Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, the 30-year-old Mexican national and undocumented immigrant, reportedly hit a person 30 times after being asked to turn down loud music. Then, he was brought to court to appear in a trial in Milwaukee County Circuit before the courtroom of Judge Hannah Dugan on April 18 for a pre-trial conference.
Dugan has been accused of obstructing his arrest and is now facing charges. The 65-year-old was arrested on Friday.
Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, according to AG Pam Bondi, was 'assisted' by Judge Dugan to evade arrest by ICE officials. Judge Dugan, according to a report by Reuters, was livid when she came to know that ICE officials were there at her courthouse to arrest Eduardo.
ALSO READ | How Judge Hannah Dugan helped ‘alien’ Eduardo Flores-Ruiz evade ICE arrest | Timeline
She then escorted Flores-Ruiz and his attorney through a door so that he could not be arrested right there. Dugan has been charged with two counts of felony for helping evade the arrest of an undocumented immigrant. If convicted of the offenses, she could face more than five years in prison.
More on Flores-Ruiz
Eduardo Flores-Ruiz is a Mexican national and undocumented immigrant in the United States, who was arrested by ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) task force from the Milwaukee County Courthouse on April 18. This was during the time Flores-Ruiz was appearing for a pre-trial conference for allegedly hitting another person 30 times when he refused to turn down loud music.
ICE agents appeared at the Milwaukee County Courthouse during the ongoing court proceedings in an attempt to arrest Flores-Ruiz.
Eduardo Flores-Ruiz is a Mexican national and undocumented immigrant in the United States, who was arrested by ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) task force from the Milwaukee County Courthouse on April 18. This was during the time Flores-Ruiz was appearing for a pre-trial conference for allegedly hitting another person 30 times when he refused to turn down loud music.
ICE agents appeared at the Milwaukee County Courthouse during the ongoing court proceedings in an attempt to arrest Flores-Ruiz.
What happened in the courtroom?
According to a report by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Dugan allegedly directed ICE agents to the chief judge’s office when they first arrived, which gave room to Flores-Ruiz to exit the building. However, this ‘obstruction’ did not appear to work as ICE agents still managed to arrest Flores-Ruiz. It was just not ICE, but FBI, CBP and DEA officers were also attempting to arrest the undocumented Mexican national, says a Fox News report.
In light of these events, Judge Dugan was introduced before the courtroom of U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen C. Dries. Dugan's attorney stated, “She regrets and protests her arrest”.
Meanwhile, State Rep. Bob Donovan issued a statement on the transpired event, saying, “In all my years of Milwaukee politics and public safety issues, working with cops, district attorneys, and judges, I have never seen a more irresponsible act by an officer of the court, let alone a judge, if true."
"This borders on obstruction of justice and I hope the FBI continues a thorough investigation and, if warranted, prosecution to the fullest extent of the law”, Donovan continued.