A grand jury in Texas has rejected indictments against a federal immigration agent following the fatal shooting of a US citizen during a traffic encounter last year. Ruben Ray Martinez was killed on March 15, 2025, by an agent from Homeland Security Investigations.
The Department of Homeland Security had not publicly disclosed the incident until The Associated Press and other media outlets reported it last week. Prosecutors confirmed the grand jury’s decision on Wednesday, stating that indictments were declined after the case was presented. The Cameron County District Attorney’s Office, which issued the statement, did not provide additional details.
DHS has alleged that Martinez “intentionally ran over a Homeland Security Investigation special agent,” causing another agent to fire “defensive shots to protect himself, his fellow agents, and the general public.”
The shooting would mark the earliest of at least six deadly shootings by federal officers since a nationwide immigration crackdown was launched in President Donald Trump’s second term.
A passenger who was in the car with Martinez, Joshua Orta, had disputed DHS’ account in a draft affidavit prepared last year, according to attorneys for Martinez’s family. Orta, a key witness to the encounter, died in a car crash last weekend.
Martinez and Orta were on a trip on South Padre Island in Texas when they neared local and federal officers directing traffic around a car accident at a busy intersection, according to the draft affidavit.
In a draft affidavit, Orta reportedly said Martinez did not hit an officer with his vehicle, that their car was “just crawling” and that a federal agent fired into the driver’s side window without “giving any warning, commands, or opportunity to comply.
Attorneys for Martinez’s family did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
