A federal judge on Tuesday made public a set of transcripts from secret grand jury proceedings that led to the tainted conspiracy indictment against the group known as the “Broadview Six.”
Grand jury proceedings are traditionally cloaked in secrecy, making Tuesday’s disclosure highly unusual. But that’s true of most developments in the weeks since the “Broadview Six” case collapsed May 21.
That’s the day U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros permanently dismissed the remaining charges in the case. He did so after U.S. District Judge April Perry revealed improprieties during the grand jury proceedings that had been redacted out of transcripts given to her by the feds.
She told prosecutors “trust has been broken.”
Boutros has since acknowledged appearing before grand jurors the same day they handed up the conspiracy indictment in the case. He did so after the panel had rejected charges against the group once before. However, he’s said he didn’t know about any misconduct until late April.
Meanwhile, a chorus of Democratic elected officials has called on Boutros to resign, though Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has shown public support. Attorneys for the “Broadview Six” are now seeking records that could tie top Justice Department officials to the case.
Grand juries are meant to be a check against overzealous prosecutors. They are generally made up of 16 to 23 people who meet in secret and hear only from prosecutors and their witnesses. Twelve members of the panel must concur to hand up an indictment.
The “Broadview Six” case revolved around a September protest outside a suburban immigration facility, where a crowd pushed, scratched and otherwise damaged a federal agent’s SUV. From that crowd, prosecutors charged only six people, all largely involved in local Democratic politics, raising questions about selective prosecution and freedom of expression.
Charged were former congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh, Oak Park village trustee Brian Straw, former Cook County Board candidate Catherine “Cat” Sharp, 45th Ward Democratic committeeperson Michael Rabbitt, musician Joselyn Walsh and onetime Abughazaleh campaign worker Andre Martin.