'Time to get aggressive': Border Patrol agent, before shooting
Good morning, Chicago. ✶
???? Below: How newly released footage contradicts the federal government's narrative of the day a U.S. Border Patrol agent shot a Chicagoan five times.
????️ Plus: The Trump administration cuts millions in Illinois HIV prevention grants, the Art Institute gets its first Norman Rockwell and more news you need to know.
☎️ Ask the mayor: Mayor Brandon Johnson will stop by WBEZ’s “In the Loop with Sasha Ann Simons” at 9 a.m. today to answer listeners' questions live on air. Call in 866-915-WBEZ (866-915-9239).
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⏱️: An 8-minute read
TODAY’S WEATHER ☀️
Sunny with a high near 41.
TODAY’S TOP STORY ????
Border Patrol agents say ‘time to get aggressive’ in newly released footage
By Jon Seidel and Tina Sfondeles
Footage released: The U.S. Border Patrol agent who shot Marimar Martinez in October appeared to turn his vehicle's steering wheel to the left, toward Martinez’s car, in body-camera footage of the incident released Tuesday by federal prosecutors in Chicago. The driver did so right after agents inside the Chevrolet Tahoe said, "It’s time to get aggressive" and "we’re going to make contact, we’re boxed in."
What's captured: After the Tahoe collided with Martinez’s Nissan Rogue, an agent could be heard saying, "We’ve been struck, we’ve been struck," as Border Patrol agent Charles Exum gets out of their vehicle. Five gunshots are then heard off camera. As the footage continues, another agent climbs out of the vehicle, points his weapon and yells, "Don’t you f---ing move."
DHS discrepancy: The footage seems to undermine the initial claim by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that Martinez and another man "rammed" the Tahoe driven by Exum, which also carried two other agents. It also appears to support Martinez’s claim that Exum swerved in her direction.
New suit: Martinez, who was shot five times by Exum, is expected to announce a new lawsuit Wednesday stemming from the shooting. Her attorneys say newly released evidence from the case will show Exum lied to the FBI about firing all five shots into Martinez’s front windshield.
In Washington: Appearing before Congress for the first time since federal agents killed two Americans in Minnesota, top officials overseeing President Donald Trump’s deportation campaigns on Tuesday agreed to release the “full and unabridged” findings into the shooting deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Macklin Good.
HEALTH CARE ✶
Trump administration cuts millions in Illinois HIV prevention grants
By Tina Sfondeles and Elvia Malagón
Care cuts: The Trump administration is planning to slash $600 million in public health grants for Illinois and three other Democrat-led states, including $5.2 million in cuts for an HIV prevention program at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital.
Programs affected: At least $29 million in Illinois grants are on the chopping block, including city, state and other health centers' HIV prevention programs, according to a list of grants obtained by the Sun-Times. The list represents a first wave of cuts, and specifically targets family planning and HIV prevention.
Four states: The New York Times on Monday reported the pending cuts to programs in California, Colorado, Illinois and Minnesota.
ART ????
The Art Institute of Chicago gets its first Norman Rockwell
By Courtney Kueppers
First for AIC: The Art Institute of Chicago on Tuesday installed its first-ever Norman Rockwell painting — and it depicts the Chicago Cubs.
The work: "The Dugout," Rockwell’s 1948 artwork, ran as a cover of the "Saturday Evening Post." The work shows dejected Chicago Cubs players with long faces after losing a doubleheader.
Ex-governor's gift: The historic piece is a gift to the museum from former Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner and his wife, Diana. According to a listing from the auction house Christie’s, "The Dugout" last sold in 2009 for $662,500. The company estimates its present-day value between $700,000 and $1 million. Other Rockwell works have fetched as much as $46 million.
WATCH: ART INSTITUTE’S FIRST ROCKWELL ▶️
LET’S HEAR FROM YOU ????️
What's your favorite work of art that you've seen at Chicago's museums? Tell us why.
Email us with your answer (please include your first and last name). We may run your answer in a future newsletter or story.
MORE NEWS YOU NEED ????️
- Outraged by history lesson: A mother says her 9-year-old son, the only Black student in his Portage Park Elementary School class, was made to participate in a reenactment of slavery.
- Sentenced for sex trafficking: Dennis Williams was sentenced to 28 years in prison last week for sex trafficking five women and girls after kidnapping two of them, the youngest age 15, authorities said.
- Cop accused of threats: Thomas Spanos, one of the Chicago police officers who fatally shot Dexter Reed during a traffic stop in 2024, was accused of threatening to beat up a fellow cop at a Norwood Park bar over the weekend.
- Gambling gamble?: Ald. Anthony Beale (9th) is convinced Mayor Johnson is buying time to repeal the video gambling clearance that City Council gave in December. Beale says he's sending a letter to the Illinois Gaming Board Wednesday to officially give them the OK.
- University’s downtown buy: For $23.7 million, the University of Illinois has purchased a new location on Wacker Drive for its research and technology hub — more than a year after backing out of plans to build at The 78.
- Tourism boost: Despite economic and political headwinds facing the global travel industry in 2025, Chicago’s hotel room demand rose 2.3% compared to the previous year, the city's tourism agency said.
- Sueños lineup announced: Sueños Music Festival is back in Grant Park on May 23 and 24, with headliners including Kali Uchis and J Balvin joining the previously announced Fuerza Regida.
ELECTIONS ☑️
What to know about Illinois’ 7th Congressional District Democratic primary
By Mitchell Armentrout
Who's running: Richard Boykin, Kina Collins, Melissa Conyears-Ervin, Anthony Driver, David Ehrlich, Thomas Fisher, La Shawn Ford, Jason Friedman, Rory Hoskins, Anabel Mendoza, Jazmin Robinson, Reed Showalter and Felix Tello are running for the Democratic nomination to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Danny Davis in the 7th Congressional District, which stretches from the South Side to the western suburbs.
GOP candidates: The GOP primary includes Chad Koppie and Patricia "P Rae" Easley.
Hot seat: Davis has held the seat for nearly three decades, and the primary winner in this heavily Democratic district will be favored to replace the retiring congressman.
Their backstories: Candidates include Davis' former chief of staff, a leader of an influential labor union, a two-term city treasurer and a West Side state representative who's been in that role nearly 20 years.
FROM THE PRESS BOX ????⚾????
- Iowa Bears?: Iowa lawmakers filed a proposed bill Tuesday designed to try to lure the Bears to their state.
- Sophomore year with Sox: Manager Will Venable said he's "starting at zero" as he enters his second season leading the White Sox.
- After the roster flip: The Bulls' late-game defense is a woeful circus, writes Joe Cowley.
- College hoops: With Selection Sunday a month away, Steve Greenberg lists 10 things to get you all caught up for college basketball's stretch run.
CHICAGO MINI CROSSWORD ????
Today's clue: 7A: Chicago's newest Poet Laureate, ___ Alexandra del Valle
BRIGHT ONE ????
Chicago Auto Show’s Chi-Town Alley celebrates best of city’s ‘hidden’ car culture
By Erica Thompson
Back in 1991, Matt Conger spotted a Toyota MR2 Turbo at the Chicago Auto Show. Four years later, he scraped money together to buy his own.
Now — after 31 years, 49 oil changes, 56 spark plugs and 11 sets of tires — his car is on display as part of the Chi-Town Alley exhibit at the 2026 show, which kicked off Saturday and runs through Monday at McCormick Place.
A new attraction this year, Chi-Town Alley, also features a variety of vehicles owned by local enthusiasts. Also on display is a row of gleaming Mustangs and tricked-out lowriders from car clubs in the region. The exhibit was created to encourage community-building and celebrate Chicago’s car scene.
The auto show also features the usual popular attractions, including kid-friendly activities, off-roading vehicles, and indoor and outdoor test tracks. Last Saturday, attendees lined up to pet dogs that were part of an adoption initiative hosted by Subaru. They also participated in a meet and greet with "Fast & Furious" actor Sung Kang.
"Chicago is awesome because it’s very diverse," Kang said. "There’s such a mixture of different ethnic groups. The car culture is not just one color. Everyone came together to celebrate this common love of cars."
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
Yesterday, we asked you: Should Chicagoans be empowered to use their phones to record parking violations in crosswalks and bus and bike lanes?
Here’s some of what you said, edited for space and clarity:
"Citizens should unequivocally have the power to record parking violations by commercial vehicles — especially rideshare vehicles. CPD does not have the personnel or funds to record the hundreds of violations that occur every day, causing traffic hassles and threats to pedestrian and vehicular safety. Concurrently, citizens should also have the authority to record cyclists and pedestrians who do the same. Bikers and people on scooters often skip through stop signs, creating stop-short situations with cars and pedestrians, particularly e-bikers who think that sidewalks were made for them." — Marla Forbes
"No, I don’t think people should be recording these violations. It’s already difficult to find temporary parking near stores when someone just needs to run in for a quick pickup. Turning every resident into an enforcement agent doesn’t solve that problem and could create more tension than it resolves. If the city truly wants to improve safety — and create another meaningful revenue stream — it should invest in stop sign cameras. As a runner, I can’t emphasize enough how often drivers treat stop signs as 'yield signs' or ignore them altogether." — Tony Fiore
"While I am concerned about the over-reliance on surveillance technology in this day and age, I do think it's a good idea to let citizens flag parking violations. Being a pedestrian or cyclist in Chicago — or any other large city for that matter — is so dangerous that anything that can be done to ameliorate that is beneficial." — Ethan Flanagan
"No way should we be allowing or encouraging this form of vigilante enforcement. I spent several years as a truck driver doing deliveries. In many parts of the city the only way to get that done is pulling to the curb and often there are parked cars ... I do support making things safer for bikes and pedestrians but this is not the way. It takes their rights and negates the ability of people to get their jobs done. It will eventually impact consumers when deliveries become impossible." — Stu Smith
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Written and curated by: Matt Moore
Editor: Eydie Cubarrubia
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