A Boston Municipal Court has held an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in contempt after he tried to arrest a defendant during their trial.
Judge Mark Summerville held ICE agent Brian Sullivan in contempt on Monday night, The Boston Globe reports, after he arrested Wilson Martell-Lebron on the first day of a trial related to 2020 charges for filing a false application for a driver’s license.
Martell-Lebron, 52, appeared in court on Thursday for his trial, but when he went to leave the court that night, plainclothes ICE agents detained him, placed him in an unmarked SUV and drove away, the Globe reports. ICE alleges Martell-Lebron is a citizen of the Dominican Republic living in the U.S. without authorization with a fake identity, according to the Globe.
Summerville found Brian Sullivan in contempt of court because he violated Martell-Lebron’s right to due process and a fair trial.
“The finding of contempt is a consequence of Agent Sullivan’s intentional and egregious violations of the defendant’s rights,” Summerville said.
Martell-Lebron is still in ICE detention as of Tuesday, his defense attorney Ryan Sullivan told The Independent.
Summerville also found that two Massachusetts State Police troopers knew about ICE’s plans to arrest Martell-Lebron. He did not hold them in contempt, the Globe reports, but said the Suffolk District Attorney’s Office should give their staff better ethics training.
A Massachusetts State Police trooper testified that Brian Sullivan informed their office and the district attorney’s office of his plan to arrest Martell-Lebron, Ryan Sullivan told The Independent.
“Last week, two State Troopers testifying as part of their duties in a criminal trial in Boston Municipal Court became aware of federal officials’ intention to detain the defendant during the proceeding,” a Massachusetts State Police spokesperson said in a statement to The Independent. “As in any situation where a member becomes aware of federal immigration enforcement, the Troopers responded appropriately by neither assisting nor obstructing the federal action.”
However, the Suffolk District Attorney’s Office denies they ever knew about the plan, spokesperson James Borghesani told The Independent.
“We were dismayed and surprised when our prosecution of Wilson Martell-Lebron was interrupted by ICE apprehending him in the middle of our case,” Borghesani said. “As soon as we were made aware of the detention we contacted ICE and requested his return to court.”
“We filed a motion this morning requesting that the court also demand his appearance,” he added. “Any claim that we were aware of an attempt to prevent Mr Martell-Lebron from exercising his right to a trial is false.”
Borghesani said ICE should “not have detained him and interfered with our efforts to hold [Martell-Lebron] accountable.”
In light of Brian Sullivan’s actions, Summerville has dismissed the case with prejudice, meaning the case is over.
“It’s the best results we as his attorneys could ask for, but it’s not the result [Martell-Lebron] wanted,” Ryan Sullivan said. “The result he wanted was to be acquitted by a jury of his peers.”
“I can’t think of any greater injustice than a man who is taken away from his trial in the middle of it by the government,” he added.
The Independent has contacted ICE and the Massachusetts State Police for comment.
