Immigrant Pleads Guilty to Illegal Reentry in Milwaukee Judge Case

Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, an immigrant who allegedly evaded federal agents with the assistance of Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan, pleaded guilty to illegally being in the U.S. after reentering following deportation. Flores-Ruiz first entered the U.S. illegally near Nogales, Arizona, in 2013, was deported, but later returned and was charged with misdemeanor domestic battery in Milwaukee. ICE agents planned to arrest him during a court hearing, but Judge Dugan allegedly helped him evade arrest by escorting him through a restricted courthouse exit, resulting in a brief foot chase before he was caught. Dugan was arrested and indicted on federal charges of obstruction and concealing an individual to prevent arrest, and she has been suspended from the bench. She contends that her actions were protected by judicial immunity, but her motion to dismiss the charges on these grounds was denied, and her trial is set for December 15. Flores-Ruiz faces up to two years in prison and has agreed to deportation upon release, and he still faces trial on domestic battery charges.