Wisconsin judge aided migrant, offered to ‘get the heat,’ prosecutor alleges

By Diana Novak Jones and Andrew Goudsward

MILWAUKEE, Wisconsin, Dec 15 (Reuters) – A U.S. prosecutor told a jury on Monday that a Wisconsin judge “crossed the line” when she allegedly helped a migrant appearing in her courtroom evade an immigration arrest, kicking off a trial that will test President Donald Trump’s efforts to punish alleged obstructions of his mass deportation efforts.

A lawyer defending Hannah Dugan, an elected judge on the Milwaukee County Circuit Court, countered that the judge was following policy as Immigration and Customs Enforcement escalated operations in courthouses early in Trump’s second term.

Dugan faces federal charges accusing her of concealing a person from arrest and obstructing federal proceedings. Dugan has pleaded not guilty to the charges, brought by Trump’s Justice Department.

‘I’LL GET THE HEAT’

Prosecutor Keith Alexander said Dugan was allowed to have strong views about the Trump administration’s immigration policy, but not to attempt to thwart federal agents.

“Those strongly held views motivated her to make a decision to cross the line,” Alexander told the jury during his opening statement. He referenced a remark Dugan allegedly made on the day of the April 18 incident: “I’ll get the heat.”

The rare trial of a sitting judge reflects tensions over the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement tactics, including positioning federal agents in courthouses to make arrests. The Justice Department has directed prosecutors to investigate activists and officials it accuses of hindering immigration operations.

The case against Dugan stems from an April 18 incident in which a group of agents from ICE and other agencies planned to arrest a migrant from Mexico set to appear in Dugan’s Milwaukee courtroom on domestic violence charges.

COURTHOUSE UPHEAVAL

Steven Biskupic, a lawyer for Dugan, told the jury during his opening statement that the Milwaukee courthouse was in a state of upheaval in the weeks before the incident as judges faced ICE agents making arrests in courthouse hallways.

Biskupic said Dugan followed courthouse policies directing staff to alert a supervisor about the presence of ICE agents.

“She sent them to the chief judge’s chambers like she was told to do,” Biskupic said, referring to the agents. “That fact is not going to change.”

The indictment alleges Dugan diverted the agents away from the hallway where law enforcement planned to arrest the man, identified as Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, after the hearing. It also accuses her of escorting Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out of the courtroom through a non-public door after privately addressing his case.

Flores-Ruiz walked through a public hallway and was arrested following a brief pursuit outside the courthouse, according to court documents.

Dugan has been suspended from judicial duties by Wisconsin’s top court while the case unfolds.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION TACTIC

Prosecutors must show that Dugan acted corruptly to impede Flores-Ruiz’s arrest. In court filings, they cited witnesses describing Dugan becoming “visibly angry” when she learned ICE agents were outside her courtroom and falsely telling law enforcement they needed a judicial warrant to carry out an arrest.

Dugan’s lawyers questioned why agents did not arrest Flores-Ruiz as planned when he appeared in the hallway after leaving the courtroom, suggesting their plans had changed. They pointed to text messages exchanged between agents discussing plans not to immediately arrest Flores-Ruiz and instead to follow him as he walked down the hallway.

The Trump administration has loosened restrictions on immigration enforcement operations at local courthouses as part of a push to deport millions of migrants living illegally in the U.S.

Many advocates and some judges have condemned the practice, arguing it dissuades people from seeking justice in courts and risks undermining public trust in the legal system.

(Reporting by Diana Novak Jones and Andrew Goudsward; Editing by Scott Malone, Bill Berkrot and Daniel Wallis)