FBI arrests Milwaukee judge for allegedly aiding immigrant escape
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Milwaukee Judge Hannah Dugan is now facing federal obstruction charges.
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A passenger van waits to exit the sally port at Bluebonnet Detention Center after transferring a detained person, Thursday, April 24, 2025, in Anson, Texas (AP)
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested by the FBI on charges of obstructing federal proceedings after allegedly helping an undocumented immigrant "evade arrest", federal authorities confirmed.
Dugan faces two federal charges: obstructing and impeding a proceeding before a US agency and concealing an individual to prevent discovery and arrest, according to a criminal complaint unsealed on Friday.
FBI Director Kash Patel announced the arrest in a social media post, briefly deleted and later reposted, stating, "The FBI arrested Judge Hannah Dugan in Milwaukee on obstruction charges after she allegedly misdirected federal agents, allowing Eduardo Flores Ruiz, an illegal alien, to evade arrest."
Incident details
The complaint alleges that on April 18, Judge Dugan escorted Flores Ruiz and his attorney out of a Milwaukee courtroom via a jury door after being informed by an ICE task force of an administrative warrant for his arrest.
Dugan was arrested Friday morning at the courthouse and appeared in US District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. She was released on her recognizance.
Read next: Thousands of federal agents reassigned to immigration: Reuters
Her attorney, Craig Mastantuono, stated in court, "Judge Dugan wholeheartedly protests the arrest and believes it was not made in the interests of public safety."
Flores Ruiz was apprehended shortly after fleeing the courthouse. "Thankfully, our agents chased down the perp on foot, but the Judge’s obstruction created increased danger to the public," Patel added.
Background on Flores Ruiz
ICE agents had planned to arrest Flores Ruiz, who entered the US illegally from Mexico and received an Expedited Removal order in 2013.
On April 18, he appeared before Judge Dugan for a pretrial conference related to three misdemeanor counts of battery and domestic abuse stemming from a March 12 incident.
According to court records, Flores Ruiz fled the courthouse upon learning about the arrest plan. He was later caught outside the building after a brief foot chase. If convicted, Judge Dugan faces up to six years in prison.
8 million migrants to be stuck in US 'legal limbo'
Earlier in March, internal US government projections obtained by Axios on March 3 indicate that the number of asylum seekers and migrants residing in the US in "legal limbo", i.e., people who are uncertain about their future pending a decision from the legal system, is set to surge to over 8 million by the end of September, marking a staggering 167% increase over the past five years.
This exponential growth, up from approximately 3 million in 2019, sheds light on the challenges faced by the underfunded and outdated US immigration system as it struggles to cope with the rapid influx of migrants to the southern border.
The constantly inflating backlog has left millions living in a state of uncertainty, unsure whether they will be permitted to remain in the US or face potential deportation, often enduring this state for extended periods.
Data reveals that the backlog skyrocketed during President Joe Biden's tenure as he is faced with an unprecedented surge of migrants globally, as millions were already present in the US during the Trump administration.
