AI Generated Image
Massachusetts judge accused of enabling immigrant to escape ICE gets rare public reprimand
New York Post • • nation
Key Points:
- The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court publicly reprimanded Judge Shelley Joseph for allowing an immigrant to escape ICE custody in 2018, finding she created an appearance of impropriety and failed to comply with the law.
- Joseph was accused of colluding with the immigrant’s attorney and a court officer to facilitate the escape, including instructing a clerk to turn off courtroom audio recording during the incident.
- Charges of obstruction of justice against Joseph were dropped in 2022 after she agreed to refer herself to the state Commission on Judicial Conduct, which found she engaged in willful judicial misconduct.
- Joseph was suspended from judicial duties for over three years following her 2019 federal indictment and has now been reassigned to administrative duties in Boston Municipal Court, where she will resume her judicial responsibilities.
- The case echoes a similar controversy involving a Wisconsin judge who helped a man evade immigration authorities, highlighting ongoing tensions between federal immigration enforcement and local judicial actions.
