Resident Dallas Ray Smetter requested public records related to a 2025 home burglary.
Public-Records Dispute
The Port Isabel-South Padre Press reported on the dispute over Smetter’s public-records request.
The Public-Records Rule
The Texas Office of the Attorney General says the Public Information Act generally requires governmental bodies to release requested information; bodies seeking to withhold information generally must ask the Attorney General’s Office for a ruling. That guidance explains the process but does not establish how often the office intervenes in local records disputes.
The dispute traces back to an Oct. 17, 2025, burglary at Smetter's home, during which two Gibson guitars were stolen. One of the instruments, a Dave Mustaine Songwriter acoustic-electric purchased for $4,999, was recovered, though it was severely damaged. His Gibson Les Paul remains missing, per the article.
Months of Unanswered Requests
Smetter submitted a public information request on Feb. 27, 2026, seeking investigative records, photographs, video footage and other evidence related to the burglary. He received a written police report, and the city acknowledged releasing paperwork. The Press reported that repeated requests for body-camera footage and other media went unresolved; the city said the material concerned an active criminal case.
Smetter says he provided investigators with Ring security-camera footage showing the burglar carrying the guitars from his home. Per his account, police records documented that someone brought a stolen guitar to a Guitar Center in Brownsville, where an employee obtained a vehicle license plate. The recovered instrument was later located at a Port Isabel business.
Smetter Seeks Accountability
Smetter has sought accountability amid slow progress.
Port Isabel City Manager Jared Hockema was contacted twice for comment but had not replied by press time, despite an extended response deadline of Nov. 3.
