(WND News Center)—A ruling from U.S. Magistrate Nancy Joseph in Wisconsin has rejected Judge Hannah Dugan’s claim for absolute immunity for her actions in stopping her own court hearing, diverting ICE agents away from the adjacent hallway, sending them on an errand and then escorting a criminal illegal alien out of the courthouse through a nonpublic jury door.
The decision from the case that charges Dugan with federal crimes said, “Judges are not immune from criminal prosecution for acts wholly outside their official roles as judges.”
She explains, “The indictment alleges Dugan violated two federal statutes, 18U.S.C. §§ 1071 and 1505, and cites the respective statutory language for both. Whether Dugan violated these statutes as the government accuses, or whether she was merely performing her judicial duties as Dugan asserts, these are questions for a jury that cannot be resolved on a motion to dismiss.
“I recommend Dugan’s motion to dismiss on Tenth Amendment grounds be denied.”
Further, the ruling found Dugan’s attempt to obtain the dismissal of her indictment on constitutional avoidance grounds is “misplaced.”
“It is well-established and undisputed that judges have absolute immunity from civil lawsuits for monetary damages when engaging in judicial acts. This, however, is not a civil case. And review of the case law does not show an extension of this established doctrine to the criminal context.”
Applying established principles of immunity to Dugan’s case, the ruling determined: “Does judicial immunity shield Dugan from prosecution because the indictment alleges she violated federal criminal law while performing judicial duties? The answer is no. …There is no firmly established absolute judicial immunity barring criminal prosecution of judges for judicial acts.”
Dugan had argued as a state court judge acting within the scope of her official duties, prosecution is barred, she also is protected by the Tenth Amendment and the canon of constitutional avoidance.
She wrongly cited the Supreme Court’s ruling granted President Donald Trump differing levels of immunity based on official actions.
“While Dugan asserts that Trump simply extended to the president the same immunity from prosecution that judges already have, this argument makes a leap too far. Trump says nothing about criminal immunity for judicial acts.”
A grand jury accused Dugan of knowingly concealing a person for whose arrest a warrant and process had been issued, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1071. She is charged in Count Two with obstruction of the United States Department of Homeland Security’s removal proceedings, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1505.
The episode happened on April 18, when, according to the records, “Dugan knowingly concealed E.F.R., a person for whose arrest a warrant and process had been issued under the provisions of the law of the United States, so as to prevent the discovery and arrest of E.F.R., after notice and knowledge of the fact that a warrant and process had been issued for the apprehension of E.F.R., in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1071; Count Two On or about April 18, 2025, Dugan did corruptly endeavor to influence, obstruct, and impede the due and proper administration of the law under which a pending proceeding was being had before a department and agency of the United States, namely the administrative arrest of E.F.R. for purposes of removal proceedings conducted by the United States Department of Homeland Security, by committing affirmative acts to assist E.F.R. to evade arrest, including: a) confronting members of a United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Task Force and falsely telling them they needed a judicial warrant to effectuate the arrest of E.F.R.; b) upon learning that they had an administrative warrant for E.F.R.’s arrest, directing all identified members of the ICE Task Force to leave…”
WND reported when a video showed Dugan’s actions, sending two federal agents waiting to take an illegal into custody packing.
A report at the Gateway Pundit described how the video shows Dugan “angrily confronting ICE agents in the courthouse.”
Dugan later was arrested by the FBI for obstructing federal law enforcement.
She then claimed that everything she did was part of her judicial duty, so she is totally immune to any prosecution.
Dugan has been relieved of her duties and is facing trial.
WND previously has reported Dugan could face sentencing of up to six years in jail and $350,000 in fines if convicted.
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