Judge: In This ICE Case, Issues 'Jumped Out at Me Immediately'

A Chicago protest case that turned into a test of how far prosecutors could go against anti-ICE activists has collapsed under its own handling. A federal judge on Thursday threw out all remaining charges against a group known as the "Broadview Six," saying prosecutors crossed multiple lines in how they secured the indictment, reports the Wall Street Journal. US District Judge April Perry said grand jury transcripts revealed prosecutors had improperly vouched for their case, removed jurors who opposed indicting the protesters, and discussed the matter with grand jurors outside the jury room. She also said they failed to tell the defense that a grand jury at first declined to indict the group.

"I have never seen the types of prosecutorial behavior before a grand jury that I saw in those transcripts," Perry said, adding that problems "jumped out at me immediately and glaringly." The six were charged after a September protest outside the Broadview immigration detention center, a focal point of stepped-up enforcement in the Chicago area. Then-congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh and several local Democratic officials and activists faced charges alleging they impeded or injured an officer and, for some, committed assault, after protesters surrounded an ICE vehicle.

Defense attorneys argued the car moved into the crowd and called the case a political effort. Felony conspiracy charges were dropped last month, leaving only misdemeanor assault counts for four of the defendants before Thursday's dismissal. US Attorney Andrew Boutros had asked the court to drop the case, acknowledging the conduct but denying any nefarious intent. "No one acted with the intent to mislead, your honor, and I think that [the prosecutors] were following your order to give the law," he said, per the AP. He also said he only found out himself what had happened three weeks ago, per the Chicago Sun-Times.

Perry is weighing possible sanctions against the prosecutors and ordered both sides to register arguments on whether the grand jury records should be made fully public, per the Journal; key portions haven't been released. Defense lawyers say the redactions point to a cover-up, and some of the former defendants now plan to seek compensation from a new $1.8 billion federal fund for people claiming political targeting.