Sheri Mecklenburg, the assistant U.S. attorney at the center of the collapsed “Broadview Six” prosecution in Chicago, retired effective September 24, 2026, and told U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros in a three-page letter that “this is not a voluntary departure.” She wrote that he had laid “responsibility at my feet for a felony prosecution that you personally directed over my objection that the case was better suited to misdemeanor charges.” The Justice Department denied it: “The claim that AUSA Mecklenburg proposed a misdemeanor and was told instead to file a felony charge is false,” it said, adding that her written recommendation “included the [conspiracy] felony as the strongest charge.” The Chicago Sun-Times and the Chicago Tribune each obtained the letter.
The case grew out of Operation Midway Blitz, the Trump administration's deportation campaign in the Chicago area. Six people were charged with conspiring to impede a federal agent at a September 26, 2025 protest outside the ICE facility in Broadview; prosecutors alleged the group surrounded a government vehicle and “banged aggressively” on its windows and hood. The defendants included then-congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh, and many were involved in local Democratic politics, which raised questions about selective prosecution. The indictment was made public October 29.
A grand jury returned a no-bill on October 9, 2025. Mecklenburg's court filing says she went back to the grand jury a week later on Boutros's instruction, and that he had her order an expedited transcript of the October 9 session and send it to his office; Boutros has said he is “quite certain” he did not read it for months. Unsealed transcripts later showed that Mecklenburg vouched for the evidence and spoke with grand jurors outside the grand jury room, which her lawyers acknowledge. The defense also alleges she excused skeptical jurors, which she denies. Judge April Perry said she was “incredibly shocked.” All charges were dropped on May 21, 2026.
Boutros has acknowledged “mistakes were made,” announced grand jury reforms and opened a review of Mecklenburg's work across her nearly 20-year career. His office told the court: “This case involved irregularities during a time of immense pressure, upheaval, and emotion in the district because of Operation Midway Blitz.” Mecklenburg says she was told she could be disciplined or fired if she filed anything on her own behalf, and retired so that she could. Perry will hear arguments on October 1 on sanctions and on the former defendants' request for a special counsel.
Boutros has served as U.S. attorney since April 7, 2025. In his words, “President Donald J. Trump, acting through Attorney General Pamela Bondi, appointed me” to the job, and the district court later approved his continued service. The central new claim, that he directed the felony charge, comes from a prosecutor accused of misconduct in the same case and is denied by the Justice Department. It is disputed, and this entry treats it that way.