The woman accused of driving through a downtown protest will continue to remain in custody after a Cook County judge Tuesday said she was a “danger” to the community.
Deirdre Kemp’s attorneys asked that the mother of two be released from custody while she fights her case, arguing her charges do not warrant detention and rejecting the suggestion that she poses any real threat.
“We don’t think this is what the intent of the Pretrial Fairness Act had in mind, to separate a 30-year-old mother from her two kids on a, at worst, Class 4 felony,” Assistant Public Defender Aaron Goldstein said after court on Tuesday. “There’s a possibility, if she were ever to be convicted, that she would get probation, not due a day in prison. … It’s quite perverse.”
Kemp faces multiple charges for driving through a protest of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies last month in the Loop. She turned herself in about two weeks later and was ordered to be detained pending trial.
Kemp was back in court Tuesday for a review of her detention order.
A legal observer with the National Lawyers Guild, who witnessed the incident, was called to testify Tuesday. The legal observer said they’d volunteered at over 50 protests this year, but that this one was distinctly “chaotic.” They said they witnessed officers yelling multiple different instructions at Kemp as she attempted to navigate the crowd.
Prosecutors argued that regardless, “No one else chose to do what this defendant did.”
Judge Robert Kuzas ultimately agreed with the prior judge’s ruling, finding Kemp “clearly is a danger” and should remain in custody.
“I don’t believe the police officers created chaos. I believe Ms. Kemp created chaos,” Kuzas said.
The protest of the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration raids drew thousands of people to the Loop on June 10.
Kemp was taking her children to the beach when she was stopped by the crowd near State and Monroe Streets, according to Goldstein.
An officer stood in front of her car and signaled for her to turn right, but Kemp disregarded officers’ commands, accelerated and made a left, driving into the protest, according to prosecutors.
Goldstein claims Kemp was given mixed directions from officers and was only trying to protect her children, as protestors began to surround her car, and her back window was shattered.
Kemp continued to drive through the crowd while officers chased after, yelling for her to stop, according to prosecutors.
An officer pursuing Kemp collided with a 66-year-old protester, who was hospitalized with a broken arm.
Kemp was charged with aggravated reckless driving causing bodily harm, aggravated fleeing causing bodily injury and driving on a suspended license. She also received citations for failure to obey a police officer and driving on a suspended license.
Her next court date is scheduled for July 14.
