Jason Meisner

Jason Meisner has covered the federal courts beat since 2013, writing about political corruption, terrorism and gang racketeering. In 2018, he was part of the Tribune's award-winning team covering the historic murder trial of Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke.

The Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago on Oct. 20, 2025. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Former suburban cop convicted of extorting motorists, stealing cash and drugs

January 22, 2026 at 11:54 a.m.

A former south suburban police officer was convicted by a federal jury Friday of conspiring to rob motorists of cash and drugs during traffic stops and extorting people in exchange...

Federal officers detain a person near the 3900 block of South Kedzie Avenue in Chicago on Oct. 4, 2025. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

Judge who blasted Operation Midway Blitz use-of-force tactics will hear new lawsuit by city, state

January 15, 2026 at 6:45 p.m.

The federal judge who issued a landmark preliminary injunction in November limiting the use of force by immigration agents agreed Thursday to take over a new lawsuit filed by the...

U.S. Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino, center, exits the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago on Oct 28, 2025. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Judge: Feds can’t allege gang ties in trial of Chicago man accused of putting bounty on Gregory Bovino

January 15, 2026 at 6:10 p.m.

Days before a high profile trial, a federal judge Thursday barred prosecutors from bringing in evidence that a Chicago man charged with putting a bounty on Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory...

Members of the Texas National Guard arrive Oct. 7, 2025, at the Army Reserve Training Center in Elwood. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

After Supreme Court defeat, Trump administration looking to settle lawsuit over Illinois National Guard deployment

January 14, 2026 at 8:00 p.m.

After a defeat at the U.S. Supreme Court, lawyers for the Department of Justice told a federal judge Wednesday they're looking to settle litigation over President Donald Trump’s controversial efforts...

Former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore leaves the U.S. Dirksen Courthouse after being sentenced to two years in prison, July 21, 2025. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)

Ex-ComEd CEO convicted in scheme to bribe Madigan joins onetime colleagues in federal prison

January 13, 2026 at 1:18 p.m.

Pramaggiore, 67, reported Monday to a minimum-security prison camp in Marianna, Florida, about an hour's drive west of Tallahassee, where she will serve her 2-year sentence.

Federal agents use tear gas and smoke on community members and activists while they protest near the 3900 block of South Kedzie Avenue on Oct. 4, 2025, in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

Illinois and Chicago sue DHS over ‘militarized’ immigration-enforcement tactics

January 12, 2026 at 6:23 p.m.

Saying immigration agents have acted more like an occupying military force than law enforcement, lawyers for the state of Illinois and Chicago sued the Trump administration in federal court Monday...

Nour Tamimi, right, leads a chant during a rally on Jan. 9, 2026, at a makeshift memorial in Minneapolis honoring Renee Good, near the site where Good fatally shot by an ICE officer. (John Locher/AP)

Minnesota shooting raises questions about who investigates federal agents

January 11, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Many in the Chicago area have revived a legal question of whether state and local agencies can investigate and file charges against federal agents who appear to have crossed the...

Members of the Texas National Guard walk around on Oct. 8, 2025, at the Army Reserve Training Center in Elwood. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Illinois AG says National Guard case should be resolved in its favor following Supreme Court ruling

January 9, 2026 at 9:13 p.m.

Calling a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling a "straightforward path" to a legal victory, lawyers for the state of Illinois said Friday they hope to quickly resolving ongoing litigation over...

Federal immigration agents walk through a cloud of tear gas while facing off against community members at 105th Street and Avenue N in Chicago on Oct. 14, 2025. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Judge cites Minneapolis shooting by ICE agent in declining to immediately dismiss lawsuit over use-of-force tactics in Midway Blitz

January 16, 2026 at 8:47 a.m.

A federal judge in Chicago on Thursday cited the fatal shooting of a U.S. citizen by an immigration agent in Minneapolis in declining to immediately dismiss a lawsuit that led...

Chicago police respond to West 26th Street and South Kedzie Avenue after a report of shots fired at Border Patrol agents on Nov. 8, 2025, in the Little Village neighborhood. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

New indictment ties gun to shots fired at immigration agents in Little Village

January 7, 2026 at 6:44 p.m.

A federal indictment filed Wednesday alleged for the first time that a gun found on a man in a Little Village restaurant parking lot in November was the same weapon...

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