CHICAGO — Just five days before a jury trial was set to begin, a judge has vacated next week’s trial date for the remaining “Broadview Six” defendants amid controversy over grand jury transcripts.

No new trial date was immediately set by U.S. District Judge April Perry, who had whistled prosecutors into court to explain redactions made in the transcripts at the heart of felony conspiracy charges that have since been dismissed. That hearing last about 45 minutes Thursday and produced the Perry decision.

She gave prosecutors until 1 p.m. Thursday to return to her courtroom to give their position on what portions of the material should remain under seal going forward. Portions of the grand jury transcript where one of the grand jurors expressed “personal opinions” about the case will remain sealed for privacy reasons, the judge told lawyers on the case.

Of all the criminal cases to come out of Operation Midway Blitz, the charges against the “Broadview Six” protesters have arguably been the most controversial.

In calling for the U.S. attorney’s office to explain the redactions, U.S. District Judge April Perry had called for any prosecutor “who participated in the decision to redact portions of the grand jury transcripts, whether on the trial team or at the supervisory level” to appear before her Thursday.

The proceedings were conducted in courtroom sealed to the public “due to the anticipated discussion of grand jury materials and in an effort to avoid tainting the jury venire” in the upcoming criminal trial, which is slated to begin with jury selection Tuesday, according to Perry’s order.

In an overnight filing, the Tribune, Sun-Times, WBEZ and Better Government Association asked the judge to reconsider the sealing of her courtroom, arguing there has been a pattern of accusations against the Department of Justice under the administration of President Donald Trump of abusing the grand jury process, particularly in cases related to protesters.

Perry denied that motion and the media was not allowed to remain in the room for the hearing.

Whether anything that transpires will be put on the public record after the hearing remains to be seen, but the development is surely worrisome for the U.S. attorney’s office, which has already come under fire for a slew of criminal cases brought during Midway Blitz that have fallen apart amid scrutiny by judges and juries.

A spokesman for U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros has not responded to requests for comment.

Originally, the defense had asked the judge to look at only portions of the transcripts that showed how the grand jury was instructed on the law. After those versions were filed under seal, Perry later ordered prosecutors to bring the full, unredacted transcripts to her chambers at the next hearing.

At that April 29 hearing, however, Assistant U.S. Attorney William Hogan announced his office was dismissing the original felony conspiracy charge and proceeding on misdemeanors, rendering the grand jury transcripts “moot.”

Perry agreed, and after some discussion about next steps, Hogan asked her: “Do you still want us furnish the unredacted versions or should we wait?”

“Let’s wait,” Perry responded.

“Thank you,” Hogan said.

But defense attorney Christopher Parente, who represents Oak Park Trustee Brian Straw, has continued to press the issue, suggesting the U.S. attorney’s office dismissed the indictment because of some error before the grand jury that they were now trying to avoid disclosing.

After Parente again raised it at a pretrial hearing on Monday, Perry on Monday agreed to take a look at the transcripts to “see if there is anything suspicious” about the 30 or so lines that had been redacted, though she guessed at the time that most of the redactions had to do with “IT issues.”

Given the judge’s order Wednesday, that clearly was not the case.

The “Broadview Six” case has been beset by controversy from the moment the indictment was brought in October as the defense has alleged the case was brought amid pressure from the administration of President Donald Trump and was nothing more than an attempt to silence protesters of the president’s draconian immigration policies.

The back-and-forth escalated last month when Parente raised the possibility that the U.S. attorney’s office had misinstructed the grand jury on the law or had “improper or prejudicial” interactions with the panel, then dismissed the conspiracy count to avoid having to turn over unredacted transcripts of the proceedings.

In response, prosecutors blasted Parente for “histrionically” speculating about perceived misconduct in what was the normal practice in Chicago’s federal court. “There was nothing remotely unusual, let alone nefarious, about that state of affairs,” prosecutors said.

Charged in the case are Katherine “Kat” Abughazaleh, a former Democratic congressional candidate; Andre Martin, who was Abughazaleh’s campaign manager; 45th Ward Democratic Committeeman Michael Rabbitt; and Straw, who is also a Democrat.

Earlier this year, Perry granted a request from the U.S. attorney’s office to dismiss charges against Catherine Sharp, a onetime candidate for the Cook County Board, and Joselyn Walsh, a part-time garden store worker and singer.

Prosecutors alleged the defendants were part of a group that surrounded an ICE vehicle outside the Broadview facility during a Sept. 26 protest and “banged aggressively” on the vehicle’s side and back windows, hood and doors before they “crowded together in the front and side of the Government Vehicle and pushed against the vehicle to hinder and impede its movement.”

They further alleged that the protesters scratched the vehicle’s body, broke a side mirror and a rear windshield wiper and etched the word “PIG” into the paint — though no one listed in the indictment is accused of specifically causing that damage.

The remaining misdemeanor counts of impeding a federal officer are each punishable by up to one year behind bars.

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