A federal jury has found Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan guilty of obstructing immigration agents during a courthouse incident earlier this year.
The verdict, delivered after six hours of deliberations, leaves Dugan facing up to five years in prison on the felony obstruction count. She was acquitted on a lesser misdemeanor charge of concealing an individual to prevent arrest.
Dugan was arrested in April after prosecutors said she helped Eduardo Flores‑Ruiz and his attorney slip out of her courtroom through a back door on April 18, avoiding plainclothes ICE agents waiting to serve him a warrant.
Her defense team quickly issued a statement, calling the outcome disappointing but insisting the acquittal on one charge showed “an opportunity to clear Judge Dugan’s name.” They vowed to appeal and urged continued public support for her defense fund.
Interim U.S. Attorney Brad Schimel reacted cautiously, saying Dugan “is certainly not evil nor a martyr for some greater cause,” but emphasized that the verdict must be accepted peacefully.
Schimel added prosecutors were not seeking to make an example of her, but believed accountability was necessary given her actions inside the courthouse.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche struck a sharper tone, declaring Dugan “betrayed her oath and the people she served.” He said the jury’s decision sent a clear message that “nobody is above the law, even those who wear robes.”
Under Wisconsin law, the guilty verdict makes Dugan ineligible to hold public office. She had already been suspended with pay in April, drawing a $175,000 annual salary, though her employment status now remains uncertain as appeals move forward.
The case has stirred debate in Milwaukee’s legal community, with some attorneys defending Dugan’s actions as compassion for a vulnerable immigrant, while others argue she undermined the rule of law.
Public reaction has been divided. Supporters rallied online, calling her a “protector of justice,” while critics accused her of abusing her position. “Judges must uphold the law, not bend it,” one commenter wrote.
For now, Dugan’s fate rests with the appeals process, but the verdict has already reshaped her career and sparked a wider conversation about the role of judges in immigration enforcement.
