Chicago federal prosecutor says review covers 20 years of cases
WASHINGTON — Justice Department officials are conducting a sweeping review of more than 1,000 grand jury presentations made by Illinois prosecutors following the dismissal of a high-profile case over misconduct, the top federal prosecutor for Chicago said Wednesday.
Andrew Boutros, the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, said the massive review will include all pending grand jury proceedings in his district as well as other presentations by prosecutors going back almost 20 years. It was sparked by revelations of grand jury misconduct that forced prosecutors to abandon a closely watched case against four activists who protested outside a federal building during last year’s immigration crackdown in the city.
MSI previously reported that the federal case against the ICE protesters collapsed amid the misconduct allegations. Boutros, who was in Washington for an unrelated news conference, told reporters that the process is meant to ensure that his prosecutors have “acted ethically” and to provide “assurances and confidence” that other pending cases have not been tainted by similar issues.
“It’s going to be a massive review, a comprehensive review and it is underway,” Boutros said.