A Wisconsin judge has been arrested by federal agents and charged with obstruction for allegedly attempting to assist an undocumented immigrant in evading arrest. The arrest of Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan was announced by FBI Director Kash Patel, who accused her of “intentionally misdirecting” immigration agents as they pursued a Mexican man last week.
Patel expressed gratitude that agents were able to apprehend the suspect, stating, “Thankfully our agents chased down the perp on foot and he’s been in custody since, but the Judge’s obstruction created increased danger to the public” on X.
Details of the charges and courtroom incident
During a preliminary court hearing on Friday, Dugan’s attorney asserted that she “wholeheartedly regrets and protests her arrest. It was not made in the interest of public safety.” Dugan faces charges of obstruction and concealing an individual to avoid arrest, which could result in a maximum sentence of six years in prison if she is convicted on both counts. Following her arrest, she was released on her own recognizance, with a hearing scheduled for May 15.
The charges relate to incidents that transpired in Dugan’s courtroom on April 17, when an immigration judge issued a warrant for the arrest of Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, a Mexican national facing misdemeanor battery charges from a domestic dispute. The day following the warrant issuance, Flores-Ruiz appeared in court for a scheduled hearing, prompting the attendance of six officers from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the FBI, and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) at the courthouse to carry out the arrest.
The agents identified themselves to court officials and awaited outside Dugan’s courtroom. However, as detailed in the FBI affidavit, Dugan became “visibly angry” upon learning of their presence, describing the situation as “absurd” before departing the bench and retreating to her chambers.
Allegations of improper conduct in the courtroom
According to the affidavit, Dugan engaged in a dispute with the agents in the hallway regarding the nature of the arrest warrant, subsequently instructing them to report to the office of the county’s chief judge. While several agents were in that office, the judge allegedly guided Flores-Ruiz and his attorney to a side door meant for jurors, facilitating his exit from the courtroom.
Although two agents remained near the courtroom and observed Flores-Ruiz attempting to escape, he managed to flee the courthouse but was apprehended shortly thereafter following a brief foot chase. Dugan’s arrest occurred just a day after another judge in New Mexico was taken into custody for allegedly harboring an individual linked to a Venezuelan gang.
Attorney General Pam Bondi commented on the situation, stating, “I think some of these judges think they are beyond and above the law, and they are not. And if you are destroying evidence, if you are obstructing justice, when you have victims sitting in a courtroom of domestic violence, and you’re escorting a criminal defendant out a back door, it will not be tolerated.”
Dugan, who was first elected as a judge in 2016 and re-elected to a second six-year term in 2022, received endorsements from Milwaukee’s Democratic mayor despite Wisconsin’s non-partisan judicial elections. The obstruction charge carries a potential five-year prison sentence and a fine of $250,000, while the concealment charge could result in up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
This incident is reminiscent of a 2019 case in Massachusetts, where Judge Shelley M. Richmond Joseph was arrested after allowing an undocumented immigrant defendant to retrieve property from a courthouse lockup, enabling the individual to leave the courtroom. Although initially charged with obstruction, those charges were later dropped in 2022, though she continues to face an ethics complaint related to the event.