Federal prosecutors are seeking to drop charges against two of the six people accused of conspiracy related to protests outside a Broadview immigration processing center, according to a motion filed on March 13. The U.S. Attorney’s Office requested that charges be dismissed against Cat Sharp and Jocelyn Walsh, both of whom were indicted last October along with four others.
The case has drawn attention due to its focus on alleged criminal conspiracy during demonstrations at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in September. Prosecutors allege that the group surrounded a government vehicle, banged on it, and impeded an agent from proceeding. Some defendants also face individual counts of assaulting or resisting officers.
Assistant U.S. Attorney William Hogan Jr. wrote in Thursday’s motion, “As the United States Attorney’s Office does in every case, the government has continued to evaluate new facts, evidence, and information to ensure that the interests of justice are served.” As of late Thursday, charges remain pending against Kat Abughazaleh, Michael Rabbitt, Andre Martin, and Brian Straw.
Sharp is chief of staff for Alderman Andre Vasquez and had suspended her campaign for Cook County Board due to the indictment. Walsh is a musician who regularly protested at Broadview through music. Both expressed relief over the dismissal but criticized the initial decision to charge them. “This motion to dismiss proves what we have always known — that the indictment in this case was flawed from the outset,” Sharp said. “While I am of course elated at this outcome, ICE’s abuse of immigrants and refugees in our communities continues… I am confident that all six of us will be vindicated.”
Walsh said the dismissal “does not change the disruption it caused in my life for the past six months.” She added: “It also does not change that I was a victim of ICE violence when they shot my guitar and that many continue to experience violence at the hands of federal agents in Chicago and across the country… We should all continue to question the ways this administration continues to criminalize dissent, and keep using our voices to fight back.”
Abughazaleh is running for Congress in Illinois’ 9th District; Martin works as her campaign field director; Rabbitt is a Democratic committeeperson; Straw serves as an Oak Park trustee and attorney. Katherine Thames, Abughazaleh’s campaign manager, said: “We welcome the government’s motion… There was never a conspiracy in the first place.”
Prosecutors asked for dismissal “with prejudice,” preventing future refiling against Sharp or Walsh. The remaining four defendants are scheduled for another court hearing on March 31.
