Judge rules to release bodycam video, photos from fed agents in Brighton Park shooting

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A federal judge on Friday ordered the release of body camera video and other evidence in the shooting of a Chicago woman by an immigration agent last fall during "Operation Midway Blitz."

Marimar Martinez was shot five times by U.S. Border Patrol agent Charles Exum, and then was arrested on charges she assaulted federal agents.

RELATED: 'My own government attempted to execute me,' Chicago woman shot by Border Patrol testifies

Those charges against Martinez were later dropped by federal prosecutors, and a federal judge dismissed the case with prejudice, meaning the case was terminated completely.

But after the recent shooting deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by immigration agents in Minneapolis, Martinez said she was compelled to ask the court to release all evidence in her dismissed criminal case to clear her name after Department of Homeland Security officials continued to label the Montessori school teacher with no criminal background a "domestic terrorist."

On Friday, U.S. District Judge Georgia Alexakis ruled in favor of Martinez's motion to modify a protective order in place on that dismissed criminal case, clearing the way for videos, photos, reports and Agent Exum's text messages to be released as soon as next week.

Federal agents shot Martinez on Oct. 4, 2025, near 39th Street and Kedzie Avenue on the Southwest Side, after Martinez had followed the agents for several blocks before the vehicles collided, resulting in minor dents and scrapes on both vehicles.

Homeland Security officials claimed Martinez rammed into a federal agent's vehicle and accused her of assault.

But Martinez's attorney Christopher Parente says the soon-to-be-released evidence proves she did not assault anybody.

In a surveillance footage clip shared with the ABC7 Chicago I-Team, Parente says the agent's car stops just out of frame, when Agent Exum fires at Martinez. Martinez's vehicle can be seen driving past the agent, which Parente argues proves she was not boxing in the agents' vehicle.

Federal prosecutors objected to the release of the evidence, arguing it could further damage Agent Exum's reputation.

But at the Dirksen courthouse Friday morning, Judge Alexakis argued the federal government has not considered the reputation of Martinez, who has no criminal history.

"I don't understand why the United States government has expressed zero concern about the sullying of Miss Martinez's reputation," Alexakis said. "She's a United States citizen. And under our legal system, it bears repeating, she's presumed innocent of any offense for which she has not been convicted."

The judge ultimately ruled that Martinez argued good cause for release of the images and video from the shooting, FBI investigation reports and at least 40 text messages sent and received from the agent following the shooting.

"They communicate his impression of the relevant events," Judge Alexakis said. "They bear on his credibility; they have impeachment value."

The federal judge brought up other text messages Exum sent to friends and family that were released in the case last fall, in which Exum appeared to boast about his shooting skills.

"I fired 5 rounds and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book, boys," one of those messages said.

After the hearing, Martinez's attorney Parente said they were pleased the judge saw the value in releasing this evidence to the public, given recent examples of violent and disproportionate use-of-force by immigration agents.

"These are people that are sworn to protect U.S. citizens. There is a respect for life policy with Border Patrol. And this man, after shooting a woman who did nothing, is going to text his friends and joke about it, brag about it, 'put it in your book,'" Parente said. "That is not what this country stands for. And thankfully, this judge said, 'I am not going to protect him from himself.'"

Martinez testified on Capitol Hill earlier this week, saying her living testimony is evidence of a pattern of lies told by the federal government.

"I saw my life flash before me, and slowly began to think this was the end for me," Martinez said.

She said she believes she survived the shooting so she could share her story, following the shooting deaths of Good and Pretti.

Court filings state Martinez will also be attending President Donald Trump's State of the Union address as a guest of Congressman Jesus "Chuy" Garcia.

"The mental scars will always be there as a reminder of the time my own government attempted to execute me. And when they failed, they chose to vilify me," Martinez told lawmakers. "I am Renee Good. I am Alex Pretti. I am Silverio Villegas González. I am Keith Porter. They should all be here today."

According to previous court testimony in this case, federal prosecutors revealed there is an "ongoing and pending criminal investigation" into the Martinez shooting, with an outside U.S. Attorney's office still retaining possession of Martinez's car.

Martinez's attorney Parente said they simply want the government to acknowledge that she is not a "domestic terrorist."

"You can't call a U.S. citizen with no criminal history who's a Montessori school teacher, a 'domestic terrorist,' which is such a loaded word in this in this country, and repeat it over and over as late as yesterday," Parente said.

DHS officials have said they still stand by their previous statements.

"You're going to see in the discovery itself some really good things that just completely destroy the credibility of the narrative that she drove at these agents," Parente told reporters after court. "You can hear five shots within two seconds of him opening his door, which again is quite alarming that we have Border Patrol agents jumping out of a car, within two seconds shooting."