Indicted Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan believes she is shielded from prosecution in a federal case accusing her of obstructing the arrest of an illegal immigrant who was before her court, according to a filing submitted by her lawyers on Thursday.
Dugan was arrested in April and indicted by a federal grand jury earlier this month on obstruction charges for her alleged role in helping the migrant evade immigration authorities in her courthouse. The Milwaukee judge pleaded not guilty in the case set for trial on July 21.
Lawyers for Dugan are setting up the case to become an early test of the immunity standards the Supreme Court established with its 2024 decision, Trump v. United States, which established “presumptive immunity” for the president’s official acts and no immunity for unofficial acts.
In the memorandum filed Thursday, Dugan’s lawyers argued that a longstanding judicial immunity precedent would have barred her from being prosecuted for these actions dating back to when the U.S. was a British colony, and still does under current law.
“Dismissal here flows from a straightforward application of long-settled law. The indictment itself is an ugly innovation. Its dismissal will not be,” the memorandum said.
