Texas grand jury rejects indictments in fatal shooting of US citizen by federal immigration agent

A grand jury on Wednesday rejected indictments over the fatal shooting last year of a U.S. citizen by a federal immigration agent during a traffic encounter in Texas, prosecutors said.

The shooting of Ruben Ray Martinez on March 15, 2025, by a Homeland Security Investigations agent wasn't publicly disclosed by the Department of Homeland Security until The Associated Press and other media outlets reported it last week.

The Cameron County District Attorney's Office said in a statement that a grand jury declined to hand up indictments after being presented the case. The office 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.