Former judge gets fine, no jail time for hindering ICE arrest

A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced former Wisconsin Judge Hannah Dugan to pay a $5,000 fine for felony obstruction, according to the U.S. Justice Department. Dugan, a former circuit judge in Milwaukee County, Wis., was convicted on that charge in December after she helped an illegal immigrant briefly evade arrest at her courthouse. U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman in June refused Dugan’s request to overturn her conviction.

Dugan did not receive any prison time or probation, although federal sentencing guidelines recommend 15 to 21 months for her offense. At her sentencing hearing, Judge Adelman said such punishments weren’t necessary because Dugan was a generally law-abiding person who made a bad decision due to her frustrations with immigration policy, according to the Associated Press. Dugan intended to further appeal her conviction, the news agency reported.

How did Dugan help the illegal immigrant evade authorities? Eduardo Flores Ruiz appeared before her in April 2025 on three misdemeanor charges of battery domestic abuse. When Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrived at the courthouse with a warrant for his arrest, Dugan confronted them and ordered them to leave a public hallway outside her courtroom, according to the Justice Department.

Dugan then directed Flores Ruiz to leave the building through a private hallway. Agents eventually chased him down on foot outside the courthouse, entering moving traffic to capture him, according to the Justice Department.

Dig deeper: Read my prior report on Dugan’s conviction.