The Wisconsin judge who allegedly helped an illegal migrant evade immigration authorities pleaded not guilty through her attorney on Thursday.
Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan flashed a smile to the swarm of protesters outside the federal courthouse as they roared in support of the judge, who has become a symbol of resistance against the Trump administration’s immigration policy.
Dugan’s defense has called on the charges levied against her to be dismissed as they argued that she is entitled to judicial immunity, citing the very case that gave President Trump presidential immunity.
“The problems with this prosecution are legion, but most immediately, the government cannot prosecute Judge Dugan because she is entitled to judicial immunity for her official acts,” the defense wrote in its motion.
“Immunity is not a defense to the prosecution to be determined later by a jury or court; it is an absolute bar to the prosecution at the outset,” they wrote, directly citing the 2023 Trump V. United States case.
The defense also argued that judicial immunity has a long history that goes way back to “at least the early 17th century.”
Dugan, 66, was arrested last month after being accused of obstruction of justice and concealing Mexican national Eduardo Flores-Ruiz from federal law enforcement. --->READ MORE HERE
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| Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images |
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan pleaded not guilty to federal charges on Thursday.
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan was indicted by a federal grand jury Tuesday on charges of concealing a person from arrest and obstruction of the law. Dugan — who could land up to six years in prison if convicted for allegedly helping Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, an illegal alien charged with three misdemeanor counts of battery, get away from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — pleaded not guilty during her arraignment in federal court on Thursday.
Dugan's attorneys appear to think that the U.S. Supreme Court has provided her with the means to dodge accountability.
They noted in a Wednesday motion to dismiss the indictment obtained by Axios that "the government cannot prosecute Judge Dugan because she is entitled to judicial immunity for her official acts. Immunity is not a defense to the prosecution to be determined later by a jury or court; it is an absolute bar to the prosecution at the outset."
Here, attorneys cited the Supreme Court's July 1, 2024, ruling in Trump v. United States, where a 6-3 majority determined that the president "may not be prosecuted for exercising his core constitutional powers, and he is entitled, at a minimum, to a presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts." --->READ MORE HERE
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