Douglas DePodesta, the former Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Chicago field office, filed a lawsuit on Monday, Nov. 2, 2026, against the Department of Justice and the FBI. A 24-year veteran of the bureau, DePodesta alleges he was forced to step down this summer after being wrongly blamed for the collapse of felony cases against six protesters. DePodesta claims he was targeted after prosecutions related to an immigration enforcement operation in Chicago failed to result in convictions.
The litigation centers on Operation Midway Blitz, a federal immigration crackdown in Chicago that led to charges against approximately 30 protesters. In October 2025, six individuals, known as the "Broadview Six," were charged with felony conspiracy to obstruct a federal officer during a protest at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility. These charges were dropped in May 2026 after transcripts revealed a grand jury had twice refused to indict the group.
In his lawsuit, DePodesta accuses Andrew Boutros, the top federal prosecutor in Illinois, of pushing for felony charges before evidence was gathered and pressuring investigators to open cases based on political affiliations. DePodesta alleges Boutros told Justice Department leadership that DePodesta and his sister-in-law, an attorney for one of the defendants, conspired to undermine the case. Boutros’ office declined to comment on the allegations.
Following the filing of the lawsuit, U.S. District Judge April Perry ordered Boutros and three assistant attorneys to testify under oath on Nov. 16, 2026. The judge stated there is a factual basis to inquire whether willful false statements were made to the court during the protester cases. This order follows the resignation of one of the case's prosecutors in September, who claimed she had been "scapegoated and publicly vilified" by Boutros.
The outcome of this lawsuit and the subsequent testimony could clarify the boundaries between political leadership and law enforcement investigations. Douglas DePodesta lost his career at the FBI Chicago Field Office, which oversees federal investigations for the region. The allegations of "politically motivated prosecutions" and pressure to charge individuals based on affiliations suggest a shift in how federal resources were directed during the immigration crackdown.
The knock-on effects include a formal court inquiry into whether federal prosecutors made "willful false statements." The appointment of a special counsel, requested by the former defendants, remains a possibility as Judge Perry pursues further fact-finding regarding communications between Illinois prosecutors and Justice Department leadership. The next step occurs on Nov. 16, 2026, when Boutros and his aides are scheduled to testify.