FBI arrests Milwaukee judge accused of aiding escape from ICE

MILWAUKEE (CN) — The FBI arrested Milwaukee Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan on Friday after she apparently helped a man evade ICE agents attempting to arrest him outside of her courtroom, escalating the constitutional showdown between President Donald Trump and the judiciary.

“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 said in a tweet that was deleted and reposted later.

Dugan was arrested around 8:30 a.m. on Friday on courthouse grounds by FBI agents, according to Brady McCarron, a spokesperson from the U.S. Marshals Service. She is charged with concealing an individual set for deportation and obstruction, both felonies.

Flores-Ruiz was arrested last Friday outside of the courthouse after a foot chase that lasted about 20 minutes and spanned the entire length of the courthouse, according to an affidavitfrom FBI agent Lindsay Schloemer in support of Dugan’s arrest.

His was at least the third arrest by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in the Milwaukee County Courthouse in recent months. Schloemer’s affidavit confirms that the agents had an immigration warrant, not a judicial warrant, to support the detention.

Schloemer asserts that Flores-Ruiz was deported in January 2013 to Mexico through a port of entry in Nogales, Arizona. There is no evidence that he obtained permission to return to the United States, the government claims. Fingerprinting from his arrest in Milwaukee County confirmed his identity.

He appeared in Dugan’s courtroom on April 18 for a pre-trial conference related to multiple counts of battery and domestic abuse, according to court records. Schloemer says his case was never called that morning, but that he was sitting in the gallery when ICE agents arrived.

The agent’s affidavit goes on to detail Dugan’s apparent participation in Flores-Ruiz’s attempted escape. Schloemer claims the courtroom deputy alerted Dugan that there were ICE agents outside the courtroom, after which she became “visibly angry” and commented that the situation was “absurd” before leaving the bench to confront the agents in the hallway.

Dugan then ordered the agents to speak to Chief Judge Carl Ashley, and apparently used the opportunity to escort Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out of the courtroom through the side “jury door” and down a private staircase, where they attempted to leave the building unnoticed.

Schloemer asserts that several witnesses saw Dugan aggressively usher them out the private door. Flores-Ruiz was at the courthouse to attend a pre-trial conference related to battery and domestic violence charges, according to court records.

Ashley said in a statement on Friday that his office will not comment on Dugan’s arrest, and that another judge will cover her calendar as needed.

Dugan, 65, appeared in federal court on Friday morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen Dries, where she was released pending arraignment in May. She faces felony charges of obstruction and concealing an individual.

Local leaders have expressed concern over access to the courts system if ICE is allowed to continue making arrests in public service buildings. The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution on Thursday calling on the chief judge and the county executive to “safeguard the constitutional rights” of those entering the courthouse.

“Community members feeling safe to utilize the courthouse as intended is our top priority, whether that’s attending a hearing, seeking resources or supporting a loved one,” said County Supervisor Caroline Gómez-Tom in a statement. “This resolution reinforces our shared values of due process, dignity and the idea that everyone deserves their day in court without fear or intimidation.

Sarah Turberville, a constitutional expert with the Project on Government Oversight, says that the arrest is not about getting a conviction — it’s about intimidating judges into falling in line with the administration’s “draconian” immigration policy.

She suggested that this is part of the retribution that Trump promised would come for his perceived enemies at the start of his second term, and part of a larger strategy to slow-walk court orders, flatten government agencies and take over Congress’ constitutional powers.

“This is the authoritarian playbook,” Turberville told Courthouse News on Friday. “To go after the elements of government that operate independently of the leader and there’s perhaps no part of our government that has sought to be more independent than the courts.”

This major escalation is a chilling step toward autocracy, Turberville says, and Congress holds a lot of the blame for the direction of the regime.

Many of the actions that the president has taken that have been unpopular — like shuttering whole government agencies, imposing widespread punitive tariffs and unchecked immigration policies — could be stopped if Congress utilized its constitutional powers.

“The administration is making clear that no one is safe, that any person who seeks to undermine or question the administration’s project will be punished," Turberville said. “And people should be very angry at their elected members of Congress for watching it happen.”

Traditionally, a president must seek congressional approval before taking many of the sweeping actions the Trump administration has unilaterally taken. Turberville said there are many courses Congress could take to reign things in, such as launching investigations, withholding funding or reinstating the oversight agencies that have been eliminated in recent months.

In this case, the undocumented immigrant who was detained was on trial for domestic violence. Turberville says that ICE’s presence in the courthouse could have a chilling effect on future victims of violence who may be afraid of being arrested themselves when going to testify.

Turberville couldn’t predict whether the charges against Dugan will stick. The judge will be arraigned at the Milwaukee Federal Courthouse on May 15.

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