A federal judge in Massachusetts has temporarily banned Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from making arrests around the state’s courthouses.
District Judge Indira Talwani issued the decision Thursday, according to the Boston Herald. County prosecutors sued for the injunction in April after the Justice Department indicted a Boston judge and former court officer for allegedly helping an illegal immigrant evade ICE officials.
“Entire communities now view the Massachusetts courts as places where they cannot go, for any reason, greatly impeding access to justice and undermining the administration of justice in these communities,” the lawsuit said.
ICE officials have troubled prosecutors and public defenders in recent years, according to the complaint. Illegal immigrants are sometimes called on to testify as witnesses in cases but are afraid to appear at the courthouse because of the threat of arrest.
The Justice Department indicted Judge Shelley Joseph, 51, and former trial court officer Wesley MacGregor, 56, on obstruction of justice charges for helping an illegal immigrant evade ICE arrest. Federal officials had already deported the immigrant twice.
