The judge in Wisconsin arrested last month and was accused of avoiding an immigrant without helping papers to avoid federal agents, was sued on Tuesday by a federal large jury on accusation of hiding a person against arrest and hindrance procedure.
The judge of the judge, Hannah C. Dugan of the Circuit Court of Milwaukee County, was a routine but an important step in the case of the Ministry of Justice against her. The Trump government has defended the persecution as a warning that no one is above the law, while many Democrats, lawyers and former judges have denounced it as an attack on the judiciary.
Judge Dugan, who was temporarily removed from the bank by the Wisconsin Supreme Consin, while the case against her claims through a lawyer has indicated that she intends to combat the charges. She is expected to appear in court on Thursday.
“Judge Hannah C. Dugan has dedicated himself to the rule of law and the principles of the decent trial for her entire career as a lawyer and judge,” said her lawyers in a statement shortly after she was arrested. They added that she “will defend herself vigorously and look forward to being free.”
The transformation of the judge from a little-known local lawyer to a face of the national immigration debate started on April 18 with a pretrial hearing in a domestic violence against Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, a Mexican immigrant.
Various federal officials from different agencies had gathered in the corridor outside the courtroom of Judge Dugan and planned to arrest Mr Flores-Ruiz, who, according to them, was illegally in the country, after his appearance. The federal agents had told the security officers of the courthouse and the court of the judge about their plans, according to a FBI -Charging document.
When Judge Dugan became aware of the federal agents, the loading document said, she became “visibly upset and had a confrontational, angry attitude.” According to the criminal complaint, the judge confronted the agents and said they had to talk to the main judge of the courthouse. She then returned to her courtroom and, according to the loading document Mr. Flores-Ruiz, led through a different exit than the public door that led to the corridor where agents waited.
“Despite the fact that he was informed of the administrative order for the arrest of Flores-Ruiz, Judge Dugan then supervised Flores-Ruiz and his lawyer from the courtroom through the ‘jury door’, which leads to a non-public area of the courthouse,” according to the complaint written by an FBI agent.
Mr. Flores-Ruiz made it outside the courthouse, said the loading document, where a drug enforcement administration agent saw him. Agents approached him on the street outside the courthouse. “A foot hunt followed,” said the complaint. “The agents chased Flores-Ruiz for the entire length of the courthouse” Before they catch and arrest it, the complaint said. Federal agents said Mr Flores-Ruiz was removed from the United States in 2013 and that there was no report from him who asked or received permission to return.
Judge Dugan was arrested and accused of obstructing proceedings of a federal agency and hiding a person to prevent his discovery and arrest.
The arrest of the judge marked an escalation of the Trump government warnings that local officials should not hinder federal efforts to deport millions of immigrants without papers. Attorney General Pam Bondi and other board officials have defended the case against Judge Dugan.
“It doesn’t matter which work you are, if you break the law, we will follow the facts and we will prosecute you,” said Mrs. Bondi in a video.
Elected Democrats in Wisconsin and beyond criticized the case against the court and accused officers of the situation of politicizing the situation. And earlier this month, more than 150 former state and federal judges signed one letter To Mrs Bondi who calls the arrest of judge Dugan an attempt to intimidate the judiciary.
“This cynical effort undermines the rule of law,” said that letter, “and destroys the confidence that the American people have in the judges of the nation to manage justice in the courts and in the halls of justice throughout the country.”
Julie Bosman contributed reporting.
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