Chicago’s top federal prosecutor dropped the remaining Broadview Six charges with prejudice, telling a federal judge he was “completely unaware” of misconduct that surfaced in the grand jury proceedings—misconduct he said he learned about only after prosecutor
For the remaining defendants in the “Broadview Six” case, the shock came in a sealed courtroom—then landed hard in public language: charges dropped with prejudice, and a prosecutor openly acknowledging the grand jury process had been tainted by actions his office carried out.
U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros stood before U.S. District Judge April Perry on Thursday and told her he was “completely unaware” of misconduct until late last month. when prosecutors dropped the felony conspiracy indictment against the four remaining defendants. He also told Perry that “no one acted with the intent to mislead your honor.”.
Even after announcing he was dismissing the case with prejudice—meaning it cannot be refiled—Boutros defended the prosecution. He pointed to events on Sept. 26. 2025. outside an immigration holding facility in Broadview. where the defendants and others allegedly surrounded a federal agent’s vehicle and slowed its approach to the building. Boutros called the conduct “unacceptable in a civilized society. ” and said. “It is for the grace of God that that agent moved at 2 miles per hour.”.
Perry responded sharply. “You are significantly undercutting your mea culpa here by standing behind the charges and continuing to vilify these particular defendants,” she told Boutros.
As the hearing unfolded Thursday afternoon, the specific misconduct described by both Boutros and defense attorneys was still emerging in detail. But multiple problems were laid out within the grand jury process.
Boutros mentioned “vouching,” suggesting that a prosecutor assured grand jurors the case was solid enough to bring. Defense attorneys also said a prosecutor allegedly spoke with a grand juror outside the jury room. and that some grand jurors who disagreed with the case were allegedly kept from participating further. Another issue was raised by defense attorneys as well: the case had once been rejected by grand jurors—a “no bill.”.
Perry said the matter of “sanctions” could be handled later. For now, she moved to end the ordeal for the defendants and order a public transcript of Thursday morning’s sealed hearing, where the alleged misconduct was described.
Boutros’ position in Chicago has been unusual in itself. He was initially appointed by then-Attorney General Pamela Bondi. but Chicago’s federal judges selected him last summer to continue in the role on a more permanent basis. U.S. District Chief Judge Virginia Kendall declined to comment through a court spokesperson.
Media organizations moved aggressively to keep parts of the process open. The Chicago Sun-Times. WBEZ. the Chicago Tribune and the Better Government Association intervened Thursday morning. arguing the sealed proceeding should be made public. Perry ultimately denied that request. saying “the interest in guaranteeing a fair jury to these defendants is more compelling than allowing access to this particular proceeding.” She then cleared the courtroom. and court security roped off a nearby hallway during the closed-door session.
The Broadview Six case has been among the most heavily watched prosecutions tied to Operation Midway Blitz, a deportation campaign. The matter began as a conspiracy case against six people who protested outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in suburban Broadview. But federal prosecutors dropped charges against two of the original six, then abandoned the conspiracy theory entirely. In the end, four people faced one misdemeanor count each of forcibly impeding a federal agent.
Those charged were former congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh. Oak Park village trustee Brian Straw. 45th Ward Democratic committeeperson Michael Rabbitt. and Andre Martin. who served as a member of Abughazaleh’s campaign staff. The original indictment also named Catherine “Cat” Sharp and Joselyn Walsh. though the case shifted away from the original lineup as prosecutions were pared back.
The latest charging document, filed April 29, did not spell out specific allegations against the defendants. Instead. it generally accused them of joining a larger group of protesters who surrounded an ICE agent’s vehicle and pushed. scratched and otherwise damaged it as it approached the facility in Broadview.
The case’s momentum began to break down as trial neared Tuesday, driven by controversy over grand jury transcripts. Defense attorneys sought access to transcripts that showed how the conspiracy law was explained to grand jurors. Perry agreed to review the materials herself.
Grand jury proceedings are normally secret. with panels hearing only from prosecutors and witnesses before deciding whether to return an indictment. Here, prosecutors redacted portions of the transcripts they gave Perry. She asked them to bring unredacted copies to an April 29 hearing. But moments into that session. prosecutors announced they would dismiss the conspiracy charge and abandon the grand jury’s indictment. moving forward with misdemeanor charges in a separate charging document.
Defense attorneys kept pushing for disclosure anyway. Straw attorney Christopher Parente urged Perry during a hearing Monday to look at an unredacted version. arguing prosecutors may have been hiding something that “could have tainted all of this.” Prosecutors said they had no objection. and Perry agreed to examine the materials herself. At the time. Perry sounded skeptical. telling the court. “if I had to guess. it seemed like those were probably related to IT issues.”.
Two days later. Perry demanded that any prosecutor who participated in the redaction decision appear in her courtroom—“any” prosecutor “who participated in the decision to redact portions” of the transcript. “whether on the trial team or at the supervisory level.” Perry said she would hold the hearing under seal to avoid tainting the jury pool and because grand jury matters would be discussed.
On Thursday. the courtroom dispute reached its conclusion. with Boutros telling the judge he had only recently learned about misconduct connected to the grand jury process—then seeking to keep the record straight about what he personally did and didn’t know. Perry cleared the way for the case to end for the defendants at this stage. and her words made clear the ordeal was not just about legal strategy. but about whether the process that led to charges could stand at all.
Broadview Six Andrew Boutros April Perry grand jury misconduct Operation Midway Blitz ICE agent Broadview Kat Abughazaleh Brian Straw Michael Rabbitt Andre Martin Catherine Cat Sharp Joselyn Walsh
So they just admit they messed up and everyone walks? Cool cool.
“Completely unaware” is crazy like how do you miss misconduct in a grand jury. I’m guessing it was politics or something, because the timing with Sept 26 outside that holding place sounds like a whole coordinated thing.
With prejudice means they can’t try again right? So basically the feds screwed the paperwork and now the guys are free. Also “sealed courtroom” always makes me think it’s hiding something bigger.
I don’t even get it. If the prosecutor didn’t know, how is that misconduct even his fault? But then it says his office carried it out, so which one is it? And the part about surrounding the agent’s vehicle… like did they actually have anything to do with immigration holding or is that just thrown in there. This article reads like nobody’s accountable.