This undated photo provided by Rachel Reyes on Friday, February 20, 2026, shows Ruben Ray Martinez, a U.S. citizen who was shot and killed in Texas by a federal immigration agent last year. (Rachel Reyes via AP
ANOTHER American murdered by Sec of Homeland Security fascist fotze trunt kkkristi noem's ice, hsi & cbp gestapo. Ruben Ray Martinez was murdered on 15 MAR 2025, almost a year ago, but is only being reported on now thanks to Newsweek exposing the crime. Congress MUST NOT pass any funding legislation for dhs without all the new regulations for ice, hsi and cpb agents submitted by congressional Democrats are included in the funding legislation. This should not be negotiable, without these new regulations more Americans will be murdered by this government. From Newsweek and the New York Times.....
DHS Confirms Third US Citizen Killing After Newsweek Investigation
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has told Newsweek that a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agent fired "defensive shots" at a driver after he "intentionally ran over" another federal agent.
Immigration agents shot and killed Ruben Ray Martinez, 23, on March 15, 2025, in South Padre Island, Texas, but the involvement of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) HSI unit was not publicly disclosed at the time.
New details later emerged through internal ICE records obtained by watchdog American Oversight via a Freedom of Information Act request and reviewed by Newsweek.
Rachel Reyes, mother of Ruben Ray Martinez, told Newsweek via email, “Since Ruben’s death a year ago, all we have wanted is justice for him and we have struggled with the silence surrounding his killing. Now, the country is in crisis - and, terribly, heartbreakingly, other families are enduring what we have. It’s my hope that attention being raised now into Ruben’s death will help bring the justice we want for him and the answers we haven’t had.”
In a statement to Newsweek, DHS said HSI agents were assisting the South Padre Island Police Department following a major accident.
"A driver of a blue Ford intentionally ran over a Homeland Security Investigation special agent resulting in him being on the hood of the vehicle. Upon witnessing this, another agent fired defensive shots to protect himself, his fellow agents, and the general public," a spokesperson for the agency said.
"The driver was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced deceased. The agent who was ran over sustained a knee injury and was taken to the hospital." Newsweek has been unable to independently corroborate the agency’s account.
DHS said the incident remains under investigation by the Texas Department of Public Safety’s Ranger Division and directed any additional questions to that agency.
"I can confirm that this is an ongoing investigation by the Texas Rangers, and no other information is available at this time," Christopher Olivarez, spokesperson with the Texas Department of Public Safety, told Newsweek.
The FBI’s San Antonio field office is not involved in the probe, Special Agent Carmen Portillo told Newsweek.
It remains unclear whether body-worn camera footage exists or whether members of Congress were formally notified at the time of the shooting.
The case appears to be the first known instance of a federal agent fatally shooting a U.S. citizen under the Trump administration’s hard-line mass deportation policy.
South Pedro Island Police Department told Newsweek on Thursday that its officers were working the incident on March 15, 2025, but said the officer-involved shooting was referred to the Texas Rangers so it could not comment further.
In an obituary posted online last year, Martinez’s family said they were “deeply saddened and shocked by his sudden death.” The family described Martinez as “humble, kind, and adventurous."
“Ruben’s family has been pursuing transparency and accountability for nearly a year now and will continue to do so for as long as it takes. It is critical that there is a full and fair investigation into why HSI was present at the scene of a traffic collision and why a federal officer shot and killed a US citizen as he was trying to comply with instructions from the local law enforcement officers directing traffic," Charles M. Stam and Alex Stamm, attorneys for the family of Ruben Ray Martinez, told Newsweek via email.
Newsweek has filed public‑records requests seeking incident reports, investigative findings and any video related to the deadly shooting.
If you witnessed or have dashcam footage of the incident on March 15, 2025, and would like to share this information with Newsweek, you can contact the authors of this article.
Updates: 2/20/26, 7:16 p.m. ET: This article was updated with new information and remarks.
ICE Knew of Increased Use of Force on US Citizens and Migrants, Emails ShowPublished
Feb 18, 2026 at 04:51 AM EST
The Trump administration was aware of an increased use of force by immigration agents during enforcement operations months before fatal shootings in Minneapolis, according to internal emails obtained by a nonprofit under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
The messages, sent in February and March 2025, indicate that senior Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials were informed of a rise in reported use-of-force incidents compared with the previous year.
Emails also noted that use-of-force incidents in early March alone had quadrupled year-over-year. In the first two months of 2025, officers reported 67 incidents, nearly four times the 17 incidents reported during the same period in 2024.
"These records paint a deeply troubling picture of the violent methods used by ICE," Chioma Chukwu, Executive Director of American Oversight, a left-leaning organization that has backed lawsuits against the Trump administration, said in a press release Tuesday. "In just the first months of this administration, ICE’s own data shows a dramatic spike of nearly 400 percent in use-of-force incidents—with people hospitalized, bystanders swept up in operations, and even the death of a U.S. citizen."
"Behind every statistic is a person, a family, and a community forced to live with the consequences of ICE’s aggressive and inhumane enforcement tactics."
In response, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told Newsweek that America could be proud of the professionalism officers were bringing to the job of arresting and removing "dangerous criminal illegal aliens, including murderers, rapists, and gang members" from communities across the country.
"DHS law enforcement officers are trained to use the minimum amount of force necessary to de-escalate dangerous situations to prioritize the safety of the public and our officers," a DHS spokesperson told Newsweek. "Officers are highly trained in de-escalation tactics and regularly receive ongoing use of force training. The agency’s current use of force policy is the same as it was in 2023 under President Biden’s administration."
The spokesperson went on to outline 23 separate incidents in which federal agents had allegedly been attacked or injured while carrying out their duties, including sharing the image of the end of an officer's finger which a protester was accused of biting off in Minneapolis.
What Did ICE Emails Reveal?
The emails, shared with Newsweek on Tuesday, were obtained by American Oversight, which filed a FOIA request seeking records on ICE enforcement and use-of-force practices. They were first reported by Politico.
Caleb Vitello, the former acting ICE Director, received the briefings, showing that leadership was aware of the increase in the use of force well before enforcement actions in Minneapolis became highly scrutinized.
In one particular incident, on March 10, 2025, Border Patrol and ICE officers broke the windows of a woman’s car while attempting to detain two undocumented individuals in Washington, according to the emails. During the encounter, one of the individuals was tased and subsequently required medical attention after experiencing vomiting and sustaining minor scratches.
The scene was similar to others that played out across the U.S. in the early months of the second White House term of President Donald Trump, but emails also highlighted that ICE officials, including Vitello, acknowledged agents were increasing their use of force against civilians, American Oversight told Newsweek.
DHS has repeatedly said that its agents are consistently having to deal with increased aggression from both immigrants and U.S. citizens. In the department's response to American Oversight's reporting on Tuesday, the department spokesperson told Newsweek that agents had been boxed in, assaulted, and shot at by rioters seeking to get in the way of immigration enforcement during various incidents in recent months.
One such incident, on October 2, saw officers become the targets of two separate vehicular assaults in the Chicago metro area, DHS said. Illegal immigrants "weaponized their vehicles," the spokesperson said, in what were seen as deliberate attempts to ram and injure officers.
Two days later, again in Chicago, agents were rammed and boxed in by up to 10 vehicles, before suspects fled. One agent fired defensively, according to the spokesperson.
The list included other incidents in Dallas, San Diego, Maine, New York City, and Colorado Springs over several months, showing a pattern of clashes between federal agents and locals.
The emails, shared with Newsweek on Tuesday, were obtained by American Oversight, which filed a FOIA request seeking records on ICE enforcement and use-of-force practices. They were first reported by Politico.
Caleb Vitello, the former acting ICE Director, received the briefings, showing that leadership was aware of the increase in the use of force well before enforcement actions in Minneapolis became highly scrutinized.
In one particular incident, on March 10, 2025, Border Patrol and ICE officers broke the windows of a woman’s car while attempting to detain two undocumented individuals in Washington, according to the emails. During the encounter, one of the individuals was tased and subsequently required medical attention after experiencing vomiting and sustaining minor scratches.
The scene was similar to others that played out across the U.S. in the early months of the second White House term of President Donald Trump, but emails also highlighted that ICE officials, including Vitello, acknowledged agents were increasing their use of force against civilians, American Oversight told Newsweek.
DHS has repeatedly said that its agents are consistently having to deal with increased aggression from both immigrants and U.S. citizens. In the department's response to American Oversight's reporting on Tuesday, the department spokesperson told Newsweek that agents had been boxed in, assaulted, and shot at by rioters seeking to get in the way of immigration enforcement during various incidents in recent months.
One such incident, on October 2, saw officers become the targets of two separate vehicular assaults in the Chicago metro area, DHS said. Illegal immigrants "weaponized their vehicles," the spokesperson said, in what were seen as deliberate attempts to ram and injure officers.
Two days later, again in Chicago, agents were rammed and boxed in by up to 10 vehicles, before suspects fled. One agent fired defensively, according to the spokesperson.
The list included other incidents in Dallas, San Diego, Maine, New York City, and Colorado Springs over several months, showing a pattern of clashes between federal agents and locals.
Changing the Narrative Around ICE Clashes
Vitello was told on March 20 that agents had reported the rise in use of force incidents, with American Oversight telling Newsweek that the statistics indicated a far larger number of incidents had taken place compared to those reported in the media.
Vitello and others responded by saying they wanted to focus on the actions of civilians toward officers.
"Sure thing, of note is the huge increase in LEO [Law Enforcement Officer] assaults. I know Charleston incorporated 18 USC 111 into Prosecutions training a couple years ago, they may be able to package up a summary of the needed elements of the crime, definitions of what constitutes assault, etc., with the intent of broadcasting to the workforce in an effort to drive more presentations for prosecution," read one email to Vitello from March 20.
The disclosures coincide with Operation Metro Surge winding down in Minnesota, the latest in a string of high-profile operations which DHS has said are aimed at detaining illegal immigrant criminals. Under the ICE and Border Patrol operation that began in December 2025, federal officers shot and killed two U.S. citizens, Renée Good and Alex Pretti, prompting public protests and congressional inquiries.
The surge and its tactics have sparked criticism and backlash, nationwide, with local officials, lawmakers, and immigrant rights advocates questioning whether federal agents respected civil liberties and used appropriate use‑of‑force standards.
"What’s more, these records demonstrate a stark disconnect between the constitutional standards on which ICE claims to train its officers and the abusive and deadly enforcement practices we see detailed in these incident reports and on the streets of American cities in places like Minneapolis," said Chukwu.
The president and his Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, as well as senior DHS officials, have all insisted that ICE and other federal agents are sticking to their training, and that it is rhetoric from Democratic leaders which has caused the sometimes-violent clashes.
American Oversight told Newsweek that getting an accurate picture of what the reality was within DHS had become harder over the past year, with data on incidents not being readily available. That view has also been repeated by Democrats in Congress, who have sought to hold Noem and DHS more widely to account, and bring about ICE reform.
Vitello was told on March 20 that agents had reported the rise in use of force incidents, with American Oversight telling Newsweek that the statistics indicated a far larger number of incidents had taken place compared to those reported in the media.
Vitello and others responded by saying they wanted to focus on the actions of civilians toward officers.
"Sure thing, of note is the huge increase in LEO [Law Enforcement Officer] assaults. I know Charleston incorporated 18 USC 111 into Prosecutions training a couple years ago, they may be able to package up a summary of the needed elements of the crime, definitions of what constitutes assault, etc., with the intent of broadcasting to the workforce in an effort to drive more presentations for prosecution," read one email to Vitello from March 20.
The disclosures coincide with Operation Metro Surge winding down in Minnesota, the latest in a string of high-profile operations which DHS has said are aimed at detaining illegal immigrant criminals. Under the ICE and Border Patrol operation that began in December 2025, federal officers shot and killed two U.S. citizens, Renée Good and Alex Pretti, prompting public protests and congressional inquiries.
The surge and its tactics have sparked criticism and backlash, nationwide, with local officials, lawmakers, and immigrant rights advocates questioning whether federal agents respected civil liberties and used appropriate use‑of‑force standards.
"What’s more, these records demonstrate a stark disconnect between the constitutional standards on which ICE claims to train its officers and the abusive and deadly enforcement practices we see detailed in these incident reports and on the streets of American cities in places like Minneapolis," said Chukwu.
The president and his Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, as well as senior DHS officials, have all insisted that ICE and other federal agents are sticking to their training, and that it is rhetoric from Democratic leaders which has caused the sometimes-violent clashes.
American Oversight told Newsweek that getting an accurate picture of what the reality was within DHS had become harder over the past year, with data on incidents not being readily available. That view has also been repeated by Democrats in Congress, who have sought to hold Noem and DHS more widely to account, and bring about ICE reform.
Questions Over Fourth Amendment Rights
During a Senate hearing last week, Democratic Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal pressed the current acting ICE Director Todd Lyons about agents using force when entering immigrants' homes to arrest them without a judicial warrant, which has raised concerns by some that individuals' Fourth Amendment rights could be infringed.
Lyons pointed to case law that allows such moves, but Blumenthal pushed back.
"It does not abrogate the Fourth Amendment," Blumenthal said during the February 12 hearing. "It does not say that ICE agents or CBP agents can simply bash down doors and barge into people’s homes, terrorize their children, detain and arrest people without a judicial warrant and there is nothing different about what ICE does as to compared to the FBI or the local police that would justify. The policy that they are acting under in fact is the result of a memo that you issued in May, you are familiar with it."
Lyons said he was, and said he believed the policy was "blasted out to…" before the senator cut him off, saying Congress only learned of the change thanks to two whistleblowers.
That memo, issued in May, said agents could use so-called I-205 forms to enter the homes of those with final orders of removal.
"The records include a memo authorizing the use of controversial extra-judicial warrants for removal, along with documents showing that training instructors were directed to tell anyone who asked that the practice was under review," Chukwu said. "This suggests ICE knows its practices are deeply problematic—and is deliberately hiding the ball to avoid public scrutiny."
Last week, it was revealed that Trump's border czar Tom Homan had warned in an interview last year that using excessive force and carrying out sweeping operations could backfire, and that Americans wanted targeted operations which did not cause disruption and unrest in communities.
On Tuesday, DHS defended its agents, with the spokesperson saying that under Trump and Noem, "ICE officers are held to the highest professional standard and officers regularly receive ongoing training.
"As our officer put their lives on the line to arrest murderers, rapists, pedophiles, gang members, and terrorists, they are facing a coordinated campaign of violence against them including a more than 1,300 percent increase in assaults against them, 8,000 percent increase in death threats, and 3,200 percent increase in vehicle attacks against them," the spokesperson continued.
"Comparing ICE, day-in and day-out, to the Nazi Gestapo, the Secret Police, and slave patrols has consequences. The men and women of ICE are fathers and mothers, sons and daughters. They get up every morning to try and make our communities safer. Like everyone else, we just want to go home to our families at night. The violence and dehumanization of these men and women who are simply enforcing the law must stop."
During a Senate hearing last week, Democratic Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal pressed the current acting ICE Director Todd Lyons about agents using force when entering immigrants' homes to arrest them without a judicial warrant, which has raised concerns by some that individuals' Fourth Amendment rights could be infringed.
Lyons pointed to case law that allows such moves, but Blumenthal pushed back.
"It does not abrogate the Fourth Amendment," Blumenthal said during the February 12 hearing. "It does not say that ICE agents or CBP agents can simply bash down doors and barge into people’s homes, terrorize their children, detain and arrest people without a judicial warrant and there is nothing different about what ICE does as to compared to the FBI or the local police that would justify. The policy that they are acting under in fact is the result of a memo that you issued in May, you are familiar with it."
Lyons said he was, and said he believed the policy was "blasted out to…" before the senator cut him off, saying Congress only learned of the change thanks to two whistleblowers.
That memo, issued in May, said agents could use so-called I-205 forms to enter the homes of those with final orders of removal.
"The records include a memo authorizing the use of controversial extra-judicial warrants for removal, along with documents showing that training instructors were directed to tell anyone who asked that the practice was under review," Chukwu said. "This suggests ICE knows its practices are deeply problematic—and is deliberately hiding the ball to avoid public scrutiny."
Last week, it was revealed that Trump's border czar Tom Homan had warned in an interview last year that using excessive force and carrying out sweeping operations could backfire, and that Americans wanted targeted operations which did not cause disruption and unrest in communities.
On Tuesday, DHS defended its agents, with the spokesperson saying that under Trump and Noem, "ICE officers are held to the highest professional standard and officers regularly receive ongoing training.
"As our officer put their lives on the line to arrest murderers, rapists, pedophiles, gang members, and terrorists, they are facing a coordinated campaign of violence against them including a more than 1,300 percent increase in assaults against them, 8,000 percent increase in death threats, and 3,200 percent increase in vehicle attacks against them," the spokesperson continued.
"Comparing ICE, day-in and day-out, to the Nazi Gestapo, the Secret Police, and slave patrols has consequences. The men and women of ICE are fathers and mothers, sons and daughters. They get up every morning to try and make our communities safer. Like everyone else, we just want to go home to our families at night. The violence and dehumanization of these men and women who are simply enforcing the law must stop."
A Fatal ICE Shooting Occurred in Texas Months Before Renee Good’s Killing
Months before Renee Good’s killing at the hands of an immigration agent in Minneapolis set off nationwide protests, a federal officer shot and killed another American citizen in his car in South Texas, according to internal reports made public this week.
The victim, Ruben Ray Martinez, 23, was shot multiple times in South Padre Island by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer after he did not follow commands to exit his vehicle, according to internal ICE documents reviewed by The New York Times. ICE’s connection to the shooting was first reported by Newsweek this week.
The episode, which occurred around 12:40 a.m. on March 15, 2025, was reported by local media at the time as a shooting carried out by a law enforcement officer. It was not clear which agency was involved until the internal incident reports were made public this week.
The documents did not name the officers involved in the encounter, but the description of the victim matched that of Mr. Martinez. Charles Stam, a lawyer for the Martinez family, confirmed that his client was the victim mentioned in the ICE report.
Mr. Martinez’s mother, Rachel Reyes, described her son as a hard-working young man who did not have a history of confronting law enforcement officials. In a phone interview, she said that her son was celebrating his birthday in South Padre Island with a friend he had known since elementary school when he was killed, five days after he turned 23. Ms. Reyes said her son worked at an Amazon warehouse in San Antonio.
“He was a good kid. He doesn’t have a criminal history,” she said, adding: “He never got in trouble. He was never violent.”
The ICE documents state that Homeland Security Investigation agents from Harlingen, Texas, were helping the South Padre Island Police Department control traffic near a car accident when a blue Ford approached the area.
Mr. Martinez initially did not follow officers’ instructions but eventually slowed to a stop after receiving verbal commands. Agents surrounded the vehicle and told him to get out of the car before Mr. Martinez accelerated and hit a federal agent who landed on the roof of the car, according to the documents. Another agent then fired multiple times through the driver’s side window. Mr. Martinez was transported to a hospital in Brownsville and later died.
When asked about Mr. Martinez's killing, the Department of Homeland Security described the shooting as an act of self-defense, saying the agent had “fired defensive shots to protect himself, his fellow agents, and the general public” after the driver “ran over” a Homeland Security Investigation special agent.
The agent who was hit by Mr. Martinez’s vehicle was released from the hospital after he was treated for a knee injury, according to the incident report.
In the more recent killings in Minneapolis of Ms. Good and Alex Pretti, another U.S. citizen who was also killed by an immigration agent, official accounts were later challenged by videos recorded by bystanders. No footage of Mr. Martinez’s killing has surfaced.
In a statement, Mr. Stam and Alex Stamm, another lawyer for the family, said that eyewitness accounts were not consistent with the government’s report and called for accountability.
“It is critical that there is a full and fair investigation into why H.S.I. was present at the scene of a traffic collision and why a federal officer shot and killed a U.S. citizen as he was trying to comply with instructions from the local law enforcement officers directing traffic,” they said.
Ms. Reyes also said she disagreed with the government’s description of her son.
“What they’re saying is different from what they told the family, so that’s adding insult to injury,” she said, without elaborating. “They are making it sound different. I don’t appreciate their language.”
Mr. Martinez is at least the third U.S. citizen who was shot and killed by federal immigration officers since the start of President Trump’s second term. His presidency has been marked by a significant push to maximize deportations.
Ms. Good, a Minneapolis mother, was killed in her car by masked federal agents on Jan. 7, and Mr. Pretti, an intensive care nurse, was killed on a South Minneapolis street on Jan. 24 during a surge of immigration agents in the Twin Cities. Bystander videos of both killings circulated quickly and helped fuel protests across the country.
Since September, federal agents have fired at vehicles at least 10 times in six different cities. Two of the shootings were fatal.
An immigration enforcement agent is supposed to use deadly force only if the officer “has a reasonable belief that the subject of such force poses an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury,” according to the Homeland Security Department’s policy. The policy also states that officers should avoid placing themselves in positions in which they have no other option but to use deadly force.
The shooting of Mr. Martinez is under investigation by the Texas Rangers, a state agency that reviews shootings involving law enforcement officers and oversees border security for the Texas Department of Public Safety. Sheridan Nolen, a spokeswoman for the Department of Public Safety, said in an email on Friday that the investigation was ongoing, but declined to provide any additional information.
In a statement, a spokeswoman for the city of South Padre Island directed questions about the shooting to the Texas Rangers. The statement confirmed that an officer involved shooting “by an outside agency” took place on March 15 while officers were responding to a traffic accident.
One incident report in the ICE documents indicated that the driver had appeared intoxicated or impaired. It also said that the passenger, whose identity is unknown, also appeared intoxicated or impaired and was arrested by the South Padre Island police. The police did not respond to requests for comment.
According to Ms. Reyes, the information in the ICE documents is different from what the family was initially told, though she declined to provide further details.
“Since Ruben’s death a year ago, all we have wanted is justice for him, and we have struggled with the silence surrounding his killing,” Ms. Reyes said in a statement sent by her lawyers. “Now, the country is in crisis and, terribly, heartbreakingly, other families are enduring what we have.”
Emma Schartz and Alexandra Berzon contributed reporting. Georgia Gee contributed research.
Pooja Salhotra covers breaking news across the United States.
Edgar Sandoval covers Texas for The Times, with a focus on the Latino community and the border with Mexico. He is based in San Antonio.
Months before Renee Good’s killing at the hands of an immigration agent in Minneapolis set off nationwide protests, a federal officer shot and killed another American citizen in his car in South Texas, according to internal reports made public this week.
The victim, Ruben Ray Martinez, 23, was shot multiple times in South Padre Island by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer after he did not follow commands to exit his vehicle, according to internal ICE documents reviewed by The New York Times. ICE’s connection to the shooting was first reported by Newsweek this week.
The episode, which occurred around 12:40 a.m. on March 15, 2025, was reported by local media at the time as a shooting carried out by a law enforcement officer. It was not clear which agency was involved until the internal incident reports were made public this week.
The documents did not name the officers involved in the encounter, but the description of the victim matched that of Mr. Martinez. Charles Stam, a lawyer for the Martinez family, confirmed that his client was the victim mentioned in the ICE report.
Mr. Martinez’s mother, Rachel Reyes, described her son as a hard-working young man who did not have a history of confronting law enforcement officials. In a phone interview, she said that her son was celebrating his birthday in South Padre Island with a friend he had known since elementary school when he was killed, five days after he turned 23. Ms. Reyes said her son worked at an Amazon warehouse in San Antonio.
“He was a good kid. He doesn’t have a criminal history,” she said, adding: “He never got in trouble. He was never violent.”
The ICE documents state that Homeland Security Investigation agents from Harlingen, Texas, were helping the South Padre Island Police Department control traffic near a car accident when a blue Ford approached the area.
Mr. Martinez initially did not follow officers’ instructions but eventually slowed to a stop after receiving verbal commands. Agents surrounded the vehicle and told him to get out of the car before Mr. Martinez accelerated and hit a federal agent who landed on the roof of the car, according to the documents. Another agent then fired multiple times through the driver’s side window. Mr. Martinez was transported to a hospital in Brownsville and later died.
When asked about Mr. Martinez's killing, the Department of Homeland Security described the shooting as an act of self-defense, saying the agent had “fired defensive shots to protect himself, his fellow agents, and the general public” after the driver “ran over” a Homeland Security Investigation special agent.
The agent who was hit by Mr. Martinez’s vehicle was released from the hospital after he was treated for a knee injury, according to the incident report.
In the more recent killings in Minneapolis of Ms. Good and Alex Pretti, another U.S. citizen who was also killed by an immigration agent, official accounts were later challenged by videos recorded by bystanders. No footage of Mr. Martinez’s killing has surfaced.
In a statement, Mr. Stam and Alex Stamm, another lawyer for the family, said that eyewitness accounts were not consistent with the government’s report and called for accountability.
“It is critical that there is a full and fair investigation into why H.S.I. was present at the scene of a traffic collision and why a federal officer shot and killed a U.S. citizen as he was trying to comply with instructions from the local law enforcement officers directing traffic,” they said.
Ms. Reyes also said she disagreed with the government’s description of her son.
“What they’re saying is different from what they told the family, so that’s adding insult to injury,” she said, without elaborating. “They are making it sound different. I don’t appreciate their language.”
Mr. Martinez is at least the third U.S. citizen who was shot and killed by federal immigration officers since the start of President Trump’s second term. His presidency has been marked by a significant push to maximize deportations.
Ms. Good, a Minneapolis mother, was killed in her car by masked federal agents on Jan. 7, and Mr. Pretti, an intensive care nurse, was killed on a South Minneapolis street on Jan. 24 during a surge of immigration agents in the Twin Cities. Bystander videos of both killings circulated quickly and helped fuel protests across the country.
Since September, federal agents have fired at vehicles at least 10 times in six different cities. Two of the shootings were fatal.
An immigration enforcement agent is supposed to use deadly force only if the officer “has a reasonable belief that the subject of such force poses an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury,” according to the Homeland Security Department’s policy. The policy also states that officers should avoid placing themselves in positions in which they have no other option but to use deadly force.
The shooting of Mr. Martinez is under investigation by the Texas Rangers, a state agency that reviews shootings involving law enforcement officers and oversees border security for the Texas Department of Public Safety. Sheridan Nolen, a spokeswoman for the Department of Public Safety, said in an email on Friday that the investigation was ongoing, but declined to provide any additional information.
In a statement, a spokeswoman for the city of South Padre Island directed questions about the shooting to the Texas Rangers. The statement confirmed that an officer involved shooting “by an outside agency” took place on March 15 while officers were responding to a traffic accident.
One incident report in the ICE documents indicated that the driver had appeared intoxicated or impaired. It also said that the passenger, whose identity is unknown, also appeared intoxicated or impaired and was arrested by the South Padre Island police. The police did not respond to requests for comment.
According to Ms. Reyes, the information in the ICE documents is different from what the family was initially told, though she declined to provide further details.
“Since Ruben’s death a year ago, all we have wanted is justice for him, and we have struggled with the silence surrounding his killing,” Ms. Reyes said in a statement sent by her lawyers. “Now, the country is in crisis and, terribly, heartbreakingly, other families are enduring what we have.”
Emma Schartz and Alexandra Berzon contributed reporting. Georgia Gee contributed research.
Pooja Salhotra covers breaking news across the United States.
Edgar Sandoval covers Texas for The Times, with a focus on the Latino community and the border with Mexico. He is based in San Antonio.
