MISSOULA, Mont. – After Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained Christopher Martinez Marvan at a traffic stop with the Helena Police, two officers had this exchange, which was caught on one of the officer’s body cameras:
“So, he’s, like, he’s being kidnapped right now,” said Helena Police Department Officer Andrew Barton, who is identified in the court interaction’s description of the camera footage.
“Okay. Good enough for me,” said Helena police Officer Seth Montgomery, who was wearing the camera.
Marvan is that ICE agents violated his Fourth Amendment rights and that he was detained due to racial profiling.
This interaction happened after the officers pulled Marvan over for driving with expired tags. Body camera video doesn’t show officers tell Marvan that his tabs were expired.
Body camera footage shows the interactions between Montgomery and Marvan from when he first pulls Marvan over to when Montgomery returns to the car and Martinez is eventually taken away.
After Montgomery, Marvan and two ICE agents talked to Martinez and questioned him about his identification, Montgomery started to write Marvan a ticket for not having his license while driving.
Montgomery then told the agents, “We’re good to go. Unless you guys need him for something,” before walking back to his car.
Then, when ICE agents took Marvan away, Montgomery got out of the car and asked them if he was being detained for something besides the traffic stop.
“Yeah he’s getting deported,” the ICE agent said.
Then they agreed not to submit the citation for driving without a license.
Afterward, Montgomery went back to the car and talked to another officer through the window. Montgomery commented that Martinez was being deported.
“It worked out perfect with you guys seeing it and then it came right to me,” Montgomery told the officer.
Then he rolled down his window to address Barton, who was smiling.
