Jack Stevens
Role at the time: HSI supervisory special agent who fired the shots, in a written statement to investigators
Defended or excused
Statement summary
In his written statement to investigators, Stevens said he fired after seeing Martinez's car strike Sosa and knock him onto the hood, and that he feared for the safety of Sosa, himself, other officers and pedestrians, noting that recent vehicle-ramming attacks were on his mind.
“Upon observing the vehicle strike SA Sosa causing him to fall onto the hood of the vehicle and driving through the scene, with SA Sosa clinging to the vehicle's hood, I discharged my service issued handgun firing through the open driver's side window striking the driver multiple times.”
Open source (opens in a new tab)Video Emerges in Fatal ICE Shooting of US Citizen Ruben Ray MartinezParagraphs quoting Stevens's written statement to investigators.
Why we used this label
His own account directly asserts the shooting was a justified response to an imminent threat, so it defends the conduct under scrutiny rather than merely disputing how the incident has been characterized.