Marimar Martinez, the Chicago woman shot by Border Patrol agent, expected to file lawsuit, release evidence

Evidence set to be released Wednesday by Marimar Martinez will show a Border Patrol agent lied to the FBI after shooting her five times on Chicago’s Southwest Side, her attorneys say.

Border Patrol agent Charles Exum said he fired all five shots at Martinez through her front windshield when they crossed paths Oct. 4. But Martinez’s attorneys say that will be refuted by video and ballistic evidence. They’ve said previously that at least one bullet was likely fired from behind.

Martinez’s attorneys are also set to announce a new lawsuit during a press conference late Wednesday morning.

The release of evidence is highly anticipated. Martinez's lawyers say it will show the public how Exum was “immediately embraced” by the Trump administration and protected from scrutiny.

Exum shot Martinez near 39th and Kedzie. He later bragged in a text message “I fired 5 rounds and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book boys.”

Federal prosecutors in Chicago filed an assault charge against Martinez after her run-in with Exum, but they dropped the case Nov. 20.

Martinez sought permission to release the evidence after immigration officers fatally shot Renee Macklin Good and Alex Pretti last month in Minneapolis. Martinez recently told the Chicago Sun-Times and WBEZ she intends to speak out because they can’t.

“I am their voice,” Martinez said. “I am here for a reason.”

During testimony in Washington, D.C., Martinez also invoked the names of Silverio Villegas Gonzalez and Keith Porter, who were killed by immigration officers in recent months as well.

Meanwhile, Martinez has also called upon Homeland Security to rescind its claim that she is a “domestic terrorist.” The agency has refused to take it back.

The evidence in question came into Martinez’s possession during her prosecution last fall. A routine court order, known as a “protective order,” prevented her from releasing it. She asked U.S. District Judge Georgia Alexakis last month to modify the order.

Alexakis ruled in Martinez’s favor Friday. The judge noted that, while prosecutors argued the release could “sully” Exum’s reputation, the Trump administration had shown “zero concern about the sullying of Ms. Martinez’s reputation.”

Federal prosecutors opposed the release of certain evidence, including text messages between Exum and his family members and colleagues. But they agreed to the release of other evidence, like body-worn camera footage.

There is no known video of Exum shooting Martinez, but another agent’s bodycam footage could help shed light on what occurred.

On Oct. 4, Martinez followed a Chevrolet Tahoe driven by Exum, which also carried two additional Border Patrol agents. Martinez honked her horn, yelled “la migra” and tried to warn people about the agents.

She said things changed after about 20 minutes, once she pulled her Nissan Rogue beside Exum’s Tahoe near 39th and Kedzie. She said he swerved toward her Rogue and their vehicles swiped each other.

Martinez said she stopped her Rogue but feared being “manhandled” by the agents, so she drove away. She said she drove to her “farthest left,” to avoid the agents climbing out of their vehicle on her right. But as she passed, she said Exum opened fire.

She pulled over at a repair shop, was taken to a hospital and eventually into federal custody. Authorities then alleged that Martinez and another man “rammed” Exum’s car.