Yesterday, Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge was officially indicted by a grand jury for aiding and abetting an illegal alien in evading ICE arrest. Dugan was arrested on April 25 after she not only altered court records to shield Eduardo Flores Ruiz, but escorted Ruiz out of her courtroom and into private areas of the court so he could escape arrest.
Flores Ruiz was before Dugan's court on charges of domestic battery, and his two victims were in the courtroom. So much for their right to justice.
Here's the indictment:
Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan’s indictment is something to behold
— Phil Holloway ✈️ (@PhilHollowayEsq) May 14, 2025
She’s accused of handling the illegal immigrant’s case “off the record” while making federal agents wait in another judge’s office
Then she allows the next court appearance by Zoom, to thwart @ICEgov pic.twitter.com/5IG6WTnREv
I would think 'don't falsify court records' is something they teach on day one of law school, but apparently Dugan skipped that class.
In an unsurprising move, Hannah Dugan's attorney filed a motion to dismiss on the grounds of judicial immunity.
Disgraced Judge Hannah Dugan filed a motion to dismiss today, on grounds of Judicial immunity
— @Chicago1Ray 🇺🇸 (@Chicago1Ray) May 14, 2025
Jonathan Turley~
I can't see any basis to do that, which means her motion to dismiss will be denied
Judge Dugan faces (6) years in prison, who else besides me hopes she gets the max pic.twitter.com/uBxyfrjYLx
For what it's worth, it sounds like my 12-year-old son could've written a more professional motion to dismiss.
Just read Judge Hannah Dugan's motion to dismiss and am now amazed her attorney, Stephen Biskupic, ever managed to pass a law school class let alone become a U.S. Attorney. Listen at 3:06 for my takedown of one of the most amateurish arguments you will ever read.
— Dan O'Donnell (@DanODonnellShow) May 14, 2025
It's extremely clear Dugan broke the law. The Wisconsin Supreme Court suspended her, and there are sworn statements from several witnesses that Dugan made a point of helping an illegal alien evade ICE arrest. After that illegal alien committed more crimes against an innocent man and woman.
Even CNN's legal analyst said the feds have Dugan dead to rights:
CNN's Elie Honig on the charges against the Wisconsin judge for helping an illegal immigrant evade arrest: "Let's strip the politics out of it — this is a crime. If they can prove what happened here, it is a crime ... That is textbook obstruction." pic.twitter.com/6XiuLpE8T4
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 25, 2025
And Pam Bondi explained how blatant and egregious Dugan's criminality is:
This guy was in court being prosecuted by a state prosecutor for domestic violence battery. He had beat up two people, a guy and a girl, beat the guy, hit the guy 30 times, knocked him to the ground, choked him, beat up a woman so badly, they both had to go to the hospital.”
The victims “were sitting in the courtroom with the state prosecutor, the judge learns that ICE was outside to get the guy because he had been deported in 2013, came back in our country, commits these crimes and is charged with committing these crimes. Victims are in court, the judge finds out” ICE is there to arrest him, “she goes out in the hallway, screams at the immigration officers, she's furious, visibly shaken upset, sends them off to talk to the chief judge. She comes back in the courtroom, takes the defendant and the defense attorney back in her chambers, takes them out the private exit and tells them to leave, while a state prosecutor and victims of domestic violence are sitting in the court room.”
For all of this, Dugan claims she was within her rights as a judge. She was not.
Here's what her motion to dismiss argues:
Dugan's arguments are that she has absolute and complete judicial immunity for "actions allegedly taken in & in the immediate vicinity of her courtroom." In this space, judges are "empowered to maintain control over their courtrooms specifically & the courthouse generally" /3 pic.twitter.com/2VGRp66uK4
— Dan Lennington (@DanLennington) May 14, 2025
Except that the court was not in session. She 'handled' Flores Ruiz's case 'off the record' and left her courtroom to yell at ICE agents and escort Flores Ruiz out of the private exit. She has no right to 'maintain control' over the entire Milwaukee courthouse.
On the "federalism" argument, Dugan claims that Congress has no power to regulate "official duties" of state judges. We know that's not 100% true - see below. /4 pic.twitter.com/XNxLFhAJ5o
— Dan Lennington (@DanLennington) May 14, 2025
She committed federal crimes by obstructing federal agents. It is Dugan who interfered with the federal government, not the other way around.
Her motion cited Mireles v. Waco, wherein SCOTUS upheld that while judges have absolute immunity against lawsuits, that immunity does not apply to criminal acts.
Judges do not get immunity for their criminal acts. Dugan knows this, and her attorney should. By this logic, Dugan could have shot an ICE agent in her courtroom and pleaded judicial immunity. Such a claim would be dismissed for the absurdity that it is, because Dugan would have committed a crime.
I do question the supposed 'random' assignment of Lynn Adelman, one of the most progressive federal judges on the bench, especially because he's 85 years old and is -- as I said -- a progressive. Many on the Right are certain Adelman will dismiss the charges against Dugan outright.
He might.
But I don't think he will, unless he wants the Trump administration to a) immediately appeal the ruling and b) nuke the federal judiciary.
The federal judiciary is already walking on thin ice after multiple judges in different circuits think they, not the President, were elected to run this country. The Trump administration has been exceedingly patient with this usurpation of the power of the Executive and Legislative branches.
That patience will not extend to Judge Adelman and Dugan.
Because Hanna Dugan broke the law. And neither she nor Judge Adelman is above it.
And I doubt they'd want to see the federal judiciary destroyed while Dugan is charged again with these crimes on appeal.
