Overview
- On the trial’s second day, FBI agent Phillip Jackling and CBP supervisor Joseph Zuraw testified that Judge Hannah Dugan diverted officers to the chief judge, split the arrest team, and made a safe courthouse arrest more difficult.
- Jurors heard courtroom audio in which Dugan said "I will assume responsibility" while arranging help for Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, a statement prosecutors point to as evidence of intent.
- It is undisputed that Dugan directed Flores-Ruiz through a private courtroom door into a public corridor before officers pursued and arrested him outside; he was deported months later.
- The defense says Dugan followed courthouse protocol, had no intent to obstruct, and that officers in the hallway chose not to detain Flores-Ruiz inside the building.
- Prosecutors expect to call about 20 witnesses through Thursday in a case that proceeded after Judge Lynn Adelman denied dismissal on judicial-immunity grounds, as the prosecution attracts sharp political reactions and reported threats.