DHS Faces Criticism for Changing Account in Shooting of U.S. Citizen

The Department of Homeland Security is facing intense scrutiny from lawmakers over discrepancies between its initial account of a shooting involving a U.S. citizen in Chicago and subsequent legal documents filed in the case.

U.S. Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut, has formally requested that DHS Secretary Kristi Noem correct the public record and release all bodycam footage of the incident. In his letter, Murphy stated that “the evidence appears to contradict” the official account provided by the agency.

“When the government misrepresents or lies about events involving the safety and wellbeing of federal law enforcement, it erodes public trust, making their jobs much harder,” Murphy wrote, accusing the DHS of “contorting, omitting facts, and in other cases, straight up lying” to support a narrative that Democratic-led cities are “war zones.”

At the center of the controversy is Marimar Martinez, a 30-year-old U.S. citizen who was shot multiple times by a federal agent in Chicago earlier this month. The DHS claimed she was involved in ramming Border Patrol agents’ vehicles, but conflicting accounts have emerged from various parties, including Martinez’s legal team and different government agencies.

Just hours after the shooting, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin released a statement claiming federal agents were “rammed by vehicles and boxed in by 10 cars.” The statement also alleged that Martinez was armed with a “semi-automatic weapon” and that agents fired “defensive shots” after exiting their vehicle.

However, Senator Murphy points out that the criminal complaint filed against Martinez the following day tells a significantly different story. The complaint, written by FBI Special Agent Caitlin Malone, states that only two cars rammed federal agent vehicles, not ten as initially claimed. Notably absent from the complaint is any mention of Martinez brandishing a weapon during the confrontation.

Police audio later confirmed that Martinez had a concealed carry permit for her weapon, which reportedly remained inside her purse throughout the incident, according to local media reports.

“The DHS statement which they rush out three hours after the shooting to try to justify what happened is just filled with misleading and false claims, and it’s really disturbing because it’s becoming their standard practice,” Murphy said in a video posted to social media.

The senator also challenged DHS claims that Chicago police abandoned federal agents after the incident, presenting videos showing Chicago police officers at the scene after Martinez was shot and officers affected by teargas deployed by federal agents.

Martinez has been indicted by a grand jury and has pleaded not guilty to charges including assaulting, resisting, and impeding officers. Her attorneys maintain that federal agents swerved into her vehicle, rather than the other way around.

Christopher Parente, an attorney representing Martinez, told CNN that he has seen bodycam footage contradicting the government’s claims. “He’s driving with one hand, and he turns it to the left,” Parente said, describing an agent’s actions visible in the footage. “In my experience, when you turn your wheel to the left, your car goes to the left, which is where her car was.”

Parente, who usually refrains from media commentary during ongoing cases, said he is speaking out to combat “misinformation” about Martinez. “The public needs to see this is not what they’ve been sold by the government. This is not a domestic terrorist. This is a 30-year-old Montessori School teacher with no criminal history.”

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Parente also claimed the body camera footage shows an agent holding an assault rifle and saying, “Do something b—-h,” prior to shooting Martinez.

In a development that raised judicial concerns, U.S. federal attorneys revealed during a recent court hearing that a key piece of evidence—the federal vehicle allegedly rammed by Martinez—is now 1,000 miles away in Maine. U.S. District Court Judge Georgia Alexakis ordered prosecutors to return the vehicle, stating, “It’s a reasonable request. There’s only so much you can tell from photos.”

Murphy’s letter calls for the DHS to investigate potential excessive use of force and to release evidence supporting claims that they had investigated Martinez prior to the incident. He also questioned how conservative activist Laura Loomer obtained photographs of Martinez’s car, which she posted on social media claiming they came from a “DHS Source.”

The controversy unfolds against the backdrop of escalating tensions over immigration enforcement in Chicago. The Trump Administration’s use of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents has met strong resistance from local Democratic leadership, with Mayor Brandon Johnson establishing “ICE-free zones” to limit federal operations.

Chicago residents have organized regular demonstrations, including protests outside an ICE facility in suburban Broadview. According to DHS, more than 1,000 arrests have been made across Illinois in Operation Midway Blitz, employing tactics that Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker condemned, saying they “should never be used on children in a functioning democracy.”