A federal grand jury indicted a Wisconsin circuit court judge on Tuesday, who was arrested last month for allegedly shielding an illegal immigrant from federal agents.
Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested and charged with obstruction of an official proceeding on April 25, after evidence became known that she had shielded an illegal immigrant from federal agents, according to a criminal complaint. She was also charged with concealing an individual to prevent discovery and arrest.
Dugan was indicted by a federal grand jury after listening to testimony regarding charges that she allegedly tried to help an illegal alien escape arrest in her courtroom.
On Tuesday, a federal grand jury convened to consider the indictment, hearing testimony that included statements from Eduardo Flores-Ruiz’s attorney, who has since withdrawn from his case, and Dugan’s court clerk.
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Milwaukee Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan has been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly shielding an illegal immigrant from federal agents. (Lee Matz/ Milwaukee Independent via AP)
Also giving testimony was Milwaukee County Judge Kristela Cervera, a misdemeanor judge whose courtroom is next to Dugan’s. The panel was expected to decide whether to indict Dugan ahead of her previously scheduled preliminary court hearing.
Dugan’s attorneys told Fox News, “As she said after her unnecessary arrest, Judge Dugan asserts her innocence and looks forward to being vindicated in court.”
Dugan is expected back in federal court on May 15, to face federal charges of felony obstruction of a federal agency and concealing a person to help them avoid arrest, which is a misdemeanor. She is expected to enter a plea on the charges during the hearing.
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Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan, left, and an alleged notice on her courtroom door. (AP / Fox News)
The FBI arrested Dugan for allegedly hiding a previously deported illegal immigrant in her jury room to stop him from being arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
Federal agents from ICE, FBI, CBP and DEA attempted to arrest Flores-Ruiz after his scheduled criminal court appearance before Dugan on April 18, to face three misdemeanor battery charges for allegedly beating up two people.
Dugan demanded that the officers proceed to the chief judge’s office and, after his hearing ended, escorted Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out a restricted jury door, bypassing the public area where agents were waiting in order to help him avoid arrest, per the complaint.
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Her attorney, Craig Mastantuono, told the court last month, “Judge Dugan wholeheartedly regrets and protests her arrest. It was not made in the interest of public safety.”
Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem told Jesse Watters on Tuesday that she was “grateful” Dugan was indicted by a federal grand jury.
“She will be held accountable for that,” Noem said. “That was a great decision, coming forward, to recognize that nobody can facilitate breaking the law. We shouldn’t be able to allow that in this country, and we need to make sure that even judges are held accountable for their actions.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi previously blasted Dugan’s actions on Fox’s “America Reports.”
“We could not believe that a judge really did that,” Bondi said. “You cannot obstruct a criminal case. And really, shame on her. It was a domestic violence case of all cases, and she’s protecting a criminal defendant over victims of crime.”
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Bondi said Flores-Ruiz beat up two people, “a guy and a girl.”
“[He] beat the guy, hit the guy 30 times, knocked him to the ground, choked him, beat up a woman so badly; they both had to go to the hospital,” she said.
Fox News’ Patrick McGovern, Michael Dorgan, Jake Gibson and Louis Casiano contributed to this report.