A Wisconsin courtroom turned into a cautionary tale this week after a jury convicted Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan on a felony obstruction charge for helping an illegal alien avoid federal immigration agents. The verdict landed Thursday after six hours of deliberation and sent a loud message that even judges are not above the law, no matter how noble they think their motives might be.
Federal prosecutors charged Dugan back in April with two counts, felony obstruction and a misdemeanor charge of concealing an individual to prevent arrest. The jury acquitted her on the concealment count but found her guilty on obstruction, which carries a potential sentence of up to five years in prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set, but the conviction alone is a serious blow to the credibility of a judge sworn to uphold the law, not creatively reinterpret it in the hallway.
Dugan serves as the judge for Branch 31 of the Milwaukee County Circuit Court, and the case centers on her actions involving Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, an illegal alien implicated in a vicious assault. After a pre-trial detention hearing, agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement were waiting outside the courtroom to take Flores-Ruiz into custody. What happened next is what landed Dugan in front of a jury.
Video footage released through an open records request shows Dugan speaking with federal agents and directing them through a hallway and out a door. Prosecutors argued this was a deliberate distraction. While agents were being sent on a short tour of the building, Flores-Ruiz and his attorney exited the courtroom through a restricted jury door, an exit not open to the public. Moments later, an agent spotted Flores-Ruiz entering an elevator and eventually leaving the building, followed by footage showing him running for about a block before being apprehended.
Remember the Milwaukee Judge that tried to help an illegal immigrant escape from ICE at her court? A jury just convicted her.
The jury found Judge Hannah Dugan guilty of obstructing ICE. She faces up to 5 yrs in prison.
Never forget, Democrats defended this crime.
🎥 @ImMeme0 pic.twitter.com/HpHIBphGwZ
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) December 19, 2025
The audio evidence did Dugan no favors. In one recording played repeatedly during trial, she is heard whispering to her court reporter, “I’ll do it. I’ll get the heat,” before directing Flores-Ruiz and his attorney through the private exit. Prosecutors also highlighted additional audio and emails where Dugan urged the attorney to remove her client quickly, behavior witnesses described as highly unusual for a judge.
Testimony from Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Rebecca Cervera added another layer. Cervera told the jury that Dugan admitted she was “in the doghouse” with the chief judge for trying to “help that guy,” a comment that left Cervera “shocked” and “mortified.”
After the verdict, U.S. Attorney Brad Schimel pushed back on claims the case was political. He called it “a single bad day” and said Dugan was neither evil nor a martyr. Fair enough, but it was also a bad day that exposed how ideology can creep into places it has no business being. When judges start deciding which laws matter and which ones do not, the entire system starts to wobble.