Originally Authored at TheFederalist.com
The FBI has arrested a Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge on charges of obstruction after federal law enforcement officials alleged she misled investigators attempting to arrest an illegal immigrant.
FBI Director Kash Patel on Friday announced the arrest of Judge Hannah Dugan following “evidence of Judge Dugan obstructing an immigration arrest operation last week.”
“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,” Patel wrote in a Friday post X that was briefly removed and then reinstated.
“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,” Patel added.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi also confirmed the arrest on X.
Reached Friday morning, FBI officials could not provide The Federalist further details.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Flores-Ruiz is from Mexico and is “facing three misdemeanor battery counts.” The suspect was in front of Dugan on April 18 for a court proceeding when the incident allegedly occurred, the newspaper reported. He remains in federal custody.
“Sources have told the Journal Sentinel that ICE officials arrived in Dugan’s courtroom on the morning of April 18. When they went to the chief judge’s office, Dugan directed the defendant and his attorney to a side door in the courtroom, directed them down a private hallway and into the public area on the 6th floor,” the Journal Sentinel reported.
An official in Dugan’s office said he could not comment but directed The Federalist to the office of Chief Judge Carl Ashley. No one there was available for comment.
‘Social Justice Principles’
Dugan, as the Journal Sentinel noted, previously served as executive director of Catholic Charities of Milwaukee. Her Facebook page is filled with some of the biggest leftists in the state, some cheering her “courageous resistance.”
“I felt rewarded to redirect its path towards successes based not only on evidence-based decision making but also on measuring decisions against social justice principles,” she told the Milwaukee Independent in a 2016 interview.
The leftist judge was first elected to the Milwaukee County bench in 2016 when she beat a conservative judge appointed by then-Republican Gov. Scott Walker.
A criminal complaint obtained by Wisconsin Right Now shows a defendant by the name of Eduardo Flores-Ruiz was charged with three counts of misdemeanor battery last month. He is accused of causing bodily harm.
According to the complaint, the suspect, during a dispute over the volume of his music, struck a man at the residence “in the face and body with a closed fist approximately 30 times.” The alleged victim’s girlfriend attempted to get in between the two men, and Flores-Ruiz began attacking her, “striking her in the forehead and arm with a closed fist before shoving her into the kitchen, causing her to fall,” the complaint reads.
‘Gang-Affiliated Criminal’
Dugan’s legal troubles follow this week’s arrests of former New Mexico Magistrate Judge Joel Cano and his wife, Nancy Cano, on charges of evidence tampering, Fox 13 reported. The couple is accused of harboring Cristhian Ortega-Lopez, an alleged illegal alien accused of being a member of Venezuela’s violent Tren de Aragua gang.
Federal officials arrested Ortega-Lopez at the Cano residence in February, according to news accounts. Court documents show he was hired by Nancy Cano for “home repairs” and subsequently invited to stay in the family’s guest house, according to the Fox affiliate.
“According to court documents, he unlawfully entered the U.S. on Dec. 15, 2023, by crossing the border near Eagle Pass, Texas, without inspection or authorization,” Fox 13 reported. “He was released on Dec. 18, 2023, pending removal proceedings due to overcrowding at the Border Patrol facility. He was issued a Notice to Appear, initiating formal removal proceedings under the Immigration and Nationality Act.”
Ortega-Lopez still faces federal charges for possessing a firearm as an illegal alien, according to news reports.
Judge Cano resigned last month. Earlier this week, the New Mexico Supreme Court barred Cano from ever holding another judicial office in the state.
“The people of New Mexico are tired of a system where the powerful don’t play by their own rules,” Amy Barela, chairwoman of the Republican Party of New Mexico, told to the Las Cruces Sun-News. “We demand real accountability for Judge Cano’s connection to a gang-affiliated criminal and full transparency on how our judiciary is being held to the same laws as the rest of us. Enough is enough.”
Matt Kittle is a senior elections correspondent for The Federalist. An award-winning investigative reporter and 30-year veteran of print, broadcast, and online journalism, Kittle previously served as the executive director of Empower Wisconsin.