Politics

Judge Cites Trump Supreme Court Immunity Ruling in Bid to Dismiss ICE Case

By Dan Gooding and Gabe Whisnant

Citing the U.S. Supreme Court's 2023 ruling in President Donald Trump's election interference case, a Wisconsin judge accused of helping a man in the country illegally evade immigration agents is seeking to have her charges dismissed, arguing she is protected by judicial immunity.

In a motion filed Wednesday, attorneys for Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan argue that her conduct—directing movement around her courtroom—was an official judicial act shielded from prosecution.

The defense leans heavily on the Trump decision, which established that public officials are immune from prosecution for actions within their exclusive constitutional authority and are presumptively immune for all official acts.

"The problems with the prosecution are legion," the motion states, "but most immediately, the government cannot prosecute Judge Dugan because she is entitled to judicial immunity for her official acts."

Why It Matters
Dugan faces federal charges of obstruction and concealing an individual to prevent arrest, stemming from an April incident in which she allegedly helped a defendant leave her courtroom through a back door to avoid U.S. immigration authorities. The Trump administration argues she impeded federal agents.

Hannah Dugan
Judge Hannah Dugan poses for a photo in Milwaukee in 2016. Associated Press
What To Know
Dugan's attorneys assert that immunity is not a defense to be weighed at trial but a legal bar to prosecution from the outset.

Federal prosecutors charged Dugan in April with obstruction and concealing an individual to prevent arrest. A grand jury indicted her on the same charges on Tuesday. She faces up to six years in prison if convicted of both counts.

Her attorneys insist Dugan is innocent. She's expected to enter a not guilty plea at her arraignment Thursday.

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Lynn Adelman, a former Democratic state senator, is the judge overseeing her case. Former President Bill Clinton appointed him to the bench in 1997.

Newsweek reached out to a spokesperson for the U.S. attorney's office in Milwaukee via email for comment.

Dugan's arrest has escalated a clash between the Trump administration and Democrats over the Republican president's sweeping immigration crackdown. Democrats contend that Dugan's arrest went too far and that the administration is trying to make an example out of her to discourage judicial opposition to the crackdown.

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 courthouse back door to evade a waiting immigration enforcement agent. That case was eventually dismissed.

The man Dugan is accused of helping is Eduardo Flores-Ruiz. He illegally reentered the U.S. after being deported in 2013. He was charged in March with misdemeanor domestic violence in Milwaukee County and was in her courtroom for a hearing in that case on April 18.

Prosecutors allege in court documents that Dugan's clerk alerted her that immigration agents were in the courthouse looking to arrest Flores-Ruiz. According to an affidavit, Dugan became visibly angry at the agents' arrival and called the situation "absurd." After discussing the warrant for Flores-Ruiz's arrest with the agents, Dugan demanded that they speak with the chief judge and led them away from the courtroom.

She then returned to the courtroom, was heard saying something to the effect of "wait, come with me," and then showed Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out a back door, the affidavit says. The immigration agents detained Flores-Ruiz outside the building following a foot chase.

Following Dugan's arrest, the Wisconsin Supreme Court suspended her from the bench.

What People Are Saying
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan's motion read: "The government's prosecution here reaches directly into a state courthouse, disrupting active proceedings, and interferes with the official duties of an elected judge."

Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, on X, formerly Twitter: "There are no kings in America. Trump and Bondi can't just decide to arrest sitting judges at will and threaten judges into submission. This is a dangerous escalation, an attack on the separation of powers, and we will fight this with everything we have."

Republican Wisconsin Representative Scott Fitzgerald, on X: "Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan allegedly helped an illegal alien evade arrest by ICE. This is an egregious abuse of power by someone sworn to uphold the law. No one—especially a judge—should interfere with federal immigration enforcement."

What Happens Next
Dugan is expected to plead not guilty at her arraignment on Thursday.

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