Joseph Roddy Discusses Allegations Against Chicago's Top Federal Prosecutor With WGN News

Joseph Roddy, Chair of Burke, Warren, MacKay & Serritella's Institutional Risk Management & Internal Investigations practice, shared insights on a recent court appearance by U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros, Chicago’s top federal prosecutor, who faced a federal magistrate judge to answer questions about his announcement of a recent bust of alleged Venezuelan gang members. The court hearing addressed several questions posed to Boutros by U.S. Magistrate Judge Laura McNally on whether he prioritized public relations coverage rather than the legal process.

“This is really an egregious example and one that I have not been familiar with in over 30 years, with specifically the Office of the Northern District of Illinois and the U.S. attorneys there,” said Joe, who formerly served as a prosecutor in the Cook County State's Attorneys' Office.

Boutros was accused of violating a seal order and potentially sharing information the court did not want public during a press conference with acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel. During that press conference, the group shared charges about what they called a kidnapping and murder case involving three members of the Tren de Aragua gang. Boutros’ court appearance came on the heels of his office having to drop three cases recently due to allegations of misconduct.

“This is concerning for an office that has really been under the microscope and has been having issues lately,” Joe said.

Click here to view Joe's comments on the story with WGN News.