A press freedom advocacy group filed a disciplinary complaint in February against Department of Justice attorney Sean Skedzielewski, who represented the federal government in a lawsuit brought by Block Club Chicago and other news organizations. The complaint accuses Skedzielewski of making false claims in court that violent terrorist organizations were operating during protests related to federal immigration raids in the Chicago area.
The issue is significant because it centers on allegations that a government lawyer misled a federal judge during hearings last fall regarding demonstrations outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, Illinois. The protests occurred during Operation Midway Blitz, an immigration enforcement crackdown under the Trump administration, where federal agents used tear gas and pepper-spray bullets against reporters covering the events.
The Freedom of the Press Foundation’s complaint focuses on statements made by Skedzielewski during an Oct. 6 hearing in federal court. During this hearing, he described the protests as “a riot with violent terrorist organizations attempting to dox ICE and their family,” according to a transcript cited in the complaint. The foundation alleges these statements were false and unsupported by evidence presented in court.
Seth Stern, director of advocacy for the Freedom of the Press Foundation, wrote in the complaint: “Fabricating a violent terrorist invasion of America’s third-largest city to justify suppression of First Amendment rights is not aggressive advocacy, but an effort to subvert the rule of law. While Skedzielewski’s conduct is particularly egregious, it is part of a well-documented trend of federal government lawyers abusing the deference judges afford them by making false and outlandish claims in court.”
U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis appeared skeptical at the time, responding during the hearing: “Well, I think we have a different idea of what’s going on in Chicago,” according to court transcripts. In her February opinion spanning 233 pages, Ellis wrote that federal officials repeatedly misled the public about what happened during Operation Midway Blitz and found that government evidence often contradicted its own claims about violent protesters.
Ellis also singled out Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino for providing statements she found “not credible,” noting he admitted under oath to lying multiple times about events leading up to agents deploying tear gas during an October confrontation with residents.
Block Club Chicago joined several journalism organizations as plaintiffs after four reporters were shot with pepper-spray bullets while covering protests. Ellis issued a preliminary injunction restricting agents’ use of crowd-control weapons and requiring officers to display identification and use body cameras; however, this order was paused by an appeals court before plaintiffs dropped their lawsuit when operations slowed.
The Freedom of the Press Foundation’s complaint argues Skedzielewski violated New York Rules of Professional Conduct prohibiting false statements or advancing claims without factual basis. It also references other cases overseen by Skedzielewski where judges questioned similar claims.
This action comes as the Justice Department seeks new rules allowing it to request state bar associations pause investigations into its attorneys while internal reviews are conducted.
