Will County agrees to $85,000 settlement in lawsuit claiming violation of sanctuary laws

Will County reached an $85,000 settlement in a federal lawsuit claiming that county law enforcement violated sanctuary laws with the detention of an immigrant who was the key witness of a reckless homicide.

The 2023 lawsuit filed by Norberto Salvador Navarro was dismissed in March in response to the settlement. The parties agreed to keep the settlement confidential unless they gave written consent.

“The parties further agree that unless there has been prior public disclosure of this settlement, if any party is asked about the lawsuit, they shall state only, ‘This case is over,’ without suggesting or hinting at this settlement,” according to the agreement.

The agreement was provided to The Herald-News in response to a Freedom of Information Act request sent to Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow’s office.

Navarro was the key witness against Sean Woulfe, 33, of Orland Park, who pleaded guilty in 2022 to the reckless homicide of Lindsey Schmidt, 29, her unborn child, and her three sons, Owen, 6, Weston, 4, and Kaleb, 1.

The victims died in a 2017 crash in eastern Will County. Woulfe was sentenced to two years in prison.

At 2023 news conference, Navarro’s attorney, Nicole Hallett, said Navarro suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the crash.

“Yet, Will County treated him worse than the person that they were prosecuting for reckless homicide. While Norberto sat in prison, the defendant who they were prosecuting had been released on bond. That wasn’t right,” Hallett said.

ICE custody issues

In 2021, Navarro was in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for removal proceedings after he completed his sentence in a 2019 federal drug case, Navarro’s attorneys said.

In response, Glasgow’s office and sheriff’s deputies sought to bring Navarro to the Will County jail and keep him there in order to secure his testimony in Woulfe’s trial.

Yet Navarro’s federal lawsuit claimed that there was no legal basis to keep him in jail as a material witness since he had been willing to testify.

Navarro’s attorneys also argued that the removal proceedings against him had been closed after a Will County judge issued a court order demanding Navarro’s presence in court.

His attorneys contended that the judge’s court order did not permit Navarro to remain in jail until Woulfe’s trial.

Navarro’s lawsuit claimed that a prosecutor and a sheriff’s sergeant violated Illinois sanctuary laws in their efforts to take custody of Navarro. Those laws prohibit local and state law enforcement from participating in federal immigration enforcement.

Navarro’s lawsuit alleged that Sheriff’s Sgt. Paul Rojek ensured ICE that the sheriff’s office would “be responsible for taking custody, holding and returning [Mr. Navarro] to ICE custody.”

Six days later, Rojek sent another email to ICE in which he called sanctuary laws “nonsense,” according to Navarro’s lawsuit.

Will County Judge Jeffrey Tuminello, the former prosecutor on Woulfe’s case, had revealed in an email that Navarro was being detained in jail “on an ICE hold,” according to Navarro’s lawsuit.

Navarro’s lawsuit alleged that Tuminello asked his attorneys to withdraw their emergency motion for Navarro’s jail release and not challenge the material witness bond that was issued to keep him detained.

In exchange, Glasgow’s office agreed to certify Navarro for a U-Visa, which allows victims of certain crimes to stay in the U.S., according to Navarro’s lawsuit.

“During this meeting, [Tuminello] admitted that Mr. Navarro’s detention was not proper and that they ‘wanted to make it right.’ [Tuminello] repeatedly asked Mr. Navarro’s attorneys to ‘help me out here,’” according to Navarro’s lawsuit.

Navarro agreed to the deal to avoid deportation and remain in the U.S. with his family, according to the lawsuit.

However, Navarro’s immigration attorney had contacted Tuminello regarding the U-Visa at least four months beforehand, the lawsuit alleged.

Tuminello’s attorneys representing him in the lawsuit argued that he was acting in the capacity as a prosecutor to secure Navarro as an available witness for Woulfe’s trial and he has legal immunity from Navarro’s claims.

Navarro’s time in jail

Navarro’s lawsuit alleged that he was subjected to harsh conditions in the county jail. According to the lawsuit, he was only given access to freezing water, and he received insufficient and inedible food.

“Mr. Navarro believes that if he had not been able to supplement his meals at the commissary, he would have starved. In fact, Mr. Navarro regularly saw individuals eating out of the trash,” according to the lawsuit.

While Navarro was in jail, he was separated from his family, including his 9-year-old daughter, which caused him “extreme emotional distress,” according to the lawsuit.

Navarro was kept in the Will County jail for about two months before he testified in Woulfe’s trial. He was released from the facility the same day he testified.

“Mr. Navarro has made efforts to rebuild his life by returning to his job and rejoining his community, but he has found that his ability to interact socially and professionally is continuously impacted by anxiety and depression,” according to the lawsuit.

While Navarro was in jail, Glasgow’s office was criticized in a letter from U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly and 16 state lawmakers.

The letter sent to Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul accused Glasgow’s office of violating state law by entering an agreement with ICE to detain Navarro and then return him to ICE custody after his trial testimony.

In response to the letter, Glasgow’s former spokeswoman, Carole Cheney, said the office was not assisting with any actions by federal officials to deport Navarro.

Cheney said Glasgow used his “discretion to sign a U-Visa application” by classifying Navarro as an “actual victim” in Woulfe’s case “based upon the harrowing experience of being an eyewitness and then attempting to render aid in the unspeakable aftermath.”