Opening statements begin in trial of man charged with of soliciting murder of border patrol Cmdr. Bovino
Opening statements begin Wednesday in the murder-for-hire trial involving U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commander Gregory Bovino.
This is the first trial tied to the federal Operation Midway Blitz.
Federal prosecutors accuse Juan Espinoza Martinez of offering a $10,000 bounty on Bovino, who was the face of the Trump administration's immigration enforcement effort in the Chicago area last year.
The trial got underway on Tuesday, as prosecutors and defense attorneys chose a jury to hear the trial, but it was a slow start to proceedings.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Joan Lefkow barred prosecutors from introducing evidence that suggests the defendant was a member of a gang — or acting on behalf of a street gang, finding such testimony could unfairly prejudice the jury without any actual evidence showing he's a gang member or that a gang directed him to put a hit out on Bovino.
Martinez is accused of soliciting a hit on Bovino in October. At the time of his arrest, investigators released a key piece of evidence – Snapchat messages they said indicate he was offering a bounty of $2,000 for information on Bovino, and $10,000 more "if you take him down," along with a photo of Bovino.
Records show some of those messages were sent after an immigration agent shot a woman, Marimar Martinez, in Chicago's Brighton Park neighborhood back in October.
While Lefkow barred any testimony that Martinez has gang ties, she, a cooperating witness, may testify about what certain abbreviations and emojis meant to him in those messages — without linking those messages to a street gang.
In a written order released Tuesday morning before jury selection began, Lefkow reiterated that prosecutors may not suggest gang membership to the jury, which limits them to the defendant's own words and how witnesses understood them.
Defense attorneys say the ruling undercuts the government's case. But prosecutors argue it limits important context about intent.
Martinez has pleaded not guilty and faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted. His attorneys have denied he has any gang ties or criminal history.