Attorney General Pam Bondi reacted Friday to the FBI's arrest of a Wisconsin judge for allegedly trying to shield an illegal immigrant from arrest, saying it showed no one, not even those in the black robe, were above the country's laws.
"No one's above the laws in this country," she said on "America Reports." "And if you are destroying evidence, if you're obstructing justice, when you have victims sitting in a courtroom of domestic violence and you're escorting a criminal defendant out a back door, it will not be tolerated, and it is a crime in the United States of America. Doesn't matter who you are, you're going to be prosecuted."
The FBI arrested Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan on Friday for allegedly hiding a previously deported illegal immigrant in her jury room in order to stop him from being arrested by ICE.
Dugan was charged with obstruction of an official proceeding after evidence came to light that she had shielded the migrant from ICE agents, according to a criminal complaint. She was also charged with concealing an individual to prevent discovery and arrest.
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Asked on "America Reports" about what the Trump administration would do to judges who thwarted efforts to crack down on illegal immigration, Bondi said they would be prosecuted.
"We are going to prosecute you, and we are prosecuting you. I found out about this the day it happened," Bondi said. "We could not believe, actually, that a judge really did that. We looked into the facts in great depth… You cannot obstruct a criminal case. And really, shame on her. It was a domestic violence case of all cases, and she's protecting a criminal defendant over victims of crime."
Federal agents from ICE, FBI, CBP and DEA attempted to arrest the illegal immigrant - Mexican national Eduardo Flores-Ruiz - following his scheduled criminal court appearance before Dugan on April 18 to face three misdemeanor battery charges.
Dugan demanded that the officers proceed to the chief judge's office and - after his hearing ended - escorted Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out a restricted jury door, bypassing the public area where agents were waiting in order to help him avoid arrest, per the complaint.
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Bondi was also irked by the fact that Flores-Ruiz then fled the scene on foot, accusing Dugan of putting the lives of citizens at risk.
"I think some of these judges think they are beyond and above the law and they are not, and we're sending a very strong message today," she said. "If you are harboring a fugitive, we don't care who you are. If you're helping hide one, if you are giving a TDA member guns, anyone who is illegally in this country, we will come after you and we will prosecute you. We will find you."
Dugan isn't the only judge to get hit with an arrest this week. Former New Mexico Magistrate Judge Joel Cano, and his wife, Nancy Cano, were taken into custody Thursday on charges of evidence tampering amid allegations they harbored Cristhian Ortega-Lopez, an alleged illegal immigrant believed to be a member of Venezuela's notorious Tren de Aragua gang.
"This is the last person that we want in our country, nor will we ever tolerate a judge or anyone else harboring them," Bondi told Fox News.
