MILWAUKEE — The FBI arrested a Milwaukee judge Friday over the obstruction of an immigration arrest operation last week.
In a post, FBI Director Kash Patel had said Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan was charged with obstruction after the FBI received evidence. The U.S. Marshals Service office confirmed the arrest to Spectrum News 1, saying Dugan was arrested by the FBI at around 8:30 a.m. Friday on courthouse grounds.
“We believe Judge Dugan intentionally misdirected federal agents away from the subject to be arrested in her courthouse, Eduardo Flores Ruiz, allowing the subject — an illegal alien — to evade arrest,” Patel had said on X.
Dugan appeared briefly in federal court Friday in Milwaukee before being released from custody. Her next court appearance is May 15.
“Judge Dugan wholeheartedly regrets and protests her arrest. It was not made in the interest of public safety," her attorney, Craig Mastantuono, said during the hearing. He declined to comment to an Associated Press reporter following her court appearance.
What You Need To Know
- Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan has been arrested by the FBI over the obstruction of an immigration arrest operation last week
- Dugan appeared briefly in federal court Friday in Milwaukee before being released from custody. Her next court appearance is May 15
- Eduardo Flores-Ruiz was scheduled for an April 18 hearing with Dugan in a criminal case when he was arrested
- The arrest marks an escalation in the Trump administration’s fight with the judiciary over the White House's sweeping immigration enforcement policies
Dugan is charged with “concealing an individual to prevent his discovery and arrest” and obstructing or impeding a proceeding. She's accused of escorting Flores-Ruiz and his lawyer out of the courtroom.
Flores-Ruiz was scheduled to attend a hearing with Dugan on April 18 in a criminal case, in which he was being charged with three counts of Battery-Domestic Abuse-Inflication of Physical Pain or Injury, according to a criminal complaint.
Prior to that court date, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents identified Flores-Ruiz as someone who was not legally in the U.S. and on April 17, "found probable cause to believe Flores-Ruiz was removable from the United States" and an arrest warrant was issued. The criminal complaint said ICE agents made a plan to arrest Flores-Ruiz outside of Courtroom 615 at the Milwaukee County Courthouse on the day of his hearing with Dugan. They arrived around 8 a.m. A Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office sergeant asked agents to wait until the completion of the hearing for any arrest.
The criminal complaint said when Dugan learned of the ICE's presence, she "became visibly angry" and confronted members of the arrest team, directing them to the chief judge's office. After doing so, the criminal complaint says Dugan escorted Flores-Ruiz through a "jury door" to avoid his arrest. Flores-Ruiz then left the courthouse.
The action was unusual, the affidavit says, because “only deputies, juries, court staff, and in-custody defendants being escorted by deputies used the back jury door. Defense attorneys and defendants who were not in custody never used the jury door.”
A sign that remained posted on Dugan’s courtroom door Friday advised that if any attorney or other court official “knows or believes that a person feels unsafe coming to the courthouse to courtroom 615,” they should notify the clerk and request an appearance via Zoom.
After learning of his location, immigration agents chased him down and arrested him at around 9:05 a.m. Patel said the obstruction by Dugan created “increased danger to the public.”
The U.S. Department of Justice released a statement on the case; it can be read in full, here.
“The allegations against Judge Dugan ... are serious: no one, least of all a judge, should obstruct law enforcement operations," Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in-part, in the statement. "Doing so imperils the safety of our law enforcement officers and undermines the rule of law. The Department of Justice will continue to follow the facts..."
A person answering the phone Friday at Dugan’s office said he could not comment.
The law firm representing Dugan released the following statement on her behalf:
"Judge Hannah C. Dugan has committed herself to the rule of law and the principles of due process for her entire career as a lawyer and a judge. She has retained former United States Attorney Steven Biskupic to represent her. Judge Dugan will defend herself vigorously, and looks forward to being exonerated," Mastantuono Coffee & Thomas said. The firm said it will no release additional comments or interviews at this time.
The Associated Press left an email and voicemail Friday morning seeking comment from Milwaukee County Courts Chief Judge Carl Ashley.
Ashley issued the following statement:
"I have received a number of media inquiries seeking comment on the arrest of Judge Hannah Dugan. The judicial code of conduct restricts judges from commenting on pending or impending matters in any court. Judge Dugan’s court calendar will be covered by another judge as needed.”
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers weighed in on the arrest Friday afternoon, saying those who are suspected of criminal wrongdoing are "innocent until their guilt is proven beyond reasonable doubt and they are found guilty by a jury of their peers."
"Unfortunately, we have seen in recent months the president and the Trump Administration repeatedly use dangerous rhetoric to attack and attempt to undermine our judiciary at every level, including flat-out disobeying the highest court in the land and threatening to impeach and remove judges who do not rule in their favor," he continued.
U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat who represents Wisconsin, called the arrest of a sitting judge a “gravely serious and drastic move” that “threatens to breach” the separation of power between the executive and judicial branches.
“Make no mistake, we do not have kings in this country and we are a Democracy governed by laws that everyone must abide by," Baldwin said“Make no mistake, we do not have kings in this country and we are a Democracy governed by laws that everyone must abide by," Baldwin said in an emailed statement. "By relentlessly attacking the judicial system, flouting court orders, and arresting a sitting judge, this President is putting those basic Democratic values that Wisconsinites hold dear on the line."
Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson in a press conference on Friday said he wouldn’t comment on what the judge did or didn’t do, but called the arrest “overly dramatic.”
“…I really do wish the Trump administration would focus less on settling scores with perceived potential enemies and focus their attention more on things like really matter… like fixing the economy that is in free-fall, or making some progress on settling our conflicts that are happening around the world, or remedying the mistakes that they have made as they’ve slashed through important federal programs…,” said Johnson.
Other Democrats joined in on expressing their frustration.
"We continue to stand with Judge Dugan against yet another authoritarian attempt to silence dissent, punish dissenters, and intimidate everyone else from ever joining them. Obstructing fascism is our duty, not a crime," said Rep. Ryan Clancy, D-Milwaukee, in a statement on X.
"This Administration's willingness to weaponize federal law enforcement is shocking and this arrest has all the hallmarks of overreach," said Democratic Rep. Gwen Moore on X.
Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley also issued a statement.
“Like all United States citizens, Judge Hannah Dugan is entitled to her constitutional right to due process. However, it is clear that the FBI is politicizing this situation to make an example of her and others across the country who oppose their attack on the judicial system and our nation’s immigration laws," he said in part.
Others applauded the arrest.
"We strongly condemn the actions of Judge Dugan and applaud the FBI for pursuing the arrest. These charges are serious, deeply troubling, and strike at the core of public trust. We will continue to monitor the legal process, but Assembly Republicans stand prepared to act decisively if these serious allegations are confirmed. Accountability is not optional-it is essential to the integrity of public service," said Assembly Majority Leader Tyler August, who is a Republican.
"It is shameful, though sadly no longer shocking, that a liberal judge would go so far as to obstruct federal law enforcement in order to protect a violent illegal immigrant from arrest,” said Republian Congressman Glenn Grothman.
The arrest has created uproar among local activist groups, including the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racial and Political Repression, who called the arrest a "heinous attack." Protests by various groups are planned in the city on Friday afternoon and on Saturday.
The case is similar to one brought during the first Trump administration against a Massachusetts judge, who was accused of helping a man sneak out a back door of a courthouse to evade a waiting immigration enforcement agent.
That prosecution sparked outrage from many in the legal community, who slammed the case as politically motivated. Prosecutors dropped the case against Newton District Judge Shelley Joseph in 2022 under the Biden administration after she agreed to refer herself to a state agency that investigates allegations of misconduct by members of the bench.
The arrest marks an escalation in the Trump administration’s fight with the judiciary over the White House's sweeping immigration enforcement policies. The Justice Department had previously signaled that it was going to crack down on local officials thwarting federal immigration efforts.
"No one is above the law," Bondi said on X in response to the arrest.
In response to Bondi's post, Rep. Tom Tiffany thanked the FBI, saying," If you help illegal aliens evade arrest, you will be arrested."
The Justice Department in January ordered prosecutors to investigate for potential criminal charges against state and local officials who obstruct or impede federal functions. As potential avenues for prosecution, a memo cited a conspiracy offense as well as a law prohibiting the harboring of people in the country illegally.
Dugan was elected in 2016 to the county court Branch 31. She also has served in the court’s probate and civil divisions, according to her judicial candidate biography.
Before being elected to public office, Dugan practiced at Legal Action of Wisconsin and the Legal Aid Society. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1981 with a bachelor of arts degree and earned her Juris Doctorate in 1987 from the school.
Read the full criminal complaint below:
This story is developing. Check back for updates.
