SAN ANTONIO, Texas — A Texas jury found Wilmer Vladimir Ortega-Ruiz guilty of shooting a United States Marine Corps veteran working as a security guard at a San Antonio sports bar in May 2025. Ortega-Ruiz, a Honduran national, faces up to life in prison and future deportation for his role in the shooting that left Jimmy Friesenhahn paralyzed from the chest down.
After a week-long trial in the 175th District Court in Bexar County presided over by Judge Catherine Torres-Stahl, the jury quickly reached its verdict on Friday, convicting the 30-year-old Ortega-Ruiz of three aggravated assault charges, the top count being aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury.
As reported by Breitbart Texas’s Bob Price, Wilmer Vladimir Ortega-Ruiz was arrested by San Antonio police after the shooting of Friesenhahn, who was working as a security officer at the sports bar. A police report indicated Friesenhahn attempted to disarm Ortega-Ruiz before being shot. According to the police report, as Ortega-Ruiz entered the sports bar, Friesenhahn performed a pat-down search for weapons. After discovering a weapon on Ortega-Ruiz, a struggle ensued.
During the struggle, police say Ortega-Ruiz shot Friesenhahn multiple times, striking him twice in his ballistic vest and once in the neck. The neck wound resulted in the 14-year Marine Corps veteran enduring numerous surgeries over the months that followed, leaving him paralyzed from the chest down due to a severe spinal cord injury.
The incident occurred at the El Patio Sports Bar on Frio City Road in San Antonio’s West Side. In the year since the shooting occurred, the bar permanently closed, and all remnants of its former name have been removed from the small establishment. A new establishment opened at the same address under new management and is doing business as “Mamacita’s Bar.”
According to a report by KSAT News, during the trial, the defense unsuccessfully argued that Friesenhahn had no legal authority to search Ortega-Ruiz and questioned whether he was working as a security guard at the establishment at the time of the shooting. According to KSAT, Friesenhahn testified at trial that the State of Texas licensed him to perform security guard duties and that the sports bar, not a security company, hired him.
The defense also argued the El Patio Sports Bar did not have a sign prohibiting the carry of firearms at the time of the shooting. The prosecution successfully countered that argument.
According to court records, Ruiz-Ortega’s criminal record shows he was arrested for driving while intoxicated in 2020. He was convicted of obstruction of a highway and placed on probation as part of a plea deal. Ruiz-Ortega later violated his probation and served 35 days in jail for that offense and was later released.
Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol. Before his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @RandyClarkBBTX.