Citing the recent “executions” of two U.S. citizens by immigration agents in Minneapolis, a lawyer for a Chicago woman shot by a Border Patrol agent in October asked a judge on Monday to allow bodycam footage and other evidence from the incident to be made public.
In his eight-page motion, attorney Christopher Parente wrote that despite all charges being dropped against his client, Marimar Martinez, in November, the government “continues to prosecute her character in the court of public opinion,” with labels of “domestic terrorist” and other falsehoods still visible on official government websites and social media.
Parente also said two U.S. citizens killed by immigration officers this month in Minnesota — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — were “engaged in similar peaceful protests as Ms. Martinez at the time of their killings.”
Releasing the body-worn camera footage and other reports in Martinez’s case “would be useful for both the public and elected officials to know regarding how (the Department of Homeland Security) responds in cases where their agents use deadly force against U.S. citizens,” Parente wrote.
“What happened to Ms. Martinez and the truth about the events of October 4, 2025, as well as what is happening with the killing of two other individuals by DHS agents have become matters of strong public interest and debate,” he wrote.
Parente asked U.S. District Judge Georgia Alexakis to modify the protective order in the case so the evidence can be disseminated.
Alexakis shot down a similar request by the Tribune and other media outlets last month, citing what she said was an eleventh-hour attempt to intervene in the case and a lack of standing. Attorneys for the media have since appealed that ruling.
Prosecutors alleged Martinez was part of a convoy of civilians who were following agents on Oct. 4 when she rammed Border Patrol Agent Charles Exum’s vehicle near 39th Street and Kedzie Avenue, prompting Exum to jump out of his Chevrolet Tahoe and fire five shots, wounding Martinez seven times.
Martinez’s attorneys argued it was Exum who sideswiped Martinez and that his extreme use of force was completely unjustified. They also alleged evidence tampering, saying Exum was inexplicably allowed to drive the Tahoe more than 1,000 miles back to his home base in Maine, where a Border Patrol mechanic attempted to “wipe off” some of the scuff marks from the crash.
Exum wound up testifying at a pretrial hearing that after the shooting, as news of the incident was making national headlines, he texted a group of other agents that he was “up for another round of “f— around and find out.”
Exum, a 23-year veteran of Border Patrol, also texted the group a link to a news article about the shooting and said, “Read it … I fired 5 shots and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book boys,” according to court records.
In his court testimony Nov. 5, Exum, who is based in Maine, described the circle of fellow agents he chatted with as a sort of support group for “relieving stress.”
“And what did you mean by ‘Read it. 5 shots?’” asked Parente. “Why are you pointing that fact out?”
“I’m a firearms instructor,” Exum answered. “And I take pride in my shooting skills.”
“You take pride in your shooting skills?” Parente clarified.
“That is correct,” Exum said.
Prosecutors dropped all charges against Martinez and a co-defendant, Anthony Ruiz, just 15 days after Exum’s disastrous admissions.
It’s since been revealed in court that Martinez’s car is part of a second, ongoing criminal investigation into the shooting, which is being handled by the U.S. attorney’s office in South Bend, Indiana.
In his motion Monday, Parente said Martinez had hoped to “go back to her normal life” after the charges were dismissed. “Regretfully, that did not end up being the case,” he said.
Press releases calling Maritnez a “domestic terrorist” remain public on DHS’ website, Parente said, and FBI Director Kash Patel still has a social media post visible that accuses Martinez of ramming officers and links to a video that was from a completely separate incident.
As recently as Sunday, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin issued a statement to CBS’ “60 Minutes” repeating that Border Patrol agents on that day “were ambushed by domestic terrorists” who “rammed federal agents with their vehicles,” Parente said.
Parente also noted that the government’s “false narrative” in Martinez’s case “has reached all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court,” where Justice Samuel Alito repeated the allegations as part of his dissenting opinion arguing President Donald Trump had the authority to send National Guard troops into Chicago.
“By putting out their one-sided narrative and then keeping the objective evidence sealed pursuant to the protective order, they are forcing the public, and Supreme Court justices, to have to rely solely on the government’s inaccurate version of events,” Parente wrote.
