By RAY QUIROGA
publisher@sbnewspaper.com
BROWNSVILLE, TX—A trial date is set for one of two men accused of fatally shooting and killing San Benito Police Lieutenant Milton Resendez in October 2023.
According to court records, Rogelio Martinez Jr.’s, trial date is set for August 10, 2026. He is charged with capital murder of a peace officer, a capital felony. Pre-trial motion hearings have been scheduled for June 24.
As previously reported, Rodrigo Axel Espinosa Valdez, the second individual allegedly involved in the shooting death of Lt. Resendez, plead guilty to a lesser charge of murder. His sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 24, 2026, according to court records.
Earlier, Martinez and Espinosa Valdez entered not-guilty pleas in a Cameron County courtroom.
Martinez, 18, at the time of the incident, hailed from the Brownsville Southmost area, and Espinosa Valdez, a 23-year-old Mexican national, at the time, were charged with capital murder of a peace officer in connection with Resendez’s death, which occurred on Oct. 17, 2023, when the men allegedly shot at Resendez’s patrol unit and struck the lieutenant during a pursuit that eventually led through Sam Houston Blvd. in San Benito.
The two men accused of killing Resendez entered not guilty pleas to all charges during their arraignment the proceeding Tuesday.
The two men were formally indicted by a grand jury on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023 at the Cameron County Courthouse.
The chase began at South Padre Island earlier in the late afternoon on Oct. 17, when a traffic stop was conducted on a GMC truck speeding on the beach.
The driver — identified as Espinosa Valdez in the indictment — fled the scene, and gunfire was allegedly exchanged between the suspects in the truck and responding officers as the truck reached the Brownsville area.
Hours later, the suspects were traveling southbound on Sam Houston Boulevard in San Benito when Resendez joined the pursuit.
According to the indictment, both men were charged with Capital Murder of a Peace Officer, two counts of Evading Arrest, and six counts of Attempt to Commit Capital Murder of a Peace Officer for allegedly firing at other officers.
Capital Murder of a Peace Officer or Fireman is punishable by death in Texas.
Martinez faced an additional charge of possessing an unregistered machine gun, and Espinosa Valdez faced two additional charges of evading arrest. Both received a $2 million bond.
On the evening of Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, area law enforcement, friends and family of the fallen officer, and the public gathered at San Benito’s Heavin Park Pavilion to pay homage to Resendez during a vigil. The remembrance concluded with a mile-long walk around the Resaca trail, led by Resendez’s widow, Melissa.
Among those on hand was Cameron County District Attorney Luis V. Saenz, who said he took Resendez’s killing “very personally” because he’s known the family for years. Melissa Resendez is a Cameron County Probation Officer.
After the event, Saenz told the NEWS that he was sure the case would come to trial, adding that while a conviction against the two suspects accused of the shooting may seem like a sure thing from the outside, it has been his experience that anything can happen in court. Therefore, he was not rushing the investigation nor setting any deadline for when it should conclude.
“There are good cases, and there are weak cases, but there’s no such things as an opened and shut case,” Saenz said at the time. “I’ve lost cases we’re supposed to win, and we’ve won cases we’re supposed to lose; you just never know, but we’ve got to be careful in this case. It’s a police officer who lost his life, and we’ll take our time doing what we have to do. We will move on it accordingly and timely, but we have to be very cautious about the entire process.”
Resendez, 54 at the time of his death, was a 26-year veteran of the SBPD. Resendez was a product of San Benito public schools, graduating from San Benito High School in 1987 and attending Rangerville Elementary, as well as Miller Jordan and Berta Cabaza middle schools.
He later attended Texas Southmost College and the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council Police Academy. Before joining the SBPD, Resendez worked for the Brownsville Police Department, the Palm Valley Police Department, and the San Benito CISD Police Department. In total, he served more than 30 years in law enforcement.
According to his obituary, he was an avid comic book and toy collector, a movie buff, and a gardener. He also enjoyed watching his favorite NFL teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Houston Texans, as well as WWE wrestling. He also enjoyed music; his favorite band was KISS.
Resendez was born September 2, 1969, to Milton and Susana M. Resendez, who preceded him in death. He’s survived by his wife, Melissa, whom he met while attending Texas Southmost College, as well as his siblings and numerous nieces and nephews. He and Melissa were married for 27 years at the time of his death.
According to SBPD Chief of Police Mario Perea, during a press conference at SBPD headquarters on October 18, 2023, Resendez was transported to Valley Baptist Medical Center (VBMC) in Harlingen by fellow officers in a police cruiser separate from his own shortly after being shot in the abdomen that faithful Tuesday night. He later succumbed to a single bullet wound while receiving treatment at VBMC.
Events that evening began unfolding around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 17, when Cameron County Park Rangers pulled over a red GMC pickup truck for allegedly speeding on the South Padre Island beach. The truck was occupied by two men, two women, and two children.
As a park ranger questioned the driver upon exiting the pickup, a scuffle between the park ranger and the suspect being questioned allegedly ensued. At that point, the passenger allegedly jumped into the driver’s seat and sped off as the original driver jumped into the truck’s bed, according to Saenz, also at the press conference.
The pursuit continued through Port Isabel before entering Brownsville, where gunfire was allegedly exchanged between the truck’s occupants and law enforcement. According to Saenz, the women and children were allowed to exit the truck shortly after the pursuit began. Saenz said the women were taken into custody for questioning.
By 5 p.m., the truck was found disabled, and authorities began searching for the two suspects near Brownsville on FM 511.
At 10:30 p.m., the suspects were spotted in a black Ford Expedition, prompting another pursuit. At 10:58 p.m., San Benito police were informed that the chase now involved Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Troopers. As they entered the city limits via San Jose Ranch Rd., San Benito officers joined the pursuit, Perea said during the October 18 press conference.
As the chase reached North Sam Houston Blvd., Resendez was fatally wounded.
According to Perea, two bullets, allegedly fired by the suspects in the Ford Expedition while traveling southbound on Sam Houston Blvd. to evade law enforcement, struck Resendez’s patrol unit, one hitting the front bumper and the other entering the driver’s side door and penetrating the lieutenant’s abdomen in an exposed area under his ballistic vest.
Espinosa Valdez and Martinez were apprehended by DPS in Brownsville after the vehicle they were traveling in was rendered inoperable by law enforcement. The alleged perpetrators then fled on foot before being captured.
Resendez is the first and only SBPD officer killed in the line of duty, according to the department.
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