Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan is in court today, following charges from her alleged obstruction of the arrest of an illegal immigrant by federal officials. The Institute for Reforming Government’s Court Watch released the following primer outlining how the law and precedent supports the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s unanimous decision to suspend Judge Dugan after her federal felony charges.
Attorney General Josh Kaul suggested in a media interview that the Court’s suspension did not reflect any view of the merits of the federal government’s case against Judge Dugan. That is not necessarily so. The American Bar Association model rules suggest a court has discretion to determine if suspension is appropriate, even noting that a court may decide not to suspend when charges are purely political. The fact that the Court promptly – proactively – unanimously suspended her could indicate at least a view that the federal charges have met the standard of probable cause and were not purely political.
