Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested by federal authorities Friday morning, following allegations that she attempted to help an undocumented immigrant avoid arrest in her courtroom.
According to Brady McCarron, spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals Service in Washington, D.C., Dugan was taken into custody at approximately 8 a.m. at the Milwaukee County Courthouse. She is currently being held in federal custody.
The arrest comes amid a federal investigation into whether Dugan interfered with an immigration enforcement action last week involving Eduardo Flores Ruiz, a Mexican national who was in her courtroom on April 18 for a pre-trial conference related to three misdemeanor battery charges, reports Axios.
In a now-deleted post on X (formerly Twitter), FBI Director Kash Patel wrote:
“Just NOW, the FBI arrested Judge Hannah Dugan out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin on charges of obstruction — after evidence of Judge Dugan obstructing an immigration arrest operation last week,” Patel said.
“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 also claimed in the post that Flores Ruiz is now in FBI custody.
Multiple Milwaukee County judges confirmed the arrest occurred at the courthouse, and Chief Judge Carl Ashley acknowledged the incident in an email circulated to courthouse officials.
When reached in her courtroom on April 24, Dugan declined to comment on the ongoing investigation. Although officials have not formally identified the individual she is accused of helping, it appears to be Flores Ruiz. According to the federal online detainee locator system, the 30-year-old is currently listed as being in ICE custody at Dodge Detention Facility in Juneau.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported this week that federal authorities were investigating whether Dugan intervened in the arrest operation. The outlet also cited sources who stated that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrived at the courthouse on the morning of April 18 with an arrest warrant for Flores Ruiz.
In an email to fellow judges, Chief Judge Ashley confirmed that ICE agents were present at the courthouse that day. According to sources quoted by the Journal Sentinel, when agents arrived at Dugan’s courtroom and subsequently went to the chief judge’s office, Dugan allegedly directed Flores Ruiz and his attorney through a side door, down a private hallway, and into a public area on the sixth floor — effectively allowing them to avoid the agents.
The FBI has not issued an official public statement beyond Patel’s deleted post. The investigation remains ongoing.
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Author: Sara Carter Staff
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