CHICAGO (WLS) — On Tuesday, the Illinois Accountability Commission convened for its second day of discussions.
The focus was on scrutinizing the conduct of federal officers during “Operation Midway Blitz.”
ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch
A pivotal moment came when Marimar Martinez, a Chicago resident who survived being shot five times by officers last October, took the stand to share her testimony.
Martinez’s account was delivered with palpable emotion.
This session marked the conclusion of five hearings that have unfolded over recent months.
Her shooting incident, involving an immigration officer, was among several that were brought to light during Tuesday’s proceedings.
“They didn’t see me as human. My life didn’t matter to them. They just saw me like, some, like disposable,” Martinez said.
For the second time in a week, Martinez was asked to relive the day last October she found herself on the wrong end of a Border Patrol officer’s weapon.
Martinez was shot after briefly following agents through Brighton Park, honking, alerting others to their presence in the neighborhood.
She was arrested and charged with impeding and assaulting a federal officer. She was also labeled as a domestic terrorist. Those charges were later dismissed. The officer who shot her was placed on administrative leave.
“I’m asking for change. I’ve been judged. I’ve been criminalized. I’ve been shot. But I’m still here speaking,” Martinez said.
The incident, according to the commission, is one of several that have taken place, as a direct result of the administration providing immigration enforcement agents immunity for their actions during “Operation Midway Blitz.”
“The misconduct was the policy. The resulting violence was not a failure of execution. It was the execution,” said Ahmed Baset, commission counsel.
Among the evidence presented by the commission Tuesday was never-before-seen body camera video of a well-publicized high-speed chase through Chicago’s East Side on Oct. 14.
An agent crashed a pickup truck, using a highly dangerous maneuver. The driver ran off before being detained. Dozens of residents poured out into the streets to protest as agents were heard making plans to deploy tear gas.
A CPD sergeant asked them not to.
“This did not happen in a vacuum. The agents were told to go hard, and they were later told they had immunity from the very White House that sent them to Chicago,” said Luis Saucedo, counsel for the Illinois Accountability Commission.
In a statement Monday, the Department of Homeland Security said in part, “Governor Pritzker continues to refuse to do his job to protect his citizens from illegal alien crime and instead chooses to smear our law enforcement.”
Also on Monday, several videos were shown, including a chaotic confrontation in Evanston, as agents detained protesters.
Katie Abraham’s mother also spoke out against “Operation Midway Blitz.”
Abraham was killed by a drunk driver in Urbana, who was living in Illinois illegally.
The Department of Homeland Security used her story, with her father’s permission, to launch “Operation Midway Blitz.”
Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino and former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem were among the Trump administration officials invited to testify during the panel. They declined.
The commission is expected to deliver its final report to Gov. JB Pritzker this coming Thursday.
It’s one the governor has stated he hopes will, someday in the future, be used to hold both agents and administration officials accountable.
Copyright © 2026 WLS-TV. All Rights Reserved.
