Overview
- Federal prosecutors filed a detailed timeline saying the SUV was photographed at the scene, processed at FBI Chicago with paint samples and a computer download, then released to the agent.
- Prosecutors say a Border Patrol mechanic in Maine used a brake cleaner on a rag to wipe scuff marks but made no repairs before the vehicle was ordered untouched and returned to Chicago.
- Defense attorneys argue the Tahoe left the FBI chain of custody for weeks, was improperly altered or repaired, and that only limited photos and paint chips were preserved.
- U.S. District Judge Georgia Alexakis plans to question prosecutors and the agent on Wednesday as the government maintains a further evidentiary hearing is not warranted.
- The vehicle has been returned and inspected by the defense; Marimar Martinez and Anthony Ian Santos Ruiz have pleaded not guilty, with trial set for Feb. 2 and body-camera footage not publicly released.