Cook County’s top prosecutor lays out road map for charging federal agents

Stating that “no one is above the law,” Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke announced new protocols Thursday her office will follow to prosecute federal agents for unlawful use of force.

The move comes months after the Operation Midway Blitz immigration enforcement campaign in Chicago and the suburbs led to numerous violent confrontations between federal agents and protesters. Among them: a deadly shooting in West suburban Franklin Park and a near-fatal shooting in Chicago’s Brighton Park neighborhood.

In both cases, the official accounts of what occurred have faced scrutiny amid contradictory bodycam footage and other evidence.

The new policy announced Thursday will apply to cases involving a death, shooting, act of violence or use of force incident related to federal immigration enforcement.

“If a federal law enforcement agent commits a crime, my office will not hesitate to act, in accordance with state law,” Burke said. “This protocol establishes clear, legally sound guidelines to ensure we have a responsible and effective path to pursue accountability.”

We reached out for comment Thursday from the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, but didn’t hear back.

The protocol provides guidelines to law enforcement agencies in cases involving a federal agent, including how the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution may affect the ability to prosecute.

The clause is a significant impediment to state prosecution of federal agents. It gives federal agents immunity from state prosecution for actions taken within their lawful authority and when they reasonably believe their conduct was necessary to perform their duties.

Burke’s office said Thursday that it began drafting protocols to prepare for the “unprecedented situation” in Cook County: bringing state charges against a federal immigration officer for on-duty conduct.

Under the policy, the office can support, but not lead, investigations into criminal conduct, and will conduct an independent review of evidence to determine whether felony charges are supported.

Among those who reviewed the measure prior to Thursday were the Office of the Illinois Attorney General and the Illinois State’s Attorneys Association.

Kane County State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser, the association’s president, said the group strongly supports the measure.

“As prosecutors, we have a legal and ethical obligation to carefully assess complex issues — including federal immunity, subpoena authority, and jurisdiction — to determine whether the burden of proof can be met,” she said. “The protocol will equip prosecutors’ offices to successfully evaluate these factors and make the right charging decision.”

The ICE Accountability Project, an advocacy group that documents and tracks federal immigration agent conduct in the Chicago area, had a more tepid response.

“This new protocol is certainly a welcome step in the right direction — but welcome words are not enough and many questions remain unanswered,” the organization said in a news release.

“As one of the first cities terrorized by these operations, Chicago should be among the first to bring charges against agents who flagrantly broke the law,” the group added.

Judicial readings

Several DuPage County judges used their day off on Lincoln’s Birthday Feb. 12 to visit elementary schools, as part of the Illinois Judges Association’s fourth annual Judges Go to School Day.

Among the judges reading to students and telling them about the justice system were Christina Kye, Chantelle Porter, Leah Setzen and Louis Aranda.

Fatal OD leads to conviction

An Elgin man faces up to 30 years in prison after a jury found him responsible for the overdose death of a man he met in treatment.

Eric Jones, 54, was convicted this month of drug-induced homicide in the November 2022 death of Niko Jiminez of Aurora.

Authorities said Jiminez died of a fentanyl overdose in his bedroom at a recovery house in Aurora.

At trial, prosecutors presented evidence from Jiminez’s cellphone showing he had texted a contact listed as “Erik Rehab” requesting some “blues” and saying “can you do $15 for those candies?”

An Aurora police report states Jones denied supplying the fatal dose of drugs, but connected Jiminez to someone who did.

Jones is scheduled to return to court April 2.

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