US officials arrested a Wisconsin judge on Friday and charged her with helping a man evade immigration authorities in what appeared to be a dispute between US President Donald Trump’s administration and local officials over immigration enforcement.
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In a criminal complaint, the US Justice Department said Hannah Dugan, a Milwaukee County circuit judge, refused to turn over the man after immigration agents showed up to arrest him in her courtroom on April 18, and that she tried to help him evade arrest by allowing him to exit through a jury door.
Dugan is charged with obstructing a proceeding and concealing an individual to prevent arrest.
A spokesperson for the US Marshals Service said Dugan was arrested at the courthouse where she works on Friday morning. She was due to appear in federal court in Milwaukee later on Friday. A crowd formed outside the courthouse, chanting “free the judge now.”
A spokesperson for the FBI could not be immediately reached for comment.
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The arrest comes as the Justice Department has directed federal prosecutors to pursue criminal cases against local government officials who interfere with the administration’s immigration crackdown. Such resistance was widespread during Trump’s first 2017-2021 term in office.
