Bodycam contradicts DHS story of Border Patrol shooting Chicago woman

Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAYThu, February 12, 2026 at 10:11 PM UTC

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Newly released body camera footage of a Border Patrol agent shooting a Chicago woman contradicts government accounts that she rammed agents with her car in an ambush.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has said Marimar Martinez, a 31-year-old Montessori school teacher, on Oct. 4 followed federal Border Patrol agents, blocked them, and rammed her vehicle into them before Border Patrol Agent Charles Exum shot her five times.

But video evidence, investigative reports and messages released Feb. 10 by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago tell a different story.

Footage from an officer’s body camera and surveillance video do not show agents boxed in or Martinez ramming them as she and other demonstrators followed federal agents to alert neighbors to their presence.

"Border Patrol law enforcement officers were ambushed by domestic terrorists that rammed federal agents with their vehicles," DHS said in a statement after the shooting. "The woman, Marimar Martinez, driving one of the vehicles, was armed with a semi-automatic weapon."

Martinez is a legal gun owner with a concealed-carry permit who had her pistol holstered in her purse during the shooting.

“The question at the end of this is why, knowing the truth, would our own government continue to lie about who this woman is and what happened?” Chris Parente, Martinez’s lawyer and a former federal prosecutor, told USA TODAY.

At the government's request, a federal judge on Nov. 20 already dismissed the criminal case for assault with a deadly weapon against Martinez, an American citizen from Chicago who is Latina. The incident occurred during the Trump administration’s “Operation Midway Blitz” that surged immigration agents in and around Chicago.

1 / 0Chicago protests push back against increased federal immigration raidsA pastor reads the Bible during a standoff with police officers outside the Broadview ICE facility, after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered increased federal law enforcement presence to assist in crime prevention, in Chicago, Ill. on Nov.1, 2025.

Martinez's lawyers are now pursuing legal action for damages from the shooting, which has left Martinez in pain and unable to close her hand or cross her legs months later. The incident is among a growing list of violent encounters with federal immigration agents.

In response to emailed questions, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which includes Border Patrol, said Exum was placed on administrative leave, consistent with policy. The agency referred questions to the Department of Justice, which has not responded to USA TODAY's request for comment.

Tricia McLaughlin, DHS assistant secretary for public affairs, previously said on X officers had been rammed by vehicles and boxed in by 10 cars, and Martinez rammed the officers while armed with a semiautomatic weapon.

Marimar Martinez attends a press conference with her legal counsel in Chicago, Illinois, on February 11, 2026. Martinez was shot by federal agents as she followed them in her car during an immigration enforcement operation in the Brighton Park neighborhood of Chicago on October 4, 2025.What the footage shows

The body camera footage, released in agreement with federal officials, shows the moments leading up to the shooting on a Saturday morning on Chicago's South Side.

Inside agents' Chevy Tahoe, one agent had their body camera on before Exum shot Martinez. Exum, who reportedly described himself in court as a firearms instructor, didn’t turn his body camera on before the shooting.

Exum can be seen in the video driving as protesters honk their horns. The agent wearing the body camera is seated in the back seat and has his finger on the trigger of an assault rifle while another agent also in the back seat, behind Exum, has his handgun drawn.

An agent can be heard saying “Do something, (expletive).”

Border Patrol official Greg Bovino leads an immigration raid in Chicago on Oct. 22, 2025.

“Alright, it’s time to get aggressive and get the (expletive) out, cause they’re trying to box us in,” an agent says.

Exum then steers the wheel sharply left.

“Be advised we’ve been struck, we’ve been struck,” the agent wearing the body camera says into a radio.

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Exum has his pistol in his right hand as he stops the car. He quickly opens his door and fires his weapon. Martinez, shot five times, drove away, then stopped to call 911 and was taken to a local hospital.

In released encrypted messages, Exum bragged about firing five rounds into the windshield and being unharmed. Officials have said Martinez was driving toward him.

But Parente said bullet holes showed Exum fired as Martinez moved away from Exum's vehicle. Martinez's Nissan Rogue had three bullet holes into the passenger side windshield, followed by a fourth bullet from the side, shattering the passenger window. Another bullet appears to have been shot from behind, striking the passenger seat from behind. Parente said this violated Border Patrol’s use of force policy for shooting at fleeing vehicles.

Previously released encrypted messages from a group called “Posse Chat” showed Exum on Oct. 7 saying “I fired 5 rounds and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book boys.”

U.S. Border Patrol agents and police keep watch as people protest outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in the Chicago suburb of Broadview, Illinois, on Oct. 3, 2025.

Messages from fellow agents appeared to celebrate the shooting.

“Good shootin. lol,” a message said. Exum responded “Gracias senior,” an apparent reference to “señor,” Spanish for “sir.”

Exum also sent a screenshot of a text exchange, in which a message said, “You are a legend among agents you better (expletive) know that.”

“Beers on me when I see you at training,” a second message said.

Approximately four hours after the shooting, Exum received an email from Gregory Bovino, the high-profile Border Patrol chief patrol agent who has been dispatched by the administration to surges in several cities.

Bovino praised Exum, who is normally stationed in Maine along the Canadian border. Bovino offered to extend retirement beyond 57, his second extension.

“In light of your excellent service in Chicago, you have much left to do!!” Bovino wrote, instructing another official to have staff work with Exum “to accomplish this most illustrative endeavor. Thank you.”

An exhibit presented in federal court in Chicago after a federal agent shot Marimar Martinez, a U.S. citizen, five times. The exhibit shows a message he wrote in a Signal group chat with other officers. "I fired 5 rounds and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book boys," the agent said.

In the “Posse Chat,” Exum said he was supported "big time" by federal leaders.

He cited Bovino, Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and “El Jefe himself… according to Bovino.”

“El Jefe” means "the boss" in Spanish.

On Feb. 3, Martinez testified in a U.S. Senate hearing on use of force by DHS. She provided testimony alongside the brothers of Renee Good, a 37-year-old woman killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis on Jan. 7.

On Feb. 12, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs held a hearing with DHS officials to examine tactics leading up to federal agents fatally shooting Alex Pretti, 37, on Jan. 24 also in Minneapolis. Like Chicago, Minneapolis has seen a surge of immigration enforcement and protests in response.

Contributing: Michael Loria, Reuters

Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Reach him by email at [email protected] or on Signal at emcuevas.01.

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