Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What to know about Hannah Dugan, the Milwaukee judge arrested amid ICE investigation on 4/25

[Dennis Donovan]

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - What to know about Hannah Dugan, the Milwaukee judge arrested amid ICE investigation on April 25

Chris Ramirez
Cailey Gleeson
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
April 25, 2025

/snip/

Here's what to know about Dugan and her arrest:

Where was Dugan arrested?
Brady McCarron, spokesman for U.S. Marshals Service in Washington, D.C., confirmed Dugan was arrested at about 8 a.m. April 24 at the Milwaukee County Courthouse and is in federal custody.

What is Dugan's legal experience?
Dugan has spent a large swath of her career working for the poor and vulnerable, first with legal aid organizations and then as executive director of Catholic Charities.

Dugan also has been active in professional organizations, and referees attorney discipline cases brought by the Office of Lawyer Regulation.



Dugan, a former Milwaukee Bar Association president, was elected to Branch 31 of the Circuit Court in 2016, defeating incumbent Paul Rifelj, an appointee of then-Gov. Scott Walker. She primarily oversees cases in its misdemeanor division.

/snip

[Quiet Em]

1. The FBI arresting Judges is crossing a huge line

This administration has gone too far this time.

[dutch777]

5. Good way to tick off all judges everywhere. Suspect this will be dismissed as hard to prove intent vs.

...that she didn't know exactly where target was and accidently misled ICE.

[LauraInLA]

8. Interestingly, I'd forgotten they did this the last time around with a judge in Massachusetts. Disgusting.

[Vinca]

2. Let's hope this is thrown out in a nanosecond.

[Nevilledog]

3. Here's the affidavit. IF true, it's not good for the judge. Big IF though with these fascists

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.wied.111629/gov.uscourts.wied.111629.1.0.pdf

[Cirsium]

7. That report is BS

"Judge DUGAN stated that Deportation Officer A needed a judicial warrant."

End of story.

[tornado34jh]

9. It might not look good for the judge, but something doesn't make sense to me.

Let me clear, I am very suspicious of the FBI/ICE under this administration, but there are questions that still don't make sense. First, if Eduardo Flores-Ruiz was still due for a pending pretrial healing, why do it now? Did they not know he had a pretrial hearing? The victims were in court, so why would FBI/ICE do it while he was still pending a hearing? I mean, they should have told the chief judge or whoever that there was a warrant for his arrest in advance. I can see why she would be upset because this wasn't told to them before the courtroom opened, and the judge had him on the docket.

Second, was he arrested prior to this hearing (i.e. before the ICE/FBI arrived)? It sounds like he was facing serious allegations of battery, domestic abuse, etc. Unless he wasn't arrested prior, that seems odd that he wasn't in jail. If that is the case, that sounds like there were errors on the part of the local police.

I'm not a lawyer, but it's my understanding that an administrative warrant does not mean you can enter a place where you expect privacy, such as a courtroom, without consent. In other words, even if ICE were to have a warrant for his arrest, you can't enter the place without the consent. If it was a judicial warrant, then that would be different. So ICE still is in the wrong here, they didn't have a judicial warrant, which is very different.

[tornado34jh]

13. Did he have his hearing? The affidavit isn't clear if he did.

Now, if he did have it, and the judge/attorney did give him a leeway to escape after the hearing was done, then yes, she is in big trouble. But my big question is, was he arrested prior to this hearing? Apparently he had serious allegations. I don't think such allegations would have not seen him arrested. Does the affidavit state that he was in custody prior to the hearing? If he wasn't, then that is the fault of the local/state police.

[bronxiteforever]

14. I will wait for the trial. I don't trust Pam Bondi

but I trust the jury system.

[SunSeeker]

17. The judge is not required to assist in the enforcement of an administrative warrant.

It appears the defendant's attorney asked to leave out of a side door with the defendant and Judge Dugan let them. How is that a crime?

[GusBob]

20. Wait, what?

What were the allegations? Perhaps she knew there was a resolution in the matter?

Very curious

[tornado34jh]

22. I don't know, but this whole thing is very fishy.

There seems like there was a complete breakdown in communication. The person that they were arresting, Eduardo Flores-Luiz, was already due for a pre-trial hearing unrelated to FBI/ICE. But again, as I understand it, ICE/FBI didn't have a judicial warrant. An administrative warrant means you can't go enter a place where there is reasonable expectation of privacy, such as a courtroom, without consent. Also, there are still no answers as to whether or not he was arrested prior to his pre-trail hearing. He was facing battery, domestic abuse, physical harm charges. Very serious charges. Unless he posted bail, I have a hard time believing that he wasn't in custody and in jail while awaiting a hearing. If he wasn't arrested, then that is the fault of the local/state police. The victims families were in court, so I got the impression he was still awaiting a hearing.

But again, I need to see proof that she allegedly did was she was accused for. To me, this all seems like hearsay from ICE/FBI.

[GusBob]

23. Yes I read the affidavit

It mentions victims, plural. And no he never appeared before the judge on the matter.

And the witnesses to the incident in the courtroom were all in there , a deputy, a asst. DA, a translator it seems

The very curious part is when one of the public defenders, its claimed, took a pic of the Fed agents while in the hallway, but she missed one

What was a DEA agent doing there

[tornado34jh]

31. The DEA, I don't know

Maybe there were drugs? I don't know, but this whole thing just seems really fishy. So again, if he was not arrested prior to this, isn't that the fault of the local/state police? For the allegations he was facing in the pre-trial hearing, I just find it strange how he wasn't arrested unless he had bail. I'm not sure about the public defender supposedly taking pictures, but I feel there is more to the start than is being let on. Still, I am very skeptical of this. It was the head of the FBI, a person who supported the insurrection, that ordered the judge arrested.

[SunSeeker]

25. Per NBC, all 3 charges against him were misdemeanors.

Last edited Fri Apr 25, 2025, 04:34 PM - Edit history (1)

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/fbi-arrests-milwaukee-judge-alleging-interfered-immigration-operation-rcna203006

I sat on a jury about a year ago for a domestic battery case. It was a misdemeanor charge. The woman received no visible injuries. But she testified he did touch her (he grabbed her and pinned her against a wall) and that counted as a battery. We convicted the guy on the misdemeanor and he got the maximum: 6 months in jail.

[sop]

10. I read the affidavit. I agree, it looks like the judge is in trouble.

The judge, knowing federal agents had a warrant and were waiting to make an arrest, instructed the man to go out a side door to elude the agents, but he was apprehended after a brief foot chase.

[SunSeeker]

15. It was an administrative warrant, nor a judicial warrant. nt

[sop]

21. The affidavit:

Deportation Officer A stated it was in a public space and the administrative warrant was valid. The affidavit is relying on Deportation Officer A's assertion the administrative warrant was valid. Was a judicial warrant required?

[SunSeeker]

24. A judicial warrant is required to enter and arrest someone in a private space, like a home or a closed court hearing.

Administrative warrants are generally for regulatory inspections, compliance checks, and other non-criminal purposes. Judicial warrants are for law enforcement actions, including searches and arrests related to criminal investigations. Administrative warrants are typically issued by an agency, while judicial warrants are issued by a court. Administrative warrants often require a lower standard of probable cause than judicial warrants. It is not reviewed by a judge and does not authorize entry into private spaces. ICE often uses administrative warrants for immigration enforcement actions, which do not authorize entry into private spaces. A judicial warrant signed by a judge is required for entering private areas where individuals have a reasonable expectation of privacy. 
https://www.ilrc.org/sites/default/files/resources/ice_warrants_summary.pdf

[madville]

36. That's probably why they were waiting outside

In the public area of the courthouse, so the type of warrant shouldn’t matter once he exited into the public area.

[Ponietz]

16. Factz schmakz -- my ignorance is just as important as your knowledge

directed towards the shitinternet deluge of uninformed opinions.
If the judge helped the perp escape ICE holding a valid administrative warrant she fucked up big time. For 30+ years they’ve arrested undocumented perps at southern New Mexico courthouses. Now they’re doing so nationwide.

[SunSeeker]

18. It appears the defendant's attorney asked to leave out of a side door with the defendant and Judge Dugan let them.

How is that a crime, counsel?

[moniss]

26. I think they are trying to go way beyond here because

she did not provide him some "secret way out of the courthouse" so he could evade the arrest team. The affidavit clearly states that the man in question and his lawyer were back in the public hallway and were followed by team members down the hall to the elevator and in fact one member was on the elevator with the man. They could have arrested him in the hallway or on the elevator. It sounds like they fumbled around and a few of the others went charging towards the man and he ran.

I also question this description of the phone call with the Chief Judge because they're on the phone for a considerable time yet the affidavit describes conversation that could take place in less than 2 minutes. The affiant says the agents said why they were there, the judge said he was working on a policy and the agents gave him some contact info. They were talking for a whole lot longer than that.

I don't find it unusual that a judge doesn't want a controversy and disruption to litigants and witnesses right outside the entrance doors to her court. So she escorted the man and his attorney back to a location that is down the hall from those doors and she did so through the path mentioned. She didn't "hide" him etc.

The only thing of note to me is when the affidavit says the attorney for the state didn't know about the case being continued. Is that real or not we don't know. I do have some problems with what looks like heavy reliance on the courtroom deputy saying he "thinks" this or that but wasn't really there by the clerk's side.

There have been major gaffes by the local Milwaukee ICE and FBI over some of these arrests and it sounds to me more like they want to resurrect their image here and score some points back in DC. ICE could have gone to the man's residence the day before and arrested him. It sounds to me like the Chief Judge had not wanted these things taking place in the courthouse until he had a policy in place. That to me makes perfect sense especially because ICE can effect these arrests at other locations and they do all the time. It is quite likely the Chief Judge had told the other judges he didn't want these arrests taking place in the courthouse until there was a policy in place. The County could be liable for not having a policy if ICE goes to make an arrest and something goes wrong and innocent bystanders are hurt. While a courthouse is open to the public as a matter of course the Chief Judge is responsible for policy regarding everything that takes place in that building. Not just in the courtrooms but also in the public areas.

By the fact that Dugan told them they needed to speak to the Chief Judge tells me there is a whole lot more here than the self serving write-up in the affidavit. I think because the other judge that was with Dugan was also not having this it tells me that behind the scenes after the prior gaffes there was communication and probably assurances given that ICE would not be disruptive to court proceedings. Having about 6 guys with guns hanging around outside the courtroom doors is probably quite intimidating to litigants and witnesses in other cases going in and out of the doors of that courtroom or others nearby.

Remember that ICE got major egg on their face just a couple of weeks ago for grabbing and holding people who were actually US citizens who were born in Puerto Rico. The ICE agents heard them speaking Spanish and that was good enough for them. This area, in fact most of Wisconsin, is racist as hell.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/ice-says-sorry-after-detaining-us-citizens-for-speaking-spanish-report/ar-AA1y5uOh

[Frasier Balzov]

4. She isn't as superficially pretty as Kristi Noem.

So Trump's wager is that the People will be behind him on this judge's arrest.

[Scalded Nun]

6. Tin foil hat time

This could have been planned/set up to test the fallout with Trump out of the country (if the shit really hits the fan, then "Hey! I know nothing of that" ).

[tornado34jh]

11. Administrative warrant is not the same as a judicial warrant

I'm not an attorney/lawyer, but from what I understand, an administrative warrant does not mean you can enter private places or where there is an expectation of privacy, without consent. In other words, ICE could not enter the building without consent. They would need a judicial warrant, which is completely different. So the judge was correct in questioning why they were there, when there was no judicial warrant. Even if they did have a warrant for his arrest, he already was due for a pretrial hearing and the victims were in court, so why do it then? I can understand why the judge would be upset because she wasn't expecting them. But again, was he arrested before this hearing? That's a big question I would ask. He had serious allegations. If he wasn't, that falls on the local/state police.

[madville]

37. The agents were in the public area

Of the courthouse. Looks like their plan was to apprehend once he exited the courtroom so the type of warrant would seem moot. Plus federal agents have jurisdiction pretty much everywhere.

[orangecrush]

19. Catholic Charities

"Dugan has spent a large swath of her career working for the poor and vulnerable, first with legal aid organizations and then as executive director of Catholic Charities."

https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2025/01/29/white-house-trump-strip-funds-catholic-charities-249802

She was the perfect target for them, and I believe this was planned out long before this happened.

[Kid Berwyn]

27. I'd rather be with her than stand with the likes of Ka$h Patel.

She is a hero.

They are zeroes, AKA traitors.

[Doodley]

28. The FBI director announced it (then deleted) on Twitter. Yes Twitter. That is how FBI announced this.

Since when has Twitter been the official means of communication by the FBI to the public? That tells us everything we need to know.

[Dennis Donovan]

30. Bradley P. Moss: So to sum up the Wisconsin arrest issue:

Bradley P. Moss
‪@bradmossesq.bsky.social‬
So to sum up the Wisconsin arrest issue:

ICE didn't have a juridical warrant. They only had an administrative warrant.

The DOJ has not convened a grand jury to indict the judge. They only got a criminal complaint before a magistrate judge.

This is ridiculous.
April 25, 2025 at 1:09 PM

https://bsky.app/profile/bradmossesq.bsky.social/post/3lnnpmlfdy22v

[Lokee11]

32. Flaws pointed out by Ann Jacobs

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100220269277

[Lokee11]

33. Other thread with info from Ann Jacobs

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100220269277

[LetMyPeopleVote]

34. Maddow Blog-As FBI arrests judge in Wisconsin, AG Pam Bondi directs new threats at the judiciary

The Republican offensive against the judiciary has been unsubtle, but the Trump administration hadn’t arrested a sitting judge — until now.
https://bsky.app/profile/elizabeth11432.bsky.social/post/3lno5vyphck2c

As FBI arrests judge in Wisconsin, AG Pam Bondi directs new threats at the judiciary.
The Republican offensive against the judiciary has been unsubtle, but the Trump administration hadn’t arrested a sitting judge — until now.

Link to tweet

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/fbi-arrests-judge-wisconsin-ag-pam-bondi-directs-new-threats-judiciary-rcna203061

The Republican offensive against the courts and judges in recent months has been as subtle as a sledgehammer. The Washington Post recently summarized, for example, that the White House has pushed forward with “delegitimizing” the independent judiciary, and there’s overwhelming evidence to bolster the point.....

But the Trump administration hadn’t gone so far as to actually arrest a sitting judge — until now. NBC News reported:

The FBI arrested a county judge in Milwaukee on Friday, alleging that she obstructed the detention of an undocumented immigrant who was wanted by federal authorities on an administrative immigration warrant by escorting the man and his defense attorney though a non-public jury door. The arrest of Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan marks a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration, in line with its rhetoric about going after local and state authorities on immigration-related matters.

.....Shortly after Dugan was taken into custody, Kash Patel, Trump’s highly controversial FBI director, published a tweet that effectively spiked the football. “We believe Judge Dugan intentionally misdirected federal agents away from the subject to be arrested in her courthouse, Eduardo Flores Ruiz, allowing the subject — an illegal alien — to evade arrest,” he wrote in a missive that was deleted a short time later. “Thankfully our agents chased down the perp on foot and he’s been in custody since, but the Judge’s obstruction created increased danger to the public.”

Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin didn’t quite see it that way.

“In the United States, we have a system of checks and balances and separations of power for damn good reasons,” the senator said in a statement. “The president’s administration arresting a sitting judge is a gravely serious and drastic move, and it threatens to breach those very separations of power. Make no mistake, we do not have kings in this country, and we are a democracy governed by laws that everyone must abide by. By relentlessly attacking the judicial system, flouting court orders, and arresting a sitting judge, this president is putting those basic Democratic values that Wisconsinites hold dear on the line."
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4llrhdclvdlmmynkwsmg5tdc/post/3lnnprevixu2y

Link to tweet

“[Judges] are deranged, is all I can think of,” Bondi said during her 18th appearance on Fox this year. “I think some of these judges think that they are beyond and above the law, and they are not. And we’re sending a very strong message today: If you are harboring a fugitive, we don’t care who you are. ... We will come after you and we will prosecute you. We will find you.”.....

Through her legal counsel, Dugan issued a statement Friday afternoon that read, “Judge Hannah C. Dugan has committed herself to the rule of law and the principles of due process for her entire career as a lawyer and a judge. She has retained former United States Attorney Steven Biskupic to represent her. Judge Dugan will defend herself vigorously and looks forward to being exonerated. This will be the extent of any statements or interviews at this time.”

[LetMyPeopleVote]

35. Judge Dugan was arrested without presenting case to grand jury-this was a stunt to whip MAGA faithful into a frenzy

I am a corporate lawyer but I do know basic federal criminal procedure. Judge Dugan was arrested on a magistrate warrant and the case had NOT been presented to a grand jury. Before this case can go to trial, this case has to be presented to and voted on by a grand jury. The arrest on Friday was a stunt to "whip the MAGA faithful into a frenzy." One can arrest a suspect without a grand jury indictment but normally there has to be good reason for such arrest
https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3lnuuhqajbk2j

New in PN: Arresting judges is a 5-alarm escalation

"It’s not just that Dugan was arrested, but how she was arrested. The whole point was to cause a scene. There’s no allegation she was attempting to evade arrest, but the FBI still forced a sitting judge to do a perp walk at her place of work."

Link to tweet

https://www.publicnotice.co/p/trump-bondi-arresting-judges-hannah-dugan

It’s not just that Dugan was arrested, but also how she was arrested. The whole point was to cause a scene. She was arrested Friday morning in the parking lot of the Milwaukee County Courthouse, complete with handcuffs. There’s no allegation she was a flight risk or was attempting to evade arrest, but the FBI still forced a sitting judge to do a perp walk at her place of work.

Additionally, Dugan was arrested pursuant to a criminal complaint signed by a federal magistrate judge. There’s nothing improper about that as such, but for felonies in federal court, prosecutors must convene a grand jury and present evidence. Only if the grand jury returns an indictment can someone be prosecuted.

Going before a grand jury isn’t a nicety or a minor procedural step. The Fifth Amendment requires it. Arresting Dugan before convening a grand jury was intended to get flashy headlines and whip the MAGA faithful into a frenzy. Even if a grand jury declines to indict Dugan, the administration has succeeded in creating a climate of fear and suspicion.

Recall that although Trump faced 88 charges in four criminal cases for much worse things than what Dugan is accused of, he was always charged by indictment after presentation to a grand jury and allowed to turn himself in. Here he is in Georgia, where he faced 13 felony counts for trying to overturn the 202 election. Here he is in New York, where he faced — and was convicted of — 34 felonies related to falsifying business records to hide his hush payments to Stormy Daniels. New York state was so solicitous of Trump that he didn’t even have to have his mug shot taken. When he voluntarily surrendered in Miami for the classified documents case, he wasn’t handcuffed.,,,,,

It will be interesting to see a grand jury would indict this judge on the actual facts

One hurdle prosecutors might have in securing an indictment against Dugan was that ICE had an administrative warrant, not a judicial warrant, for Flores-Ruiz. The criminal complaint obscures this, referring only to a “warrant” or an “arrest warrant” in most places. The only time an administrative warrant is mentioned is when the complaint quotes Dugan saying it.

As much as the administration would like it to be otherwise, those administrative warrants aren’t the same as judicial warrants. Judicial warrants are signed by a federal or state judge or magistrate and must be complied with as long as they are valid. Administrative warrants — also known as immigration warrants — are issued by administrative agencies such as ICE and signed by an immigration judge. Despite also being called judges, immigration judges are not part of the judicial branch. They are appointed by the attorney general and are part of the executive branch.

I wonder if this case will ever be presented to a grand jury,