Convicted ex-judge gets $5K fine but no prison time in immigration case
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan (far left) leaves the federal courthouse after a hearing in Milwaukee on May 15, 2025. (Photo by Andy Manis/The Associated Press)
A convicted former Wisconsin judge was fined $5,000 and sentenced to no prison time Wednesday after a jury had found that she obstructed a planned immigration arrest outside her courtroom.
The case gained national attention, becoming a flashpoint over the Trump administration’s use of courthouses to detain migrants.
Reuters and Courthouse News Service have the story.
In December, former Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan was convicted of obstructing a federal proceeding by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, but the lessor charge of concealing a person set for deportation was cleared.
Prosecutors said she helped a Mexican migrant, Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, leave through a nonpublic courtroom door, and they recommended an imprisonment of 15 to 21 months.
Dugan’s long history of public service played into the decision to spare her from prison, U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman of the Eastern District of Wisconsin noted.
“The punishment should fit the offender and not merely the crime,” Adelman said during a hearing in Milwaukee federal court.
Dugan resigned from her position in January.
See also:
Former judge convicted over ICE obstruction denied new trial
Prosecutor says judge knew she would get ‘heat’ for aiding immigrant
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