MILWAUKEE (AP) ā A Wisconsin judge pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges accusing her of helping a man in the country illegally who were looking to arrest him in her courthouse.
Milwaukee County Circuit entered the plea during a brief arraignment in federal court. Magistrate Judge Stephen Dries set a July trial date. Duganās lead attorney, Steven Biskupic, told the judge that he anticipates the trial will last a week.
Dugan, her lawyers and prosecutors left after the hearing without speaking to reporters.
She is charged with concealing an individual to prevent arrest and obstruction. Prosecutors say she escorted Eduardo Flores-Ruiz and his lawyer out of her courtroom through a back door on April 18 after learning that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were in the courthouse seeking to arrest him for being in the country illegally. She could face up to six years in prison if convicted on both counts.
Her attorneys say sheās innocent. They Wednesday to dismiss the case, saying she was acting in her official capacity as a judge and therefore is immune to prosecution. They also maintain the federal government violated Wisconsinās state sovereignty by disrupting a state courtroom and prosecuting a state judge.
Dugan's arrest has escalated a clash between Trump administration and Democrats over the presidentās sweeping immigration crackdown.
Dozens of demonstrators gathered outside the courthouse ahead of Thursday's hearing, with some holding signs that read, āOnly Fascists Arrest Judges -- Drop the Charges,ā āDepartment of Justice Over-Reachā and āKeep Your Hands Off Our Judges!!ā The crowd chanted āDue process rights,ā āHands off our freedom,ā and āSi se puedeā ā Spanish for āYes, we canā ā which is a rallying cry for immigrant rights advocates.
One man stood alone across the street holding a Trump flag.
According to court documents, Flores-Ruiz illegally reentered the U.S. after being deported in 2013. Online court records show he was charged with three counts of misdemeanor domestic abuse in Milwaukee County in March, and he was in Duganās courtroom on April 18 for a hearing in that case.
According to an FBI affidavit, Dugan was alerted to the agentsā presence by her clerk, who was informed by an attorney that the agents appeared to be in the hallway. Dugan was visibly angry and called the situation āabsurdā before leaving the bench and retreating to her chambers, the affidavit contends. She and another judge later approached members of the arrest team in the courthouse with what witnesses described as a āconfrontational, angry demeanor.ā
After a back-and-forth with the agents over the warrant for Flores-Ruiz, Dugan demanded they speak with the chief judge and led them from the courtroom, according to the affidavit.
After she returned to the courtroom, witnesses heard her say something to the effect of āwait, come with meā before ushering Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out through a door typically used only by deputies, jurors, court staff and in-custody defendants, the affidavit alleges. Flores-Ruiz was free on a signature bond in the abuse case, according to online state court records. Federal agents ultimately detained him outside the courthouse after a foot chase.
The state Supreme Court last week, saying the move was necessary to preserve public confidence in the judiciary. She was freed after her arrest.
John Vaudreuil, a former federal prosecutor in Wisconsin who isnāt involved in Duganās or Flores-Ruizās cases, said the Trump administration seems to want to make an example out of Dugan. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi or Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, rather than the U.S. attorney in Milwaukee, are likely making the decisions on how to proceed, making it less likely prosecutors will reduce the charges against Dugan in a deal, he said.
Her attorneys will likely try to push the case to a jury trial, Vaudreuil said, because they know that āpeople feel very strongly about the way the president and administration is conducting immigration policy.ā
Dugan is represented by some of Wisconsin's most accomplished lawyers. Biskupic was a federal prosecutor for 20 years and served seven years as U.S. attorney in Milwaukee. Paul Clement, meanwhile, is a former U.S. solicitor general who has argued more than 100 cases in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. Both were appointed to jobs by former Republican President George W. Bush.
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Associated Press writer Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, contributed to this report.
Todd Richmond, The Associated Press
