Joshua Orta
Role at the time: Passenger in Martinez's car and sole surviving witness, in statements to investigators and reporters before his death
Statement summary
Joshua Orta, the passenger and sole surviving witness, told investigators and the Martinez family's attorney that their car was "just crawling" as they tried to turn around and that Martinez did not hit anyone, contradicting the account that the shooting was a response to the car striking Agent Sosa.
“He also told us unequivocally that Ruben did not hit anyone.”
The Associated Press reports that Joshua Orta, the passenger in Martinez's car and sole surviving witness, said their vehicle was "just crawling as we were trying to turn around" and that Martinez did not hit anyone, and that Orta died in a car crash in San Antonio in late February 2026, days before the grand jury's decision. Attorney Stamm, representing Martinez's family, is quoted vouching for Orta's account.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Why we used this label
The case's fixed reference point is whether Stevens's use of force was justified. Orta's account directly disputes the key factual premise Stevens gave for firing — that the car struck Sosa — which condemns the shooting as unjustified rather than merely disputing a characterization of it.