A Democrat-aligned Wisconsin activist judge at the center of a controversial immigration-related case is seeking to have federal charges against her dismissed.
Judge Hannah Dugan is arguing that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) indictment violates both constitutional protections and judicial independence.
Attorneys for Dugan recently expanded their motion to dismiss the charges, asserting that the federal government overstepped its authority when it arrested and indicted her.
They maintain that Dugan is protected by judicial immunity, which shields judges from prosecution for official acts performed in their role.
Her legal team also invoked the Tenth Amendment and the constitutional separation of powers.
Dugan’s lawyers suggest that the federal prosecution represents an overreach into state judicial matters.
“The indictment itself is an ugly innovation. Its dismissal will not be,” Dugan’s attorneys wrote in their filing.
They are maintaining that she is not accused of corruption or violating anyone’s civil rights—conduct that would fall outside the scope of her protected judicial duties.
At the heart of the case is Dugan’s alleged effort to help Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, an illegal alien facing misdemeanor battery charges, avoid arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
According to a federal indictment, Dugan told plainclothes ICE agents