An FBI agent accused a Milwaukee judge on Friday of obstructing justice by directing undocumented immigrants from the court through a side door while federal immigrant agents waited in the hallway to arrest him.
The judge's arrest, Hannah C. Dugan, quickly elicited criticism from Democratic leaders and urged protests in Wisconsin.
However, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondy defended the move, saying that Judge Dugan's arrest sent a “strong message” to the judge that the Trump administration would prosecute them if Judge Dugan's arrest hampered justice by “escorting criminal defendants through the back door.”
After her arrest, FBI director Kash Patel handcuffed X and posted a photo of her, adding that “no one is beyond the law.”
The arrest raised several questions – many of which remain unanswered. This is what we know so far.
What happened on the day Judge Dugan's arrest?
On April 18, six federal officers arrived at Milwaukee County Courthouse and arrested Mexican national Eduardo Flores Lewis, who was there for a hearing about charging the battery.
Before the hearing, the lawyer told Judge Dugan that immigration and customs enforcement agents were outside her courtroom, according to criminal charges against her. She called the situation “absurd” and left the bench.
Judge Dugan then spoke to federal agents and informed him that he needed a judicial warrant and would be speaking to the Milwaukee County Supreme Court justice.
One of the officers spoke to Chief Judge Carl Ashley. Carl Ashley said there is a policy in working on where court ice agents can arrest people. However, he “emphasized that such actions should not be carried out in court or in other private places,” the complaint said. Judge Ashley told agents that the corridors are an area where arrests can be made.
When Flores Lewis and his attorney left the court, Justice Dugan said, “Wait, come with me,” according to the deputy court lieutenant who overheared the exchange. According to court records, the adjutant saw her leading them through the door leading to the “non-public” area of ​​the court.
The agent then saw Flores Lewis and his lawyers watched in the public hallway, and saw one agent enter the elevator with them and leave the building, but did not arrest him immediately, the complaint said. Other agents arrested him on the street after chasing his foot.
A week later, FBI agents arrested Judge Dugan in court. She was charged with obstructing an immigration officer and hiding someone to prevent arrest.
Craig Mustuntuono, the lawyer who represented Judge Dugan in a brief court appearance as defendant on Friday, called her arrest “very unusual” and asked federal law enforcement officials to contact her first or to ask her to flip herself over.
Who is Judge Dugan?
Judge Dugan, 65, spent much of his career providing legal services to the poor and specialized in housing and public interest.
In 1995, she represented those who panhanded downtown sidewalks and argued that banning them from doing so was unconstitutional. She was elected judge in 2016 and ran unopposed for re-election in 2022. Her current term ends in 2028.
Milwaukee lawyer Anne Jacobs, who appeared before a court judge, described Justice Dugan as “a very back-like judge.”
After appearing in court on Friday, Judge Dugan was released on her own perception. Her legal team vowed to challenge the charges. A preliminary hearing for her case is scheduled for May 15th.
Who is Flores Lewis and what happened in his case?
Flores Lewis, a Mexican national in his early 30s, was in court on April 18 for a hearing on battery charges for three misdemeanors resulting from the March episode, according to criminal charges against him.
Records show that Flores Lewis fought with his roommate, and he asked him to turn down the music he was playing. The roommate said Flores Lewis attacked him about 30 times, attacking his roommate's girlfriend and her cousin.
However, federal officials were trying to arrest Flores Lewis for another reason. He also faces illegal federal re-entry charges.
Flores Lewis was deported from the United States in January 2013 under a prompt removal order. This is generally issued to people crossing the border without proper documentation and is immediately detained. In his federal complaint, his lawyer, Martin Prouse, said in an interview that Flores Lewis was deported and returned to the country shortly after living in Milwaukee and working as a chef for about 12 years.
Pruise said he had no criminal history before the misdemeanor charges.
Six federal officers from four agencies, the FBI, ICE, Customs and Border Protection and the Drug Enforcement Bureau, were involved in his arrest last week. The complaint against Judge Dugan said the agents were dressed on the street and planned to arrest Flores Lewis in a “subtle” safe manner. He also explained that it is common for law enforcement officials to arrest people in court.
The number of agents present has raised doubts, with some wondering whether it is too much to arrest one immigrant. But others say the number may not be very unusual, especially if the agent is planning multiple arrests that day.
Flores Lewis is currently being held at the Ozakey County Jail in Port Washington, Wisconsin.
What is the potential meaning of an arrest?
The arrests of Judge Dugan and Flores Lewis have some experts wondering how other immigration cases and the overall court system will be affected.
As federal agents tried to arrest Flores Lewis in court, Milwaukee's lawyer Jacobs is concerned that undocumented people are afraid to take part in future cases where their testimony will be useful.
Jacobs, who also chairs the Wisconsin Election Commission, said that Judge Dugan's arrest is so “serious and unprecedented” that it is difficult to predict how it will affect the judge's actions. She added that it appears to be designed to make judges fear stepping up with the Trump administration.
Some are worried about what this incident means for American democracy and future. Anne Lawler, a healthcare worker from Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, said he thought “our democracy, our country is under attack.”
Lawler, 62, was one of hundreds of people who protested Judge Dugan's arrest on Saturday outside the FBI building in St. Francis, Wisconsin.
“Everything that makes America great is under attack,” she said.
Devlin Barrett, Julie Bossman and Robert Chiarito Reports of contributions.
