‘It’s time to get aggressive’, Border Patrol agent says in Chicago shooting video

By Renee Hickman

Feb 10 (Reuters) – Federal prosecutors have released bodycam footage in the case of a Chicago woman who survived being shot multiple times by a Border Patrol agent during an immigration crackdown last fall, part of a trove of evidence that casts doubt on the Trump administration’s account of the incident.

Soon after the shooting, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Marimar Martinez, a U.S. citizen, had rammed the agents with her car. But the footage suggested that the agents could have struck her vehicle themselves.

Video, emails and other records were released by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago late on Tuesday after a district court judge said that the government had shown “zero concern” about Martinez’s reputation.  

Martinez, a Montessori school teacher in Chicago, was following the agents on October 4 to warn residents of their presence when the collision occurred. In the bodycam video released Tuesday, one agent could be heard saying “do something, bitch” shortly before the vehicles made contact.

An agent in the vehicle, driven by Exum, said they were being boxed in. “It’s time to get aggressive,” he said, adding “we’re going to make contact.” After the collision, Exum stepped out of the vehicle and fired five shots.

Martinez drove off, and was taken by ambulance to a local hospital. The Department of Homeland Security released a statement after the shooting saying that Martinez had “ambushed” the border patrol vehicle, and that an agent had fired in self-defense. 

Martinez, 31, was indicted on charges of impeding a federal officer. The charges were dropped in November, but the DHS statement labeling her a “domestic terrorist” has remained online.

Martinez said she sought the release after the fatal shootings by federal immigration agents of protesters Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis last month and to clear her name. Her lawyer, Christopher Parente, said on Tuesday that she also planned to file a civil lawsuit.

AGENT BRAGGED ABOUT MARKSMANSHIP

In the bodycam footage, agents, including Exum, could be seen inside a Border Patrol vehicle driving as protesters honked their horns outside.

In the moments before the collision, an agent said “We’re gonna make contact and we are boxed in,” just before the video showed Exum, at the wheel, turn the steering wheel sharply to the left.

“Be advised we’ve been struck, we’ve been struck,” the agent wearing the bodycam said into a radio. 

Exum then opened the door with his weapon drawn.

During Martinez’s court case, evidence was shared that Exum had driven the vehicle, a Chevy Tahoe, back to his base in Maine, and that repairs were made by a Customs and Border Protection mechanic before the defendants could examine it. 

Text messages from Exum also surfaced in court including one in which he bragged about his marksmanship in a group chat with other agents. “I fired 5 rounds and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book, boys,” he wrote.

The records released on Tuesday also included an email sent the afternoon of the shooting by Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino, who was demoted from his post as commander-at-large, overseeing operations in Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis, following Pretti’s death.

Bovino thanked Exum for his “excellent service” in Chicago and suggested that the agent postpone his retirement. “You have much left to do!” he wrote.

(Reporting by Renee Hickman. Editing by Emily Schmall and Saad Sayeed)