On March 2, Franklin Leonar Urrutia-Cordon was on his way to ending a case that had stalled in Northampton County courts for 30 months.

In August 2017, he had been charged with driving under the influence as a first offense. He would plead guilty to general impairment and walk away a free man, with no jail time and no license suspension. But as he and attorney Josh Fulmer made their way to Judge Samuel Murray’s courtroom, Fulmer spotted Northampton County Detective Gerald Walsh standing in the courtroom, accompanied by another fellow clad in jeans and a “Pro God Pro Gun Protected” T-shirt.

Fulmer began asking questions and soon determined they were there to arrest his client just as soon as he walked out of the courtroom. Urrutia-Cordon is an undocumented immigrant. Later that morning, that’s exactly what happened. Over the loud objections of Fulmer, and despite the absence of an arrest warrant, his client was handcuffed and whisked away for deportation proceedings.

The fellow in the “Pro God Pro Gun Protected” T-shirt was actually an ICE agent.

After being charged with drunk driving, Urrutia-Cordon applied for ARD. That’s a special program for first offenders in which charges are dismissed after a period of probation. The ARD application contained no questions asking about citizenship. Urrutia-Cordon went through ARD screening, and was cleared to appear in ARD court in April 2018. He was identified as a “no problem” drinker. He paid his ARD costs, a hefty $2,255.75, and was ready to be part of a cattle call in which a large number of drunk driving defendants are simultaneously placed on probation.

In the meantime, he had to be arraigned as well. That’s a formality in which you are officially informed that you’ve been charged with a crime. That’s usually a cattle call too, involving a large number of defendants.

On that fateful day, while Urrutia-Cordon was waiting for his arraignment, Assistant District Attorney Sandra McClure decided to pull his file. After looking through it, she approached him and asked him if he is a U.S. citizen. When he answered that he is not yet a U.S. citizen, she told him his application for ARD would be denied. And sure enough, just a few days later, he received a letter from then-DA John Morganelli denying ARD.

Though Urrutia-Cordon is an undocumented immigrant, he has filed an application seeking lawful status. His application has been approved by the Department of Homeland Security, and after an interview and fingerprinting, he will be issued his “green card.” After being a legal permanent resident for two years, he can apply for citizenship.

In addition to making an effort to become legal, he has been gainfully employed and has paid income taxes over the past 10 years. He is married to a U.S. citizen and also has a valid driver’s license.

So attorney Fulmer asked Morganelli to reconsider his denial on multiple occasions. He included all kinds of recommendations. Morganelli refused.

At this point, Fulmer filed a motion asking the court to compel Urrutia-Cordon’s admission into the ARD program on the basis that Morganelli’s denial was an abuse of discretion. That’s pretty much a vain exercise, and Judge Samuel P Murray denied Fulmer’s application in December.

In the meantime, this case had stretched on for several years, and everyone was eager to resolve it. On Feb. 28, DA Terry Houck offered a deal you can’t refuse – Urrutia-Cordon would plead guilty to general impairment and would have no jail time and no license suspension. If he went to trial and was convicted, he would spend two days in jail, and Fulmer was warned the jail would notify ICE. This plea to general impairment had the added benefit of presenting no problem with Urrutia-Cordon’s application for lawful status.

This plea deal fell apart with the arrival of an ICE agent.

According to a report by Temple University Law School’s Sheller Center for Social Justice, 13 Pennsylvania counties are coordinating arrests at the courthouse with ICE. They are using the criminal justice system for civil immigration enforcement. Here’s what’s happening: “(1) ICE is effecting arrests in and around courthouses; (2) courthouse personnel are collaborating with ICE by asking about immigration status, providing information, or assisting with ICE arrests; and (3) immigrants fear going to court because of these ICE enforcement activities.”

This report adds that courthouse arrests effectively deny access to the courts to a segment of the population that needs it most.

“Police officers surveyed reported that crimes are becoming more difficult to investigate. Among police officer respondents, 69 percent said domestic violence was harder to investigate in 2017 compared to 2016 (with similar percentages for investigations of human trafficking (64 percent) and sexual assault (59 percent). Judges too reported an increase in disruption of court cases due to immigrant victims being afraid to come to court. Legal services and victim advocates reported that their offices had filed 40 percent fewer cases for immigrants in 2017 than in 2016.”

Nationwide, 70 former judges have asked ICE to stop courthouse arrests. “Judges simply cannot do their jobs – and our justice system cannot function effectively – if victims, defendants, witnesses and family members do not feel secure in accessing the courthouse,” they wrote.

ICE may have violated its own directives by arresting Urrutia-Cordon at the courthouse. In 2018, a directive warned agents against arrests at courthouses unless dealing with a gang member, public safety threats or aliens who have already been ordered out. This was the opposite – a first-time offender who was already approved.

This arrest certainly is contrary to common law principles established in the 15th century, barring the arrest of litigants or witnesses who are in court or on their way to or from a courthouse. The Supreme Court has honored this tradition; “Courts of justice ought everywhere to be open, accessible, free from interruption, and to cast a perfect protection around every man who necessarily approaches them.”

The two words inscribed on Northampton County’s seal are “justice” and “mercy.” Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure noted this when he issued an executive order the next day, banning ICE arrests at the courthouse, unless a detainer or warrant is first presented. McClure said he would adhere to federal law while “providing the basic protections of due process that all human beings are owed in the United States.”

In other words, mercy and justice