Judge arrested after allegedly obstructing immigration agents

A judge in Wisconsin has been arrested by US federal authorities after allegedly trying to help an undocumented immigrant who appeared in her court avoid arrest.

The US Marshalls Service told the BBC’s US partner CBS News that officers took Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan into custody on Friday morning.

In a post on X, which was deleted minutes later, FBI Director Kash Patel alleged that Dugan allowed Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, a Mexican national facing three misdemeanour battery counts, to escape from her courtroom.

Flores-Ruiz had appeared in the Milwaukee court for a scheduled hearing on 18 April, and was later apprehended by immigration authorities.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that officers from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrived at the courtroom that day, and that Dugan directed them to the office of the chief judge.

While the agents were in the office, the newspaper reported, Dugan directed Flores-Ruiz and his lawyer to a side door leading out of the courtroom.

The Journal Sentinel reported that Dugan disputed the paper’s account of the events, but did not give further details.

The paper reported that the charges against Flores-Ruiz stemmed from a fight between roommates in March.

Dugan was first elected as a judge in 2016, and was re-elected to a second six-year term in 2022.

Judicial elections in Wisconsin are non-partisan, however Dugan was endorsed by Milwaukee’s Democratic mayor.

The BBC has contacted Dugan and the FBI for comment.