“Shitshow:” Greg Bovino’s Zero Success Rate
Back on October 8, I noted that of the eleven people DHS claimed had been arrested at a September 27 protest at the Broadview ICE facility in Chicago, a protest at which Greg Bovino had promised a “shitshow,” the cases of all but one had been dismissed.
Bovino, I noted, was batting just 9% on his claims that protestors had engaged in violence.
Well, yesterday, the case of Dana Briggs, a 70-year old Air Force veteran charged with assault when he fell as officers were pushing him back, was dismissed too. He had planned to call Bovino as a witness at his December trial. Bovino’s success rate at substantiating his claim there were any rioters from that day is now zero.
Briggs is not actually the most stunning dismissal from yesterday. The case against Marimar Martinez (and her co-defendant Anthony Ruiz) was also dismissed, just before a follow-up hearing on the things the CBP agent, Charles Exum, did and said before and after he shot her.
At a press hearing afterward, Martinez’ attorney Christopher Parente suggested they would still be seeking vindication for her, so hopefully we’ll still get to learn what DOJ dropped the case in hopes of suppressing.
The Magistrate Judge who dismissed Briggs case (who had also signed the arrest warrants for the five actual arrests on September 27), Gabriel Fuentes, wrote a long opinion about the collapse of the September 27 cases.
Examining more closely the five September 27 Broadview criminal arrest cases, all of which came before the undersigned magistrate judge, the Court notes the following facts:
1) The initial complaints charged four (Collins, Robledo, Ivery, and Briggs) of the foregoing five persons with felony violations of Section 111(a). Only the complaint against Mazur was filed as a misdemeanor.
2) With today’s dismissal of the Briggs criminal information, none of these cases remains pending today – all have been dismissed.
3) As the docket entries reflect in all five of the cases, the undersigned magistrate judge obtained a sworn statement from the affiants in each affidavit, at the time of complaint issuance, that not only were the affidavit allegations true, but that video evidence of the encounters existed, that the affiants had reviewed the video evidence, and that the video evidence corroborated the version of events set forth in the affidavits. Mazur (D.E. 11); Collins/Robledo (D.E. 26); Ivery (D.E. 13); and Briggs (D.E. 14).
[snip]
4) Each of the five persons arrested on September 27 from Broadview on Section 111 charges endured official detention (or other government restrictions on their liberty) after their arrests.
[snip]
Importantly, nothing in this order should be construed as scolding the government for dismissing in these cases. Dismissing appears to be the responsible thing for the government to have done, in light of the government’s judgment and discretion. But the Court cannot help but note just how unusual and possibly unprecedented it is for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in this district to charge so hastily that it either could not obtain the indictment in the grand jury or was forced to dismiss upon a conclusion that the case is not provable, in repeated cases of a similar nature. Federal arrest brings federal detention, even for a short time. It brings the need to obtain counsel, to appear at court hearings, to answer the charges (as Briggs did in this case, pleading not guilty), and to prepare for trial (as Briggs also has had to do in this case). Being charged with a federal felony, even if it is later reduced to a misdemeanor, is no walk in the park.
He also noted, repeatedly, that Briggs’ case was dismissed when he noticed his intent to call Bovino to testify.
Also yesterday, Judge Sara Ellis released her 233-page opinion in the Civil Rights case against the ICE/CBP invasion (my weekend reading, I guess), which catalogs the depredations done during that invasion, including her judgement that Bovino is a liar.
Turning to Bovino, the Court specifically finds his testimony not credible. Bovino appeared evasive over the three days of his deposition, either providing “cute” responses to Plaintiffs’ counsel’s questions or outright lying. When shown a video of agents hitting Rev. Black with pepper balls, Bovino denied seeing a projectile hit Rev. Black in the head. Doc. 191- 3 at 162:21–165:17; Doc. 22-44 (Ex. 44 at 0:10–12, available at https://spaces.hightail.com/space/ZzXNsei63k). In another video shown to Bovino, he obviously tackles Scott Blackburn, one of Plaintiffs’ declarants. Doc. 191-3 at 172:13–173:7; Doc. 22-45 (Ex. 45 at 0:19–30, available at https://spaces.hightail.com/space/ZzXNsei63k). But instead of admitting to using force against Blackburn, Bovino denied it and instead stated that force was used against him. Doc. 191-3 at 173:9–176:11, 179:11–181:5. Bovino also testified that, in Little Village on October 23, 2025, several individuals associated with the Latin Kings were found taking weapons out of the back of their car, and that they, as well as at least one individual on a rooftop and one person in the crowd of protesters, all wore maroon hoodies. Id. at 227:2– 228:21. He further testified that he believed the “maroon hoodies . . . would signify a potential assailant or street gang member that was making their way to the location that I was present” and that “there did begin to appear, in that crowd, maroon hoodies, both on top of buildings and in the crowd.” Doc. 237 at 18:22–19:10. But Bovino also admitted that he could not identify a street gang associated with the color maroon, id. at 19:11–13, although Hewson acknowledged that while Latin Kings members usually wear black, “they also can throw on maroon hoodies,” Doc. 255 at 264:17–20.10 Even were maroon hoodies to signify gang membership, the only evidence on footage from the relevant date of individuals dressed in maroon protesting in Little Village consists of a male wearing a maroonish jacket with an orange safety vest over it, Alderman Byron Sigcho-Lopez wearing a maroon sweater with a suit jacket over it, a female in a maroon shirt, a female in a maroon sweatshirt, and a man with a maroon hoodie under a green shirt and vest. Axon_Body_4_Video_2025-10-23_1053_D01A38302 at 10:03–10:33; Axon_Body_4_Video_2025-10-23_1106_D01A32103 at 16:12–17:17. Bovino’s and Hewson’s explanations about individuals in maroon hoodies being associated with the Latin Kings and threats strains credulity.
Most tellingly, Bovino admitted in his deposition that he lied multiple times about the events that occurred in Little Village that prompted him to throw tear gas at protesters. As discussed further below, Bovino and DHS have represented that a rock hit Bovino in the helmet before he threw tear gas. See Doc. 190-1 at 1; Homeland Security (@DHSgov), X (Oct. 28, 2025 9:56 a.m.), https://x.com/dhsgov/status/1983186057798545573?s=46&t=4rUXTBt_W24muWR74DQ5A. Bovino was asked about this during his deposition, which took place over three days. On the first day, Bovino admitted that he was not hit with a rock until after he had deployed tear gas. Doc. 191-3 at 222:24–223:18. Bovino then offered a new justification for his use of chemical munitions, testifying that he only threw tear gas after he “had received a projectile, a rock,” which “almost hit” him. Doc. 191-3 at 222:24–223:18. Despite being presented with video evidence that did not show a rock thrown at him before he launched the first tear gas canister, Bovino nonetheless maintained his testimony throughout the first and second days of his deposition, id. at 225–27; Doc. 237 at 11–17. But on November 4, 2025, the final session of his deposition, Bovino admitted that he was again “mistaken” and that no rock was thrown at him before he deployed the first tear gas canister. Doc. 238 at 9:12–21 (“That white rock was . . . thrown at me, but that was after . . . I deployed less lethal means in chemical munitions.”); id. at 10:20–23 (Q. [Y]ou deployed the canisters, plural, before that black rock came along and you say hit you in the head, correct? A. Yes. Before the rock hit me in the head, yes.”).
This is what the complete collapse of credibility looks like.
It should have happened after Bovino got caught prevaricating on the stand in Brayan Ramos-Brito’s Los Angeles trial in September, another protestor charged with assault but ultimately exonerated.
But unless and until an Appeals Court disrupts Ellis’ finding (the Seventh Circuit has stayed her order with respect to remedy, not fact-finding), the word of Greg Bovino will be utterly useless in any court in the United States.
Greg Bovino and his violent goons have moved on, at least to Charlotte (where — as Chris Geidner laid out — Bovino doesn’t understand he’s the guy trying to kill Wilbur, not the clever spider who thwarts that effort), possibly already onto New Orleans.
But his reputation as a liar will now follow him wherever he goes.
Small typo: Bonvino in the penultimate line.
Keep up the good work!
TY. I swear I misspelled that about 12 different ways when writing this.
Just don’t mistake Bovino for Bongino as both of them, I suspect, have overweening egos that wouldn’t like it.
Bon vino = good wine, so whine ought?
Can no charges be brought against Bovino and others for false incrimination/false testimony?
Sure, charges can be brought in the next administration.
This corrupt DoJ will not indict someone for lying to a federal judge in service to the mad king.
They will all receive a blanket pardon from Dear Fuhrer before the next administration.
Can’t the state of Illinois charge him for throwing gas grenades at protesters? Or charge the guy who shot a woman in a car 5 times?
It’s been my private observation for a while now that this administration of the federal government bleeds credibility and legitimacy.
Bovino is an open, septic, wound in that respect, but hardly the only one.
I think that’s a prerequisite for political appointees in this administration, and the higher the position, the more important that prerequisite is.
“How well can you lie in defense of the President’s policies?”
“How viciously can you implement the President’s policies?”
“How much do you hate Those People?”
Etc., etc., etc.
Karolyn Leavitt has got to be one of the absolute worst. She lies with big smiles. Her performance yesterday on “Quiet, quiet Piggy” and the death threats against elected representatives/veterans has to be one of the all time greats. Incredible.
I’ve been telling people that Trump hired Karoline because no one over the age of 30 could possibly keep up with the workload of lying and prevaricating. I’m feeling more confident about that theory.
And, like Pam Bondi and other female MAGAts, Leavitt does it while wearing that performative little cross around her neck. I’m not even sure why this bothers me so much. Establishment clause? Christ as fashion statement? The untouchability of Trump’s nominal Christians?
All of the above. Plus the lying.
Re: Ginevra @ 12:10
Pam Bondi is often seen wearing crosses also. The NYT published an article about this particular fashion statement all the way back in April. If you still have an NYT subscription:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/29/style/cross-necklaces-christian-faith.html
Leavett is just the most obvious of the spokespeople in this administration who stand up and lie outright in support of illegal and immoral behavior on the part of their “superiors”. Since their bosses are also lying it must seem normal (and it is the norm for that crowd).
I must say that I think Leavitt is eclipsed by Theresa McLaughlin, DHS’ spokesperson. What do these young people imagine their lives will be when this ends?
“Some Pig!”
Bovino’s name in Italian means “cattle,” but trans-species pejoratives are probably appropriate in his case. He’s also a snake, for example.
…and a weasel. And “Mini-Mussolini” also fits, if we want to keep it Italian.
Or how about “Mussolini’s mini-me?” His short-man-compensation complex should be taken into consideration.
Re: “Mussolini’s mini-me” – an Italo-English term – Il Deuce
“Mussolini’s mini-me” … I’d propose il Ducetto, although it souinds too much like a dessert.
As the proud owner of pet ferrets, who are weasels (not rodents, tho I have also had rats as pets), this is an insult to weasels. Weasels are incredibly smart, wily, silly and fun! Even calling him a rat would be too good for him. He is a pile of manure!
Let’s not sully animals by comparing disgusting humans to them. Bovino is uniquely and disgustingly human.
Yes. Let’s leave the “piggie” insults to Trump & his ilk.
I may have a major problem with that. After all, four legs good, two legs better!
How about Il Douche?
Sorry. I didn’t mean to be coarse. Rather I enjoyed the irony I felt when remembering the quote:
I’ll be more careful in the future.
“Bovino”! His very name is a pun for Bullshit.
I would like to call Bovino et al, mercenaries.
[Welcome back to emptywheel. Please use the SAME USERNAME and email address each time you comment so that community members get to know you. You attempted to publish this comment as “Kimtwomke” triggering auto-moderation; it has been edited to reflect your established username. Please check your browser’s cache and autofill; future comments may not publish if username does not match. /~Rayne]
That Opinion is a very long lecture from the bench on how Team Bovino are lazy incompetent lying thugs.
Unspoken but well-understood is the implied ending: “Get the hell out of my courtroom, and stay the f*** out.”
It is so ordered.
I wouldn’t assume that Bonvino’s word is trash in New Orleans. The Fifth Circuit, whose opinions are trash, might rule that his testimony has high credibility for some reason that dares SCOTUS to overrule them.
Or provides SCOTUS with a basis to at least limit/dismiss/overturn Judge Fuentes’ opinion.
Bovino and Co still have to provide evidence at a trial, if they get one. And anyone unjustifiably arrested has a get-out-of-jail card: just require the bovine liar to testify under oath…
…oh, and if possible afterwards, sue their [redacted] for damages…
Having been on the receiving end of rank Fifth Circuit stupidity, I agree. The issue is whether they can get a panel together that would actually read the documents instead of just submit a ridiculous and unsupported ruling
James Ho has a mission. We haven’t heard much from him and his minions lately. Ever since the Eleventh Circuit proved renegade (at times), I’ve wondered why this administration hasn’t taken advantage of their friends at the Fifth.
Is it because Stephen Miller is such a legal dunce? Todd Blanche isn’t, but he very recently seems to have grown concerned about “unforced errors” on the part of DOJ. It’s like a soap opera. I guess we just have to stay tuned.
I am seeing reports that Bovino and the CBP accomplices have already left Charlotte. I assume the plan at this point is to send them to blue cities in red states for a MAXIMUM of 72 hours, and then flee before the court system can catch up with them.
Are there other obvious explanations?
https://www.wbtv.com/2025/11/20/border-patrol-agents-involved-charlottes-web-operation-have-left-city-sources-say/
They are on the run.
I don’t rule out that when they were called on being >100 miles from the ocean they had to move for legal reasons.
My understanding is that it’s not the shoreline. Rather, it’s the 12 nautical mile territorial sea which, in combination with international borders, should define the 100 miles. However, I’ve seen maps that treat the shoreline of Lake Michigan as a territorial line with that 100 mile Border Enforcement Zone extending west and south of Chicago, even though the lake is entirely on the U.S. side of the border with Canada. Likewise, I’ve seen a bulge in the “100 mile” zone inwards to Sacramento and Stockton California — perhaps because both are ports for ocean-going (thus, international) vessels. I haven’t run the thread from statute to U.S. Code to the Code of Federal Regulations recently, but the farther down that thread you go, the more wiggly the interpretation can get.
The issue about the jurisdiction of Border Patrol Officers (vs. the Border Patrol’s normal operational areas and responsibilities) is at the discretion of the U.S. Attorney General. She can authorize federal LEOs to perform duties outside their normal agency responsibilities. The Border Patrol got tagged because Bovino wanted to be sure he had a reliable source of car window-smashers and skull-crackers.
I wish to amend the record following a little more digging. The broad interpretation of the Zone is allowed by the following:
8 USC § 287.1 (b) Reasonable distance; fixing by chief patrol agents and special agents in charge. In fixing distances not exceeding 100 air miles pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section, chief patrol agents and special agents in charge shall take into consideration topography, confluence of arteries of transportation leading from external boundaries, density of population, possible inconvenience to the traveling public, types of conveyances used, and reliable information as to movements of persons effecting illegal entry into the United States: Provided, That whenever in the opinion of a chief patrol agent or special agent in charge a distance in his or her sector or district of more than 100 air miles from any external boundary of the United States would because of unusual circumstances be reasonable, such chief patrol agent or special agent in charge shall forward a complete report with respect to the matter to the Commissioner of CBP, or the Assistant Secretary for ICE, as appropriate, who may, if he determines that such action is justified, declare such distance to be reasonable.
https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-8/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-287/section-287.1#p-287.1(a)(2)
That applies to CPB and ICE. While the bulges (Chicago and Sacramento/Stockton, for example) make sense from a customs perspective, the language leaves it wide open for misuse and the kind of operations we’re seeing.
The Coast Guard has long had the authority to board any vessel in U.S. Waters, and any U.S. Vessel in international waters, and in some cases, U.S. Vessels in the territorial waters of other nations. This goes back to the roots of the service — The Revenue-Marine Act of 1790. That was to allow enforcement of the Tariff Act of 1989, the first piece of substantive legislation passed by the new Congress. It is the MOAT (Mother Of All Taxes).
The area of the continental US subject to CBP search and seizure authority was substantially enlarged after 9/11. There’s nothing reasonable about it. They chose determinants that cover roughly 85% of the US population.
I’m going to send a note to my two senators asking that they request/require DHS to produce a definitive street level map, available online. I want to see the “100 mile” base line without modifications. Then I want to see each individual areas designated by the Chief Patrol Agents and SACs — that were approved by Commissioner of CBP, or the Assistant Secretary for ICE — along with and identification of the office that made the original request for expansion. This will also open the door to Lat/Lon data on the map, in patrol vehicles, and for civilians who may, or may not, be in a zone.
I’d send it to my Representative, but he’s usually in his bunker in Eastern Oregon and only selectively responds to his constituents.
Okay, but that would only apply to CBP, not ICE then?
Also – at the risk of being a wee bit pedantic ‘ocean’ may not be the correct noun – perhaps ‘border’? I recall stories of amigos being harassed in Northern Montana a couple of years back just for speaking Spanish, anyone else remember that?
I think it’s “border” also, and I remember the Montana incident.
It should be pretty clear from the move to dismiss that prosecuting people arrested was never a serious goal. Certainly DOJ is capable of pursuing hopeless cases, but not pointless ones. Bovino’s job is to intimidate and generate content for consumption by his boss Miller, and their boss Trump. Thinking he “failed” is equivalent to thinking Trump has an economic or foreign policy that is “failing”. Doing the things their positions would lead you to expect is not their goal. Long-term this is not sustainable or stable, but none of them are thinking long-term.
His real mission is to spark violence in the streets. And if you cannot do that in Southside Chicago, where else?
Let us also note the centrality of citizen videos. Without them, Professor Wheeler and the judges would be writing very different pieces.
I think there’s also a “flood the field” effect with these prosecutions going on that contributes to the overall administration strategy of perpetrating continuous damage causing outrage that leads to fatigue. Like you said, they’re not expecting long-term success from a “getting convictions” perspective, but they are absolutely expecting to wear down the populace’s ability to maintain their outrage via inundation and saturation.
What strikes me about Bovino is that he is crap when it comes to leadership. A doctrinal concept oft quoted in military organizations is “Unity of effort, centralized direction, decentralized execution”. The three “Ds” of leadership, “Decide, Delegate, and Disappear”, is a slightly more cynical way of expressing it — the “disappear” meaning that the leader should step out of the way (not totally vanish) of the people actually executing, while observing through the chain of command and passing needed adjustments back down through that chain.
I’m going to assume that Bovino is a GS-15, which is comparable to a military colonel. Colonels can command army brigades. So, is what we’ve seen in videos the equivalent of a brigade commander (Bovino is Border Patrol Commander at Large) operating at the squad level — tossing tear gas grenades? How does that help the entire organization maintain situational awareness? It does make for an interesting pairing: ICE Barbie with BP Ken. It would be very sad for America if BP Ken is an SES.
Note for those not steeped in federal employee jargon. SES = Senior Executive Service. (I only know this because my first wife tried to get in.)
Re: Bovino and “shitshow”
I do not think that word means what he thinks it means.
A number of [former?] detainees have sued DHS/ICE over conditions at Broadview. Somehow two weeks of security camera footage covering the period they were inside *happened* to disappear the day after the suit was filed.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/11/21/2354955/-ICE-Broadview-Detention-Center-Loses-Two-Weeks-Of-Surveillance-Videos-Sought-In-Class-Action-Lawsuit (links to sources)
Daddy was a cop on the South side of Chicago
Back in the USA, back in the bad old days…
In the cool of an autumn night
In the land of the “alternative fact”
When the town of Chicago cried
When the DHS attacked
When a man named Donald Trump
Tried to make that town his dump
And called the MAGA Gang to war
Masquerading as the law
I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night Chicago died
Brother, what a night it really was
Brother, what a fight it really was
Glory be
I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night Chicago died
Brother, what a crime the people saw
Peaceful protestors against the wall
Yes, indeed
And the sound of the bullshit rang
Through the Halls of Justice true
‘Til the last of the MAGA gang
Had fled the town—and Greg Bovino, too
There was shouting in the street
And the sound of running feet
And I asked someone who said
“All the Border Patrol have fled!”
I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night Chicago died
Brother, what a night it really was
Brother, what a fight it really was
Glory be
I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night Chicago died
Brother, what a crime the people saw
Flying bullets, tear gas, pepper-balls
Yes, indeed
Now there’s no sound at all
But the clock up on the wall…
As it ticks away the time
For the enablers of these crimes
One day justice will be served
Upon Trump’s feebs, fools and pervs
The night Chicago died
(Na-na-na, na-na-na, na-na, na-na-na)
The night Chicago died…
etc.
The ICE clown car arrived in Rhode Island today:
https:// http://www.wpri.com/news/local-news/providence/ri-judge-intervenes-after-ice-mistakenly-detains-superior-court-intern/
Lord!! Do these ICE clowns have anything close to Roll Call Training? Or is that where they get their daily dose of stupid?
All they seem to know is use of force, even when they’d get better and faster results without it.
It could be interesting (at least intellectually; I hope it doesn’t really occur) to see the interplay between ICE forcible entry on the one hand, and stand-your-ground laws on the other hand. If you were resident in a solid stand-your-ground state, and a masked thug appearing (maybe) to be ICE, showed up and started battering his way in, would you justified in shooting him? After all, anyone can easily purchase and wear a full tactical outfit, and make a fake ICE tag, and wear a mask. How can you know if they’re real? If you do reasonably fear harm, can you shoot?
They busted someone in the Bay Area this week who was driving a stolen car and had realistic camo etc, including face mask/gaiter.
https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/bay-area-police-warn-suspect-impersonated-feds-21201049.php