Marimar Martinez, who was shot by U.S. Border Patrol in Chicago, testifies on Capitol Hill

A Chicago woman shot by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent back in the fall testified on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, telling Congress she was targeted simply because she's Latino.

"The government told the people they were targeting the worst of the worst, but their actions demonstrated otherwise," Martinez said Tuesday as she testified before Congress at a federal forum on federal immigration agents' use of force. "They are targeting individuals who fit a certain profile, who simply have a certain accent, a non-white skin color, just like me."

Martinez said she saw her life flash before her eyes when she was shot, and thought it might be the end for her.

"I looked down and noticed blood gushing out of my arms and legs, and I realized I'd been shot multiple times," she said. "What happened to me in a matter of seconds on October 4th will unfortunately be with me for a lifetime."

Marimar Martinez was shot five times in Brighton Park on Oct. 4, 2025. Federal agents claimed she chased them and rammed her car into an agent's car during an immigration protest near Pershing Road and Kedzie Avenue, but the case against her fizzled as Border Patrol's story changed.

Nearly two months after she was shot, federal prosecutors dropped assault charges that had been filed against her, and a judge dismissed them with prejudice, which prevents the government from filing them against her again.

Now, she's become a leading voice for reforming Department of Homeland Security use of force policies, after the shooting deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis.

"How many more lives must be lost before meaningful action is taken?" Martinez said.

Video from her case is expected to soon come out, offering new insight on what happened to her.

Martinez's testimony came on the same day her legal team scored a victory in federal court in Chicago.

Her lawyers have asked a federal judge to authorize the release of the body camera footage and other evidence from her shooting, citing the recent shooting deaths of Good and Pretti. Martinez hopes the videos help improve federal law enforcement use of force policies.

Overnight, the federal government dropped their opposition to releasing that video, writing in a court filing, "The government does not object to modifying the protective order as it pertains to the majority of what Ms. Martinez's counsel has requested from the government, provided that certain additional redactions are made."

The Trump administration also agreed to share interviews with agents involved in the Chicago shooting, as well as FBI reports and Martinez's 911 call.

But the feds want the faces of agents blurred in any body camera footage, and also oppose the release of text messages between the Border Patrol agent in question and his family members.

For Martinez's part, she said the physical and mental scars from the shooting remain.

"They will be there this summer when I head to the beach with my dogs and family. They will be there when I get there when I get down on the floor with my students," she said. "Perhaps even worse, 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's attorney has said she was "compelled" to request the release of the evidence from her case "in order to defend herself from a regrettable and unyielding tide of misinformation from the federal government regarding her case."

Despite voluntarily dropping the charges against Martinez, her attorney Christopher Parente has argued "government officials continue to prosecute Ms. Martinez's character in the court of public opinion."

"The ability to disclose the evidence in this case is paramount to Ms. Martinez's ability to combat the continuing harm being done to her reputation," he wrote.

Parente noted that a Department of Homeland Security press release and various government social media posts that described Martinez as a "domestic terrorist" who rammed federal agents with her vehicle are still online, even after the charges against her were dropped.

It's unclear when body camera footage from the shooting of Martinez could be released. A judge has yet to rule on her request, but a hearing has been set for Friday.

Good's brothers sat alongside Martinez on Tuesday on Capitol Hill. The said, after their sister's death, they hoped it would affect change in the country. They said, sadly, it has not.