Federal judge ‘reluctantly’ denies motions to dismiss ATF stash house sting cases

By Christen Smith

Chief Judge Ruben Castillo said Monday there just wasn’t enough evidence to prove ATF agents unfairly targeted minorities in its troubling stash house stings. (Photo: Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
A federal judge in Chicago “reluctantly denied” motions to dismiss cases stemming from fictitious stash house robberies — a controversial ATF tactic plagued with racial undertones.
Chief Judge Ruben Castillo handed down the decision Monday in the district court of northern Illinois, determining although the stash house stings were neither “honorable or fair,” none of the federal agents involved violated the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment.
“To paraphrase Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, to declare that in the administration of the criminal law ‘the end justifies the means’ is to declare that the government may violate fundamental principles of common fairness to secure the conviction of an alleged criminal,” Castillo said in a 73-page opinion published this week. “That is not where our criminal law should be in 2018. Our society simply cannot accept a ‘win at all costs’ mentality in the delicate world of criminal law enforcement, which is ultimately dependent on proactive citizen involvement.”
The decision stems from eight pending cases against minority defendants in Chicago ensnared by conspiracy charges for planning

Source: Guns.com