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Jon Seidel @jonseidel.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

JUST IN: 111 former federal prosecutors who served in the Northern District of Illinois have issued a statement about Chicago U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros' office, expressing concern about an exodus of talent, grand jury irregularities, collapsed cases and a breach of trust with judges:

“Your sole goal is to do justice. Your client is justice itself,” U.S. District Judge April M. Perry said on May 21 to three Assistant United States Attorneys (AUSAs) standing before her in court.
Since then, the fallout continues from the well-documented troubling developments that led to the collapse of the ‘Broadview Six’ case in Federal Court in Chicago. Regrettably, there is little doubt that actions taken by leadership in the last year have tarnished the reputation of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois, where each of us once served as an AUSA.
Collectively, our experience in the office spans seven decades. We remain proud of our service and deeply protective of the office’s historic reputation for integrity, professionalism, and political independence.
Our unique perspective makes it heartbreaking for us to express concerns with developments we have observed in that office since the spring of 2025: the exodus of talented, experienced leadership and line prosecutors; acknowledged grand jury irregularities; charging decisions that have resulted in unusual grand jury “no bills,” acquittals, and dismissals; and breaches of trust with judges.
These matters raise questions about whether there is a failure of leadership in the office we deeply respect and whether once-forbidden political considerations are infecting prosecutorial decisions. The answer to both questions, in our view, is yes.
For decades, our former office earned a reputation for winning significant cases while playing by the rules. We hope that the next few months will provide an opportunity to begin an effort to restore this reputation. That, however, will require candor from U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros; the courage to stand above and apart from political fealty; and a willingness to address the failures that have occurred. It will require action, not mere words.
We recognize and appreciate that judges and lawyers for the parties will sort out the issues affect…

may, which U.S. Attorneys appointed by Presidents of both parties, have followed since at least 1970.
This impartial approach was not optional. It was mandated in the aptly named Justice Manual, a Justice Department document that provides policies and guidance relevant to the work of U.S. Attorney’s Offices. The Justice Manual plainly states:
The legal judgments of the Department of Justice must be impartial and insulated from political influence. Justice Manual 1-8.100.
Further, its Principles of Federal Prosecution provide that an attorney for the government must believe “that the admissible evidence will probably be sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction . . ..” Justice Manual 9-27.220
The combination of concerning developments occurring over the last year deserve serious public scrutiny because, ultimately, they affect not only the quality of justice, but the lives of more than nine million residents across 18 counties in the Northern District of Illinois. These matters include:
• The departure of many senior, experienced leaders and prosecutors in the office. Turnover always occurs but the volume of veteran prosecutors leaving the office over the last year is extraordinary. The challenge is exacerbated by the hiring of new AUSAs who require time to fully grow into their jobs but will be without an abundance of valuable mentors.
• Recent grand jury irregularities. While prosecutors can and do make mistakes, serious grand jury missteps are avoidable and inexcusable, given the power they wield in this sensitive and confidential setting. Mr. Boutros’ recent announcement of grand jury reforms was long on superlatives and short on details. Mr. Boutros’ highly unusual special report regarding his remarks to grand jurors about their duties is unprecedented in our collective experience and raises more questions than answers. He took the extraordinary step of questioning the grand jurors about whether they were “struggling” with immigration cases after they had pr…

beyond a reasonable doubt. When cases struggle before a grand jury, where prosecutors need only establish probable cause, that should be a serious warning sign that cases should not result in indictments, unless and until additional evidence is obtained.
For context, according to public reporting, prosecutors charged 33 defendants with nonimmigration crimes related to Midway Blitz. The vast majority of those cases have already collapsed through dismissals, no bills, acquittals, or deferred prosecution agreements — a striking departure from the office’s historic record.
The pattern and timing of charging decisions, public rhetoric surrounding the operation, and the extraordinary collapse rate of these prosecutions raise at least the appearance that improper considerations supplanted the office’s historical exercise of prosecutorial discretion free from political influence.
• Breaches of trust and the presumption of regularity. Perhaps most worrisome for us is the growing concern expressed among judges that AUSAs may no longer be worthy of the presumption of regularity traditionally afforded to prosecutors. When judges increasingly call into question the motivation or candor of prosecutors and agents, that is a sure sign the standard has been compromised. The abuse of trust is devastating and reversing that tide must be a top priority of the office’s leadership.
These are, indeed, challenging times across the Justice Department but the challenges cannot be excuses for lowering its previously high standards. We support the efforts of current AUSAs to uphold the standard that Judge Perry, herself a former supervisory AUSA, so eloquently articulated.
At the same May 21 hearing, Mr. Boutros personally dismissed with prejudice the sole misdemeanor charges against the four remaining Broadview defendants just days before they were to stand trial. Judge Perry properly noted that he significantly undercut his mea culpa by “continuing to vilify these particular defendants.”
Des…

crime was committed, it sent an entirely wrong message to impressionable and inexperienced AUSAs.
We write because we love the Chicago and Rockford U.S. Attorney’s Office and know how far these developments fall outside long-established norms.
We write because an educated public is the only hope against overzealous prosecutions.
We hope our collective voice will help renew and strengthen the standards we helped to build and maintain. We urge other lawyers and the public to raise their voices to ensure that the office’s essential mission remains the pursuit of justice.

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

I am supporting CA legislation to protect Monarch butterflies. Maybe you can, too. nwmd.social/s/copylink/4...

nwmd.social

New/Mode | Make your voice impossible to ignore

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Mad Scholar Frights @mattzollerseitz.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

Greetings, new friends! You may know me as an author, a prolific Bluesky poster and 4th place finisher on So You Call That Dancing? But you might not know that my partner Judith (@mzpress) and I have an online arts bookstore that's growing every day. Full inventory here: mzs.press/EVERYTHING-W...

The covers of three books. Left to right: Gandolfini: Jim, Tony, and the life of a legend, about the late Sopranos actor. The cover shows Gandolfini looking shy, peering offscreen with one unobstructed eye and another that peeks out between the fingers of his right hand.
CENTER: The cover of Cinema Her Way, a coffee table book by Marya E. Gates about female directors. On the cover is actress Michelle Rodriguez as the boxer heroine of Karyn Kusama's sports drama Girlfight, about a woman boxer.
RIGHT David Hockney's painting collection The Arrival of Spring in Normandy, showing a painting of a verdant field. In the background of the field is green grass. in the upper foreground are the branches of a tree sprouting white, cottony buds.

A screenshot of the pre-orders section at mzs.press. Three screenshots of books that have not yet been released. I Am The Night, Daniel Dockery's book about Batman the Brave and the Bold, has a silhouette of Batman stretching from the top to the bottom of the cover, with the title of the book and a nighttime Gotham skyline circumscribed by the borders of the Batman silhouette.

CENTER The cover of The Ring Cycle, Matt Zoller Seitz and Odie Henderson's book on the Rocky and Creed films. The cover is white except for a pair of black boxing gloves floating there

RIGHT The cover of Documentary Now!, the 600-page, 7-pound coffee table book celebrating the aforementioned IFC Channel series parodying classic documentaries.

Screenshot of three books carried at mzs.press arts bookstore:
LEFT: Cover of Lead Sister, a biography of Karen Carpenter, featuring a closeup of Carpenter playing and singing with The Carpenters.
CENTER: The cover of Anthony Hopkins' We Did OK, Kid, a memoir of his life and career. On the cover is Hopkins in closeup as he looks presently, narrowed blue eyes looking directly at the spectator.
RIGHT: Cover of Louis Armstrong In His Own Words, a collection of the bandleader's correspondence. The cover image is a photograph of a probably fortysomething Armstrong seated at the wooden desk in his office where he often wrote letters.

Screenshot of the covers of 3 books carried at mzs.press Arts Bookstore.
LEFT: The cover of Gotham City Cocktails, a book of mixed drink recipes inspired by Batman. Art deco-style flowing border lines flow around and around the interior of the dust jacket. At the center are drawings of two tall cocktail glasses and between them, a shot glass and a tumbler with a sword-pierced cherry in it.
CENTER: The cover of Downton Abbey Afternoon Tea Cookbook. Green cover, white writing and graphics. The central image is a teapot with stem lines coming out of it, and at the pot's base, a teacup and saucer and a separate plate of biscuits.
RIGHT: Bob's Burgers "The Re-Recipe Box," a set of recipe cards inspired by the joke hamburger names featured on the small board at the front of Bob's joint. Red sides with small graphics, cover image of the restaurant.

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Sarah McAnulty, Ph.D. @sarahmackattack.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

Wild success tonight at the native plant launch party! 65 people turned out and we packed up 5100 (!!!) packs of native seeds, made over 600 seed bombs, folded 100 ice alert zines, distributed over 150 whistles… Damn. Good night. Thank you to everyone who attended!

Smiling group of 30 people at a long table packing seeds

Cuties packing brown bags with people making seed bombs in the background

Posters being assembled with brightly colored clips, the posters have flowers on them and say take one and plant at the bottom

A group of people
Making little round spheres of dirt and clay

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Paul Byrne @theplanetaryguy.com · 30/12/2025

Open up this picture fully. Then look at the surface of Mars. Then look up to the top right. Spot Mars' moon Phobos high in the sky. Then notice the bright spot beside Phobos. That's Earth.

A forlorn landscape of layered rocks in the foreground, with hills fading into the background haze. At upper top right, a small crescent moon, and a bright star.

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Katharine Hayhoe @katharinehayhoe.com · 02/10/2025

My favourite Jane Goodall quotes....so many, so to the point, so wise. How different the world would be if enough people listened to her.

"People think hope is wishful thinking, and actually hope is about action." Quote from the Wiser Than Me podcast with Julia Louis-Dreyfus.

"Only when our clever brain and our human heart work together in harmony can we achieve our true potential." Graphic by the Jane Goodall Institute of South Africa.

"You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make." Graphic by Ariana Huffington on Instagram.

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Alt National Park Service @altnps.bsky.social · 06/08/2025

Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. has called off nearly $500 million in grants and contracts aimed at advancing mRNA vaccine development. This technology, first deployed during the Covid19 pandemic, allows vaccines to be produced rapidly and adapted as viruses evolve. His brain worms are getting worse!

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Riding With Robots @ridingrobots.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

What's Up video skywatching guide for August www.youtube.com/watch?v=odMQ... More: science.nasa.gov/skywatching/

youtube.com

What's Up: August 2025 Skywatching Tips from NASA

YouTube video by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

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Ed Yong is offline @edyong209.bsky.social · 07/11/2024

My immediate plan is to be offline as much as possible and double-down on my community, especially my local one. Grieve, regroup, plan, endure. As @lizneeley.bsky.social first said to me in 2016, “There is no wall to put our back against—except each other.”

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 03/11/2024

I just donated $20 to Pizza to the Polls to help keep Democracy Delicious this year - you should too! #democracyisdelicious polls.pizza/donate

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Surprised Eel Historian, PhD @greenleejw.bsky.social · 11/10/2024

Friends, it's Friday. You deserve a little treat. An eel history treat. So enjoy this 12th C. image of a medieval hulk. It may be the earliest illustration of one that we have. But ALSO there's a saucy upside-down eel in the water. And that's the important thing! 🗃️🧪

Medieval painting of a ship on the water, against an orange background. The ship has one sail, and it is being blown all out of shape by the winds, which you can see personified behind the ship. They look like little angry fuzzballs with faces, blowing furiously. The ship is atop a the crest of a good sized wave; this along with the wind suggest a squall. The front of the ship has been carved into something like a griffin's head.

The ship carries six people. The man at the back is controlling a long steering board, or an oar that he's using for a rudder. His moth is slack, and he looks distressed by the state of the sale. The other people on the boat seem uninterested, but do seem to be arguing with each other. Perhaps one of them was using loaded dice.

Below the ship, in the water, are several fish, including an upside down eel.

You are expecting me to make an Incredible Hulk joke here, but this hulk is wholly credible.

Source: Corpus Christi College, Oxford MS 157, fol 383r.

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 17/09/2024

Bluesky now has over 10 million users, and I was #464,268! Not that early, but not that late either. Happy to be in the first 500K. Congrats to @bsky.app

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 06/04/2024

earthquake felt in Oakland. 3.4, epicenter close to us around 11:12 am). This is the only time I have missed Twitter since the hostile takeover. Used to have earthquake pals

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 27/03/2024

The Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour & Green Home Showcase will be online April 6 -7 from 10:00-2:30. Keynote presentation by the inspirational author Doug Tallamy & tours of native plant gardens, gardening expert talks, & visits to homes with backup batteries, heat pumps, induction ranges.

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Ed Yong is offline @edyong209.bsky.social · 05/03/2024

Sanderlings and a giant 🪶 📷 Siesta Beach, Sarasota

Five small white shorebirds, photographed at eye level. A pair of human legs walks across the beach behind them. Even further behind, a big wave

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Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · 16/12/2023

There's plenty going on in the world of Covid. Here's an update that includes the JN.1 variant, US status, the booster, #LongCovid, new inhalation vaccine data, and my bout. In a new Ground Truths (it's free, always will be, so please consider subscribing) erictopol.substack.com/p/a-covid-up...

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 17/11/2023

Leonids Over Us~ Marge Piercy "The sky is streaked with them burning hole in black space -- like fireworks, someone says all friendly in the dark chill of Newcomb Hollow in November, friends known only by voices. We lie on the cold sand and it embraces us, this beach where locals never go in .. 1/2

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 29/10/2023

Tonight's full moon and Jupiter. The sky is just lovely tonight where we are

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 28/10/2023

The moon is full tonight and will be very close to Jupiter. Here it is from last night, Friday 10/27. Glorious! Look up tonight if you can. #fullmoon #jupiter #astronomy

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 14/10/2023

Clouds miraculously cleared for the end of the eclipse. We were only at 78% totality anyway, but it was really cool to see

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Dr. Heather Hinam 🍁 🇨🇦 @secondnaturemb.bsky.social · 05/10/2023

I blew my friends' minds yesterday when I told them that caterpillars only have 6 legs. It's true. As insects, they only have 6 legs that arise from the thorax. The other 'legs' that you see are prolegs that disappear when they turn into butterflies. They don't walk but help the caterpillar grip. 🐜🦋

A labelled photograph of a green, yellow and black caterpillar of the black swallowtail butterfly showing the short thorax and long abdomen with the pseudo-legs that help it hold onto the surface it's on.

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msw117r22.bsky.social @msw117r22.bsky.social · 04/10/2023

Local hummingbird taking a break from the heat on our deck railing

Tiny green hummingbird right in the middle of the photo sitting in a deck railing surrounded by foliage and the wood of the deck

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