Jack Stevens is a supervisory special agent with Homeland Security Investigations, a division of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Case
HSI agent Jack Stevens fatally shot U.S. citizen Ruben Ray Martinez on South Padre Island in March 2025, saying Martinez's car struck a fellow agent. A grand jury declined to indict him, but body-camera footage shows the car moving very slowly, leaving the shooting disputed.
Role at the time: HSI supervisory special agent who fired the shots, in a written statement to investigators
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.”
The case's fixed reference point is whether Stevens's use of deadly force was justified. 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.
Statement dates: March 15, 2025
Statement dates: March 15, 2025
Statement dates: March 15, 2025
