US Citizen Shot by CBP Agent Sues Federal Government

You are driving in your own neighborhood when federal agents surround your car — and one of them opens fire. That is what Marimar Martinez, a US citizen, says happened to her on October 4, 2025, during a large-scale immigration enforcement operation in Chicago called Operation Midway Blitz. One year later, on October 6, 2026, she filed a federal lawsuit against the US government, alleging that CBP agent Charles Exum lied to the FBI about what happened and shot her from behind.

What the lawsuit claims

Martinez's attorneys commissioned an expert to analyze bullet trajectories and her injuries. Their findings directly contradict what Exum told the FBI on the day of the shooting. Attorney Chris Parente said Exum told investigators that Martinez drove her car directly at him, that he fired five shots through the windshield, and that he stopped shooting once he was no longer in the vehicle's path. Parente called those statements "three objective lies." The expert analysis found only three bullet holes in the windshield — on the right passenger side, not the driver's side — and a fifth bullet hole in the back of Martinez's car seat, indicating the final shot came from behind her. Parente said Exum had walked several feet toward her car and fired all five shots in less than one second, with the last shot fired through the rear passenger window while Martinez was crouched over the steering wheel. Martinez survived with seven gunshot wounds.

Federal prosecutors initially charged Martinez with using her vehicle to strike Exum's SUV. They dropped those charges within a month of the shooting — a significant reversal in a case that drew national attention. Body-worn camera footage from another agent in Exum's vehicle captured the agents saying it was "time to get aggressive" before the shooting, according to the lawsuit. The FBI arrested Martinez at the hospital just hours after she was shot, while she was still in a wheelchair with bandages leaking blood, the lawsuit states. A judge ordered her release two days later.

The lawsuit was filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act (a law that allows people to sue the US government for harm caused by federal employees). Because of how that law works, Exum himself is not named as a defendant. CBP told the Associated Press that Exum has been placed on administrative leave and that use-of-force cases are reviewed by an independent board. Martinez is not the only person shot in a car by a federal agent during recent immigration enforcement operations. A Venezuelan delivery driver was shot and wounded in Austin, Texas, in September 2026, and a Colombian driver was fatally shot in Biddeford, Maine, in July 2026. At a news conference on October 6, Martinez said she filed suit partly because of those other cases. "What's happening is not normal. We shouldn't stay here and normalize what's happening," she said.

What to do if you witness or experience a use-of-force incident by federal agents

• Write down everything you remember immediately — the time, location, what agents said, and what happened — before details fade.
• If you or someone you know was injured by a federal agent, contact an immigration lawyer and a civil rights attorney as soon as possible. The Federal Tort Claims Act has strict deadlines for filing claims against the government.
• If you are stopped by federal agents during an immigration operation, you have the right to remain silent. You do not have to answer questions about your immigration status without a lawyer present.
• Document any injuries with photos and keep all medical records — this evidence is critical if you later file a complaint or lawsuit.