez requested a written response from Hefner by the end of business on Monday, February 23, 2026.

According to notes referenced in the records, the Martinez killing appears to be the earliest fatal shooting of an American citizen by a federal agent during the current administration’s immigration enforcement campaign, occurring nearly 10 months before the January 2026 killing of Renée Good in Minneapolis. Lopez’s letter states that ICE’s account of the Martinez shooting follows the same pattern described in relation to the Good case, in which the agency claimed an agent was struck by a vehicle.

Family and City Officials Call for Accountability

San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz-Jones has called for an independent investigation into the death of Ruben Ray Martinez. She has publicly stated that she is concerned about how long it took for information about the incident and federal involvement to be released, and that the length of time before disclosure has implications for public trust in agencies.

Martinez’s family and their attorneys have issued statements about their response to the shooting. His mother, Rachel Reyes, said that since her son’s death a year earlier, the family has wanted justice and has struggled with the lack of information surrounding his killing. She stated that she hopes the recent attention to his death will help bring justice and answers.

The family’s attorneys, Charles M. Stam and Alex Stamm, stated that Martinez’s relatives have been seeking transparency and accountability for nearly a year. They said that the family will continue these efforts for as long as necessary. The attorneys emphasized the need for a full and fair investigation into why Homeland Security Investigations agents were present at the scene of what they described as a traffic collision, and why a federal officer fatally shot a U.S. citizen in that context.