A federal judge on Thursday dismissed charges against two people accused last month of “ambushing” federal agents conducting an immigration raid in Chicago, including a woman who was shot five times in the incident.
U.S. District Judge Georgia Alexakis dismissed the charges against Marimar Martinez and Anthony Ruiz after the Justice Department abruptly asked her to do so.
Alexakis dismissed the charges without prejudice, meaning the case cannot be recovered.
The government filed a motion early Thursday asking the judge to “dismiss the indictment” against Marimar Martinez and Anthony Ruiz, who were involved in a collision with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents in Chicago on Oct. 4.
Law enforcement officers during a standoff with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and federal agents in the Little Village neighborhood of Chicago, Oct. 4, 2025.
Jim Vondruska/Reuters
The incident sparked street protests on Chicago’s southwest side.
Martinez’s attorney, Christopher Parente, told ABC News on Thursday that he and his client are relieved by the government’s decision.
“We appreciate that the federal prosecutor was thoughtful in agreeing to dismiss this,” Parente said.
Martinez, 30, and Ruiz, 21, were accused by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) of being part of a convoy of protesters in vehicles that converged on CPB agents and rammed federal vehicles during what DHS called an “ambush.”
A October DHS Statement said CBP agents opened fire on Martinez in self-defense, claiming she was “armed with a semi-automatic weapon” and was driving one of three vehicles that “cornered” and rammed the CBP agents’ vehicles.
A woman walks past what appears to be smoke as US federal agents (not pictured) detain people in the Old Irving Park neighborhood of Chicago on October 25, 2025.
James Hotchkiss/Reuters
Martinez was later discovered to have a gun in her purse, for which she had a license and a concealed carry permit, according to Parente. Martinez was never charged with any weapons offense in connection with the vehicle incident.
Martinez and Ruiz were charged with assault with a deadly weapon in the alleged ramming attack.
DHS officials initially described Martinez, Ruiz and the other protesters involved in the incident as “domestic terrorists.”
The Justice Department’s decision to dismiss charges against Martinez and Ruiz came a day after a federal judge in Chicago ordered the government to turn over to the defense additional text messages from CBP agents involved in the incident.
During a court hearing on Nov. 5, Parente questioned CBP Agent Charles Exum, identified as the agent who shot Martinez, about text messages he sent to friends and family after the incident in which he appeared to brag about his shooting skills.
“I shot 5 rounds and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book guys,” one of those messages read.
When pressed by Parente about the text messages during his testimony, Exum said, “I am a firearms instructor and I am proud of my shooting skills.”
Parente then asked, “So you’re bragging that you shot it five times and got seven holes, five shots. Are you literally bragging about this?”
Exum responded: “I’m just saying five shots, seven holes.”
Federal prosecutors initially claimed that Exum shot Martinez in self-defense, saying that Martinez drove toward him when he exited his vehicle after the collision.
During an Oct. 6 hearing, Parente claimed in court that he saw body camera video from one of the officers involved in the incident that he said appeared to show the federal vehicle swerving toward Martinez’s car.
“When I watched the video after this officer said, ‘Do something, bitch,’ I saw the driver of this vehicle turn the wheel to the left. Which would be consistent with him hitting Ms. Martinez’s vehicle, okay,” Parente said. “And seconds later, he jumps up and starts shooting.”
Parente also said Martinez is licensed to carry a concealed weapon and that the gun federal officials claimed she had during the confrontation with CBP agents was never taken from her purse.
In response to a request for comment from ABC News on the motion to dismiss and Exum’s text messages, DHS Deputy Secretary Tricia McLaughlin reiterated the agency’s previous statements, again calling Martinez and Ruiz “domestic terrorists.” McLaughlin did not address Exum’s text messages and referred ABC News to the Department of Justice for information about the charges against Martinez and Ruiz.
