Immediately after Trump won the second election, the most popular flavor of cope was to throw up one’s hands and ask “How bad could it really be?” Things then proceeded to become really bad — the administration attacked private industries with executive orders, student journalists and protestors faced deportation risks for sharing thoughts the state deemed unacceptable, and the FBI started arresting judges who didn’t cooperate with sending immigrants to torture prisons. Judge Hannah Dugan’s case made it clear that ICE was no longer in the business of excluding courthouses from their patrol range. That was the norm prior to 2018 and there was wisdom to it; ICE is scary. Federal agents standing around courthouses posed an access to justice issue, as any attempt to get a restraining order or complain about a landlord’s crappy property upkeep could result in a deportation.
While the threat of ICE making a mess of general proceedings still stands for many judges, Dugan won’t have to deal with that any more. She resigned shortly after being convicted of obstructing federal agents.
You can read her resignation letter on the tweet below:
Nice to know that she still has some hope in the process. Now to see if it was well-placed. Her resignation moots the effort to impeach her off the bench and opens it to whomever the governor appoints in her stead. Big shoes to fill.
Earlier: So, We’ve Entered The ‘FBI Arresting Judges’ Stage Of Dystopia
If Trump Is Immune, So Is The WI Judge The DOJ Just Arrested
Judge To Hear If Green Card Holders Can Be Deported For Disagreeing With American Policy
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s . He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who is learning to swim, is interested in critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.
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