Overview

• A letter signed by more than 150 retired state and federal judges was sent to Attorney General Pam Bondi, criticizing the Trump administration's actions as an attack on judicial independence.
• The letter specifically condemned the FBI’s arrest of Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan in her courtroom, describing it as an intimidation tactic against the judiciary.
• FBI Director Kash Patel accused Judge Dugan of helping an undocumented immigrant evade arrest and publicized her arrest with a photo on social media.
• The letter, led by former Judges Nancy Gertner and J. Michael Luttig, included bipartisan signatories and rejected Bondi’s characterization of dissenting judges as 'deranged.'
• The judges warned that targeting members of the judiciary undermines the rule of law, with Luttig stating such actions mark the beginning of authoritarianism.