By: Jacqi Leyva-Hill
The Texas Attorney General’s Office has determined that the City of Port Isabel failed to comply with the Texas Public Information Act following a resident’s months-long effort to obtain police evidence related to a burglary investigation.
In an Oct. 23, 2026, letter addressed to Port Isabel Administrative Assistant Monica Garza, Assistant Attorney General Joseph Hoggatt found the City failed to comply with Section 552.221 of the Texas Government Code.
The dispute stems from an Oct. 17, 2025, burglary at resident Dallas Ray Smetter’s home, during which two Gibson guitars were stolen.
One instrument, a limited-edition Dave Mustaine Songwriter acoustic-electric guitar purchased for $4,999, was recovered Dec. 5, 2025. Smetter said it sustained cosmetic damage, including a scratch across part of Mustaine’s signature. His Gibson Les Paul remains missing.
Smetter said he provided investigators with Ring security-camera footage showing the burglar carrying the guitars from his home.
According to Smetter, police records documented that someone brought one of the stolen guitars to Guitar Center in Brownsville, where an employee obtained a vehicle license plate.
The recovered instrument was subsequently located at a Port Isabel business, where an individual reportedly claimed to have received it in exchange for a $500 tattoo.
Smetter questioned whether investigators adequately pursued those leads but emphasized that he was not accusing individual officers of criminal misconduct.
On Feb. 27, 2026, Smetter submitted a public information request seeking investigative records, photographs, video footage and other evidence.
Although he received the written police report, Smetter said repeated requests for body-camera footage and other media went unresolved.
After contacting city officials, Smetter filed a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office.
The Oct. 23 determination confirms that the City acknowledged releasing paperwork while withholding the requested media because it pertained to an active criminal case.
“In this instance, we find you have failed to comply with the requirements set forth by section 552.221 of the Government Code,” Hoggatt wrote.
Under Section 552.328, the City must produce the requested information or seek an Attorney General ruling authorizing its withholding within five business days, in accordance with the Act.
The City cannot charge Smetter for producing the information under the directive. Its public information officer or designee must also complete mandatory training and provide certification within six months of the letter’s date.
The determination concerns public information compliance, not the adequacy of the burglary investigation.
“It should not take that much effort for an ordinary citizen to receive a legally compliant response from local government,” Smetter said.
Port Isabel City Manager Jared Hockema was contacted twice for comment regarding the Attorney General’s determination and the burglary investigation. Despite an extended response deadline of Nov. 3, no reply had been received at press time.
Smetter said he intends to continue pursuing both matters.
“This is about more than my guitars,” he said. “Government transparency and accountability are fundamental rights of the public.”