The first-ever public use of Rule 4, Section 6A will compel the Republican House leadership to schedule a public hearing on the year-long concealment of ICE killing of San Antonio man
AUSTIN, TEXAS — In an unprecedented step, Rep. Ray Lopez (D-San Antonio) today invoked Rule 4, Section 6A of the Texas House Rules to compel a public hearing on the killing of 23-year-old American citizen Ruben Ray Martinez by a federal ICE agent, and the nearly year-long concealment of federal involvement in his death. As first reported by CBS News, this is the first time a vice chair has publicly exercised this designation authority.
Lopez, the Vice Chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security, Public Safety, and Veterans Affairs, sent a formal letter to Chairman Cole Hefner (R-Mount Pleasant) demanding the hearing be scheduled immediately. Under Section 6A, a new rule created in the 89th Legislature, the chair is required to “promptly schedule” the hearings designated by the vice chair.
Internal ICE records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act and first reported by Newsweek reveal that on March 15, 2025, an ICE Homeland Security Investigations agent shot and killed Martinez on South Padre Island during late-night immigration enforcement operations. ICE's own Significant Incident Report shows the agent who fired the fatal shots was not the agent allegedly struck by Martinez's vehicle. A supervisory agent, observing from a separate position, discharged multiple rounds through the open driver's side window of the car and killed Martinez at point-blank range. The report claims an agent was struck with enough force to end up on the hood of the vehicle, yet the report's "Damage" field is marked “No.”
For nearly twelve months, neither the Department of Homeland Security, the Texas Department of Public Safety, nor the Texas Rangers disclosed federal agent involvement to the public, the Legislature, or Martinez's family. His family learned the truth this week from news articles.
“When government uses its most serious power, the power to take a life, the facts cannot remain hidden. A young Texan lost his life, and the public was left without full clarity for nearly a year. That is not about politics. It is about trust,” said Rep. Ray Lopez (D-San Antonio). “Because of the seriousness of these unanswered questions, I have formally invoked the House Rules to demand a public hearing. It is a rare step taken to ensure the people of Texas see the facts for themselves. When federal agents operate on Texas soil, transparency is not optional. It belongs to the people.”
The Martinez killing appears to be the earliest fatal shooting of an American citizen by a federal agent during the current administration's immigration enforcement campaign, predating the widely reported January 2026 killing of Renée Good in Minneapolis by nearly ten months. As Rep. Lopez’s letter notes, ICE's account of the Martinez shooting follows the same pattern as the Good killing, where the agency's claim that an agent was struck by a vehicle was directly contradicted by video evidence.
Lopez demanded Chairman Hefner's written response by end of business Monday, February 23, 2026.