A state judge in Boston has dismissed a case against a man who was taken into federal custody in the middle of his criminal trial last week, citing prosecutorial misconduct, and found a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in contempt of court.
William Martell Lebron was detained by ICE agents outside of court on Thursday, after the start of his jury trial on charges of providing false information on a license application, according to The Boston Globe.
Boston Municipal Court Judge Mark Summerville had held an emergency hearing on the matter Friday, where he ordered ICE to return Martell Lebron to court to stand trial on Monday.
Defense attorney Murat Erkan on Monday called what happened obstruction of justice and alleged a plan involving the state to deport him.
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Earlier Monday, the Suffolk District Attorney’s Office said in a statement that it was “dismayed and surprised” by ICE taking Martell Lebron into custody during the trial.“We have been instrumental to Boston becoming one of safest cities in the nation by pursuing ethical prosecutions that hold offenders accountable and treat victims with dignity. We were dismayed and surprised when our prosecution of William Martell Lebron was interrupted by ICE apprehending him in the middle of our case,” a spokesman for the district attorney’s office said in an email Monday.
According to The Boston Globe, Martell Lebron appeared in a Boston courtroom Thursday for day one of his jury trial on charges of providing false information on a license application. But when he left court he was detained by ICE agents.
The district attorney’s office said they contacted ICE as soon as they learned of the detention and requested his return to court. They also filed a motion Monday morning asking that the court demand his appearance at trial.
“Any claim that we were aware of an attempt to prevent Mr Martell Lebron from exercising his right to a trial is false,” the district attorney’s office said. “It was and still is our intention to try Mr. Martell Lebron and hold him accountable for the crimes alleged in the complaint. Federal authorities should not have detained him and interfered with our efforts to hold him accountable.”
But Martell Lebron’s lawyer, Murat Erkan, alleges that prosecutors were given a heads up that ICE was planning to take his client into custody but never told him.
Erkan told the Globe that ICE said Lebron Martell is a Dominican national who is using an alias.
NBC10 Boston has reached out to ICE for comment on the situation.
A Boston Municipal Court judge held an emergency hearing on the matter Friday, and issued an order for ICE to return Martell Lebron to court to stand trial on Monday.
