A decorated Marine Corps veteran from Texas is clinging to life after being brutally shot by a repeat-offending illegal migrant — and his family is calling out the Democrat-run justice system for its repeated failures that allowed the suspect to remain free despite a long rap sheet.
Jimmy Friesenhahn, 44, who honorably served 14 years in the U.S. Marine Corps, including combat deployments in Iraq, now lies paralyzed and unable to speak after the vicious attack in San Antonio. Friesenhahn was working a security job at El Patio Sports Bar when he tried to disarm a man he spotted carrying a handgun, his brother-in-law Emmanuel Martinez said.
That man — identified by police as 29-year-old Wilmer Vladmir Ortega Ruiz — resisted. The two struggled over the weapon before Ortega Ruiz shot Friesenhahn three times, striking him twice in his bulletproof vest and once in the neck. The gunshot to the neck caused devastating injuries to Friesenhahn’s spine, vocal cords, and esophagus, leaving the Marine veteran paralyzed and fighting for survival after multiple surgeries.
“He saved lives that night,” Martinez said. “There are people who believe Ortega Ruiz was planning to go inside and do something horrific. Jimmy’s sacrifice prevented that.”
But while Friesenhahn’s family agonizes over his life-or-death battle, outrage is growing over how Ortega Ruiz was even free to commit this crime in the first place. The illegal migrant has a long criminal history in Bexar County, yet was repeatedly released under the watch of Democrat District Attorney Joe Gonzales.
Ortega Ruiz, who ICE officials confirmed entered the U.S. illegally as a “got-away,” has been arrested at least four previous times since 2020. His criminal record includes driving while intoxicated, probation violations, assault allegations, and multiple instances of failing to appear in court. Yet, time after time, the system handed him nothing more than lenient plea deals, small bonds, and slaps on the wrist.
In October 2020, Ortega Ruiz was first arrested for DWI, but the DA’s office chose to downgrade that charge to merely obstructing a passageway. He pleaded guilty, received probation, but then violated it and was rearrested in 2023. Again, he was released on just \$1,500 bond, skipped court, and was arrested a third time that September. He bonded out again for the same amount and skipped court once more. Finally, in November 2024, he was arrested a fourth time and sentenced to “time served” — just weeks before the attempted murder of Friesenhahn.
Law enforcement sources also revealed that Ortega Ruiz was under investigation for domestic assault after allegedly attacking his girlfriend, though he managed to flee before police arrived. The suspect continued to remain free, even as his rap sheet grew longer.
Despite this violent history, the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office — under Democrat leadership — has thus far only charged Ortega Ruiz with aggravated assault for the shooting that nearly took Friesenhahn’s life. His bond has been set at \$200,000. To the victim’s family, this is yet another insult in a long string of judicial failures.
“That’s attempted murder, not aggravated assault,” Friesenhahn’s heartbroken sister, Evangelina Borjon, said. “It’s like they don’t even care. The sheriff’s office, the DA, the judges — everyone keeps letting this man walk free.”
Martinez echoed the frustration, calling the county’s justice system “a huge slap in the face.”
“The entire system has failed my brother-in-law,” Martinez added. “They had multiple chances to get this man off the street. Instead, they let him go, again and again. And now Jimmy is paralyzed, fighting for his life.”
The Bexar County District Attorney’s Office declined to comment.
The tragic case highlights the dangerous consequences of soft-on-crime policies and open-border failures that are plaguing many Democrat-led jurisdictions across the country. Critics say the justice system’s unwillingness to properly prosecute repeat offenders — especially illegal migrants — puts American citizens at risk while prioritizing political narratives over public safety.
Friesenhahn, a father of a 5-month-old baby girl, remains hospitalized as his family hopes and prays for his recovery. Meanwhile, another illegal immigrant with a violent record was allowed to walk free until it was nearly too late — a familiar story under failed liberal policies that too often put criminals before victims.
As Martinez put it: “This should have never happened.”
