WI Judge Hannah Dugan Convicted Of Helping Illegal Evade ICE Denied New Trial

WI Judge Hannah Dugan Convicted Of Helping Illegal Evade ICE Denied New Trial

Wisconsin state court Judge Hannah Dugan was charged with helping an illegal alien Eduardo Flores-Ruiz evade ICE by directing him out a back exit from her courtroom.

We have covered the case extensively since the beginning.

She was convicted by a jury in federal court and awaits sentencing. Dugan filed post-verdict motions, including for a judgment of acquittal or alternatively a new trial

In an Order today federal court judge Lynn Adelman (a Clinton nominee) denied the motions, The judge rejected various legal arguments most of which already had been ruled upon in pre-trial motions (such as Judge Dugan’s supposed immunity):

After surveying the caselaw, I concluded that there is no general rule of criminal immunity for judges, nor was there a basis for granting immunity simply because some of the allegations in the indictment described conduct that could be considered “part of a judge’s job.” (R. 48 at 21.)….

As I had noted in denying defendant’s motion to dismiss, there was no basis for granting immunity simply because some of the allegations in the indictment describe conduct that could be considered part of a judge’s job. (R. 72 at 13.)

The judge found the evidence sufficient to support the verdict:

Viewing “the totality of the evidence that the government presented in this case, it is sufficient to provide a rational basis upon which a jury could find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” United States v. Tinsley, 62 F.4th 376, 388 (7th Cir. 2023) (cleaned up). The government demonstrated that on April 18, 2025, agents arrived at the Milwaukee County Courthouse to arrest Flores-Ruiz pursuant to an administrative warrant (Tr. at 54, 245, 247-48, 12315, 355, 398, 533), a step in his pending removal proceeding (Tr. at 210-23, 414-18, 525-27).7 The government further demonstrated that defendant was made aware of ICE’s presence and the administrative warrant. (Tr. at 403, 450-51, 456; Ex. 42.) The government showed that defendant then engaged in a course of conduct that had the natural and probable effect of wrongfully obstructing the proceeding, including clearing the agents from the public hallway (Tr. at 105, 259, 322, 365, 368), stating that they needed a judicial warrant to make the arrest (Tr. at 457),8 rushing Flores-Ruiz’s case through while the agents were in the chief judge’s office (Tr. at 540; Ex. 42), and ushering him out the jury door into the restricted hallway with the apparent intention that he go “down the stairs” to the fifth floor, rather than out the “wrong door” into the public hallway where the agents were (Tr. at 118, 762-67).9 Finally, the government presented evidence that defendant acted wrongfully, including her statements that “I’ll do it. I’ll get the heat” (Tr. at 119, 765), and “I’m in the doghouse with Carl for trying to help that guy.(Tr. at 474-75).10

Of course, Dugan plans to appeal, according to her lawyers:

“We continue to maintain that Hannah Dugan acted lawfully and within her independent authority as a judge. The inconsistent jury verdicts demonstrate that the trial proceedings were flawed, and we plan to appeal.”

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