By TODD RICHMOND, Associated Press
MILWAUKEE (AP) — A Wisconsin judge pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges alleging that she assisted a man who is illegally in the country to evade U.S. immigration authorities seeking to arrest him in her courthouse.
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan entered the plea during a brief arraignment in federal court. Magistrate Judge Stephen Dries set a July trial date. Dugan’s lead attorney, Steven Biskupic, informed the judge that he anticipates the trial to last a week.
Dugan, along with her legal team and prosecutors, left the hearing without speaking to the press.
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Supporters of Judge Hannah Dugan protest outside the United States Federal Building and Courthouse in Milwaukee, Wis. on Thursday, April 15, 2025 ahead of Dugan’s arraignment on charges that she helped a man in the country illegally evade arrest by immigration authorities. (AP Photo/Todd Richmond)
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Supporters of Judge Hannah Dugan protest outside the United States Federal Building and Courthouse in Milwaukee, Wis. on Thursday, April 15, 2025 ahead of Dugan’s arraignment on charges that she helped a man in the country illegally evade arrest by immigration authorities. (AP Photo/Todd Richmond)
The accusations against Dugan
She is charged with concealing an individual to prevent arrest and obstruction. Prosecutors say she escorted Eduardo Flores-Ruiz and his lawyer out of her courtroom through a back door on April 18 after learning that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were in the courthouse seeking to arrest him for being in the country illegally. She could face up to six years in prison if convicted on both counts.
Her attorneys say she’s innocent. They filed a motion on Wednesday to dismiss the case, stating that she was acting in her official capacity as a judge and therefore is immune to prosecution. They also argue that the federal government violated Wisconsin’s sovereignty by disrupting a state courtroom and prosecuting a state judge.
A public backlash
Dugan’s arrest has sparked tensions between the Trump administration and Democrats over the president’s extensive immigration crackdown.
Before Thursday’s hearing, dozens of demonstrators congregated outside the courthouse, some holding signs with messages like “Only Fascists Arrest Judges — Drop the Charges,” “Department of Justice Over-Reach,” and “Keep Your Hands Off Our Judges!!” The crowd chanted phrases like “Due process rights,” “Hands off our freedom,” and “Si se puede” — Spanish for “Yes, we can” — a rallying cry for immigrant rights advocates.
One individual stood alone across the street waving a Trump flag.
Nancy Camden, from Mequon north of Milwaukee, was among the protesters advocating for the case to be dismissed. She expressed her belief that ICE should not have attempted to arrest Flores-Ruiz inside the courthouse and criticized the Department of Justice for “overreaching” in charging Dugan.
“How they handled this and made a big show of arresting her and putting her in handcuffs, all of that was intimidation,” Camden said. “And I’m not going to be intimidated. I’m fighting back.”
Esther Cabrera, an organizer with the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, characterized the charges against Dugan as “state-funded repression.”
“If we are going to go after judges, if we’re going to go after mayors, we have to understand that they can come after anybody,” she stated. “And that’s kind of why we wanted to make a presence out here today, to say that you can’t come after everyone and it stops here.”
The case background
According to court documents, Flores-Ruiz reentered the U.S. illegally after being deported in 2013. He faced three misdemeanor domestic abuse charges in Milwaukee County in March, and he was in Dugan’s courtroom on April 18 for a hearing in that case.
An FBI affidavit revealed that Dugan was alerted to the agents’ presence by her clerk, who was informed by an attorney that the agents were in the hallway. The affidavit alleges that Dugan was visibly angry and described the situation as “absurd” before leaving the bench and retreating to her chambers. She and another judge later approached members of the arrest team in the courthouse with what witnesses described as a “confrontational, angry demeanor.”
Following a discussion with the agents regarding the warrant for Flores-Ruiz, Dugan insisted they speak with the chief judge and led them from the courtroom, as per the affidavit.
Upon returning to the courtroom, witnesses claimed to have heard her say something like “wait, come with me” before guiding Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out through a door typically used only by deputies, jurors, court staff, and in-custody defendants. Flores-Ruiz was on a signature bond in the abuse case, according to online state court records. Federal agents eventually detained him outside the courthouse after a foot chase.
The state Supreme Court suspended Dugan last week, citing the need to preserve public confidence in the judiciary. She was released after her arrest.
How the case might unfold
John Vaudreuil, a former federal prosecutor in Wisconsin not involved in Dugan’s or Flores-Ruiz’s cases, suggested that the Trump administration appears intent on making an example out of Dugan. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi or Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, rather than the U.S. attorney in Milwaukee, are likely making the decisions on how to proceed, making it less probable that prosecutors will reduce the charges against Dugan in a deal, he noted.
Her legal team is expected to push for a jury trial, Vaudreuil anticipated, as they are aware that “people feel very strongly about the way the president and administration is conducting immigration policy.”
Dugan is represented by some of Wisconsin’s most accomplished lawyers. Biskupic served as a federal prosecutor for 20 years and was U.S. attorney in Milwaukee for seven years. Paul Clement, on the other hand, is a former U.S. solicitor general with over 100 cases argued in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. Both were appointed to positions by former Republican President George W. Bush.
Associated Press reporters Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, and Laura Bargfeld contributed to this report.
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