Overview
- After about six hours of deliberation, a federal jury found Dugan guilty of felony obstruction and not guilty of a related misdemeanor concealment charge.
- Prosecutors said she confronted agents on April 18, directed them to the chief judge’s office, and led Eduardo Flores-Ruiz out a jury door; jurors heard audio of her saying, “I’ll do it. I’ll get the heat.”
- She faces up to five years in prison and is likely ineligible to remain on the bench under Wisconsin law, with sentencing not yet scheduled.
- Dugan’s attorneys plan to appeal after arguing judicial-immunity and courthouse-protocol defenses, while U.S. Attorney Brad Schimel urged calm and rejected claims of a political prosecution.
- DOJ leaders praised the verdict as upholding enforcement, advocacy groups called for appellate review of constitutional issues, and Flores-Ruiz was deported in November; JURIST reported this is the first federal conviction of a state judge for obstructing immigration enforcement.