This administration believes that it operates outside the law. We have seen it in Chicago, Minnesota, and around the country. ICE's actions are unconstitutional, immoral, and repugnant. We all have a moral obligation to stand together and speak out against what is happening.

Instead of engaging with me and others about the poor conditions, ICE sent in an armored vehicle and a line of armed agents that only poured gasoline on the fire. Civilians were tackled and restrained, and agents fired pepper balls and spray into the crowd. 2/4

I saw chaos inside and outside of the ICE detention center Delaney Hall today. Detainees protesting the lack of due process, the disgusting food and poor treatment while their families and advocates stood outside calling for help. 1/4

Hosting Christopher Parente, Damon Cheronis, and @meredithshiner.com celebrating not having to prepare for trial!

Judge Perry advances Brian Straw’s emergency motion for preservation of evidence to tomorrow morning. (Recall the government objected to it because, you know, you can trust them to follow the law and not destroy evidence related to the Broadview 6.)

Good morning! Bark is well established and now we let it cook to probe tender and rest. #boringsuburbandad

What does a #boringsuburbandad do when he unexpectedly finds himself no longer facing a trial for exercising First Amendment rights? Mows the lawn, smokes a brisket, and watches some baseball.

Key excerpt from the court hearing in Chicago “Broadview 6” case. Worth a read. For a federal prosecutor, this is shocking misconduct. They are destroying our beloved DOJ.

Ms. Mecklenburg discussing "every case I've had for 19 years" feels a little more ominous today than it did 6 months ago.

UPDATE: Former "Broadview Six" defendant Brian Straw wants an order preserving emails, texts and other communication related to the grand jury proceedings. His attorneys write that they've "lost complete faith and confidence in this U.S. Attorney's Office to do the right thing on its own."

This is accurate. The Trump administration is weaponizing the DOJ against folks who speak out, like the Broadview Six, and folks who Trump vilifies, such as immigrants and trans people. It is all symptomatic of a broken system.

From @joshtpm.bsky.social: In the Trenches with the Law — Thoughts on the Broadview Six Case talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/in-th...

Ah, the good ole “self review”.

The feds had no intention to bring the unredacted grand jury transcript to court at a hearing earlier this month, emails show. You know, the transcript that eventually showed prosecutorial misconduct in the Broadview Six case that is now a DOJ scandal. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

This banner has been added to the website: (It may include a May 21 date, but the banner was added within the last 15 minutes.)

Attorneys for Brian Straw, one of the Broadview 6, move for a preservation order on USAtty's office "to make sure that all material information related to this scandal is preserved for purposes of the upcoming sanctions hearing." storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Do justice. Love mercy. And walk humbly with your God.

NEW: U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin's office reacts to Thursday's "Broadview Six" revelations. The former lead prosecutor in the case had serving as counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Now Durbin's office says her detail from the Justice Department "has been terminated."

More than 18 hours ago, federal prosecutors "agreed to remove from its website the press release stating that the defendants had been charged" or add a banner noting that the charges were dismissed," according to the judge. That website remains active and unaltered: www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr...

When the host of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! is talking about your life, is that: (a) a warning sign, (b) a sign of a life well lived, or (c) both?

Perry: "Mistakes happen. They happen to all of us. But as I tell my children, you own it. You admit to it. You apologize for it, and you move on. "What you do not do is hide it."

Truly, the main characters of this story are: my kids whose lives have been forever changed, my wife who has kept our family moving forward despite the chaos, and my community who has stood with me through all of this. Because we are standing together as a community, I believe that we will win.

Among the best moments today, telling our kids that all charges have been dropped and that the nightmare is over.

genuinely does the chicago us attorney's office have a worse W–L record than the 2024 white sox

Religion note: Brian Straw, featured in this profile, is a United Methodist. But anyone who has attended the various hearings in this case might’ve noticed that, because a rotating band of Methodist pastors has continuously shown up in court to show support for him. religionnews.com/2025/11/13/m...

I am so fucking proud of @brianstraw.bsky.social and his attorney Chris Parente for fighting tirelessly on the grand jury transcripts issue. Without them, there likely would have been an acquittal at trial, but no public awareness of the gross misconduct that took place in the Broadview 6 case.

“Thank goodness that the ICE agent didn't panic and murder someone” is a weird way to demonize the protestors.

Some notes now that I’ve seen the transcript of the hearing, thanks to @lizdye.bsky.social . First: the government dismissed the felony count in an effort to convince the judge not to make them produce full transcripts, knowing they showed serious misconduct.

I am relieved to be exonerated today, but I want to state clearly that fighting these unjust federal charges over the past seven months was never just about me or my co-defendants in this case. (1/8)

U.S. District Judge April Perry just took the bench. She's expected to hear arguments on a motion from news organizations, including the @chicago.suntimes.com, for access to today's "Broadview Six" hearing.

Judge Perry has taken the bench to hear the motion from the media to intervene

The Tribune, Sun-Times, WBEZ and BGA have asked for this hearing to be in open court, arguing in a motion overnight that DOJ has shown a pattern of abusing the grand jury process (ie. Ex-FBI Director James Comey indictments) and the public deserves access. Judge Perry will take that up at 10:45am

UPDATE this morning on the "Broadview Six" case: The @chicago.suntimes.com, @chicagotribune.com and @bettergov.bsky.social have moved to intervene, seeking access to today's hearing over grand jury transcripts. Full motion here: cst.brightspotcdn.com/9e/77/205924...

The Broadview Four as they stand now, much like the previous Six, are all just regular people. They may be politicians of some degree, but they saw what was happening and showed up for their neighbors. The federal government saw that for what it is: a threat to their power and exercise of force.

Truly, the main characters of this story are: my kids whose lives have been forever changed, my wife who has kept our family moving forward despite the chaos, and my community who has stood with me through all of this. Because we are standing together as a community, I believe that we will win.

A week before trial, a federal judge has taken the highly unusual step to order prosecutors and their supervisors into court to explain why they redacted portions of grand jury transcripts in the “Broadview Six” case against Midway Blitz protesters. Story here: www.chicagotribune.com/2026/05/20/b...

DEVELOPING: ‘Broadview 6’ judge orders feds to closed-door hearing over grand jury transcripts just days before trial From @chicago.suntimes.com: chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...

JUST IN: U.S. District Judge April Perry has called a sealed hearing Thursday in the case of the remaining members of the Broadview Six. She has ordered "any AUSA who participated in the decision to redact portions of the grand jury transcripts … to appear in person."

Context: the Broadview Six's attorneys moved last month for the govt. to disclose case's grand jury transcripts. The govt dismissed the conspiracy charge against the Six, mooting that effort. The defense has been pushing for the court to look at the unredacted grand jury transcripts ever since.

reminder

JUST IN: Judge April Perry has ordered prosecutors into court Thursday to explain why they redacted portions of grand jury transcript in the “Broadview Six” immigration protester case 👀

A GOVERNMENT OF LAWS NOT MEN -- JOHN ADAMS (projected tonight on Donald Trump's large face outside the Department of Justice)

Today was a weird day, I went straight from a hearing in the Broadview 6 case to visit the Obama Presidential Center. I worked on the Obama campaign in 2008 because I believed that America isn't perfect and never has been, but that we show love for our country by trying to make it better.

A motto of the 2008 campaign, was "Respect. Empower. Include." From the start the campaign was about the power of normal folks to create change. In a week I go to trial for showing up for our neighbors. I don't know what will happen, but I know if normal folks show up, we can make change.

Today was a weird day, I went straight from a hearing in the Broadview 6 case to visit the Obama Presidential Center. I worked on the Obama campaign in 2008 because I believed that America isn't perfect and never has been, but that we show love for our country by trying to make it better.

As a Crim Law prof and casebook author, this physically pains me. It commits basic errors that my 1Ls would never make. First, it conflates vicarious/conspiracy liability with accomplice/derivative liability. You can't use vicarious liability (Pinkerton) w/out a conspiracy charge. 1/

Straw said the mere fact of being criminally charged and forced to defend oneself is the point of it all. “Regardless of the outcome, the process is the punishment,” he said. “Defending a federal felony case costs hundreds of hours and tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

Regaining his composure, Straw said, “I know how to deal with nightmares about the monster under the bed. It’s much more difficult to deal with nightmares that are based in reality.”

Straw struggled to speak about the nightmares his daughter suffers, fearful that her father will go to court and not return home. Of threatening phone calls that required him and his family to stay with other family . . . . Of his son’s nightmares of “someone shooting up our house.”

Well, that's interesting...