Marimar Martinez says Exum shot as she drove away
Marimar MartinezPerson shot by Charles Exum
Martinez said Exum caused the collision and shot her while she was driving away.
“The Agent swerved into me. The Agent shot me as I drove away from him.”
Original text
Other statements by Marimar Martinez in this case
- Martinez says the violence should not become normalLater: Condemned
Where this statement fits
Was Border Patrol Agent Charles Exum justified in shooting Marimar Martinez?
On October 4, 2025, U.S. Border Patrol Agent Charles Exum fired five rounds at Marimar Martinez’s vehicle during a confrontation involving the agents’ SUV and two civilian vehicles in Chicago’s Brighton Park neighborhood. A federal complaint alleged that Martinez and another driver struck and boxed in the agents’ vehicle and that Martinez then drove toward Exum. Martinez said Exum steered into her vehicle and shot her as she drove past or away. She sustained seven gunshot wounds. Federal prosecutors later dismissed the charges against Martinez with prejudice. An Illinois Accountability Commission review concluded that available video, photographs and witness evidence indicated Martinez was stationary or driving away and found reasonable cause to investigate a shooting without apparent justification. No publicly identified recording continuously captures the collision and gunfire, and no court has adjudicated whether Exum’s use of force was lawful. The dispute is whether Martinez posed an imminent threat when Exum fired.
Source and context
Original text
About this source
Martinez’s first-person written testimony describing the collision, shooting, hospitalization, prosecution and dismissal. It supplies her account of the disputed event and is not an independent adjudication.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
In prepared testimony, Martinez recounted following the Border Patrol vehicle and the collision that preceded the shooting.
After the quotation
She described surviving the gunshot wounds and accused federal officials of advancing a false account of the incident.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Her account directly rejects self-defense and portrays the shooting as unjustified.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- Charles Exum
More from this case
Read the full caseParente says the shooting cannot be justified after presenting a reconstruction
“In what world could you justify that?”Read statement
Christopher Parente says reconstruction contradicts Exum's account
“He was behind it and shot her through the back”Read statement
Pritzker criticizes the Martinez shooting and calls for federal accountability
“Marimar Martinez was shot five times by a Border Patrol agent and branded a “domestic terrorist” by DHS — all for just warning her neighbors and speaking her truth during Operation Midway Blitz. She deserves true justice and accountability from the federal government.”Read statement
Share or embed this statement
The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Marimar Martinez says Exum shot as she drove away
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/1495-martinez-said-exum-caused-the-collision-and-shot
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Marimar Martinez says Exum shot as she drove away". First published: 2026-09-22. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/1495-martinez-said-exum-caused-the-collision-and-shot