Former Milwaukee County Judge Dugan to be sentenced July 8
Former Milwaukee County Judge Dugan's acquittal motion denied
Former Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan's motion seeking a new trial and acquittal has been denied, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.
MILWAUKEE - A sentencing date has been set for Hannah Dugan, the former Milwaukee County judge convicted of obstructing federal agents from carrying out an immigrant enforcement operation at the courthouse last year.
She is scheduled to be sentenced on Wednesday, July 8 at 11:15 a.m.
Previous reporting | Motion for acquittal
The backstory:
Dugan and her defense team first requested a new trial and an acquittal, but U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman denied that request, in April. She was previously scheduled to be sentenced on June 3.
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However, Dugan's team asked Adelman to reconsider his decision. He agreed to hear oral arguments on that motion for a new trial or acquittal on June 3, which put sentencing on hold.
Hannah Dugan leaves federal Courthouse in downtown Milwaukee
Adelman later released his decision that Dugan "cannot satisfy the burden required for reconsideration."
"Proceedings" question
Dig deeper:
In December, a jury found Dugan guilty of obstructing a federal agency's proceedings. "Proceedings" was the one word at the center of the latest debate over her conviction.
In April, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Virginia, ruled in a different immigration case. That court found that obstructing an I.C.E. arrest warrant does not constitute interfering with a federal proceeding.
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That ruling became the basis for Dugan's latest appeal. Then, Dugan's team asked Adelman to reconsider his earlier ruling that dismissed Dugan's request. In particular, they asked him to overrule the jury and find her not guilty.
Federal prosecutors argued other cases back up Dugan's conviction, and they also argued the appeals court ruling did not apply to the Dugan case.
Dugan convicted
The backstory:
A grand jury's two-count indictment accused Dugan of obstructing federal agents and helping an undocumented man evade those agents, who planned to arrest him inside the Milwaukee County Courthouse to arrest him in April 2025. Prosecutors said Dugan told the agents to go to the chief judge's office down the hall and then directed the undocumented man and his attorney to leave her courtroom through a back door.
In December, a jury found Dugan guilty of felony obstruction but not guilty of the misdemeanor charge that accused her of helping the undocumented man evade the agents. She resigned as judge in early January.
Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, the man Dugan was accused of helping, was ultimately arrested outside the courthouse. He later pleaded guilty to illegally reentering the U.S. and, in November, was deported.
The Source: FOX6 News referenced information from prior coverage of Dugan's case, trial, resignation and request for a new trial and acquittal. Federal court also provided the date and time of her sentencing.