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CONLEY COMMENTARY (WSAU) – The final legal maneuvers before Hannah Dugan is sentenced will play out in the next two weeks.
She’s the Milwaukee County judge who was found guilty of helping an illegal immigrant avoid being arrested by ICE. She showed him and his lawyer to a side door that led from her courtroom to the street. A jury found her guilty of felony obstruction.
She was going to be sentenced on June 3. Now Judge Lynn Adelman, who is overseeing the case, has delayed sentencing. Instead on that day he’ll hear oral arguments on whether the guilty verdict should be set aside and a new trial ordered.
Dugan’s argument is weak. The jury found her not guilty of a misdemeanor obstruction charge. They convicted her of a more serious felony. The defense will argue that the jury’s verdict is contradictory. That’s presumptive. Since jury deliberations are secret, we won’t know why the opted for one conviction and not the other. It’s just as likely that they thought the violation was so serious that they opted for the more serious felony charge.
The jury’s verdict is hard to set aside. They were picked, in part, by Hannah Dugan’s defense team as impartial. There are no allegations of jury misconduct. They weighed the evidence and said ‘guilty’. A jury verdict is the cornerstone of the criminal justice system. Judges apply the law. Juries determine guilt or innocence. And the jury has spoken.
When sentencing does come around, I don’t think for a moment that Hannah Dugan will be sent to jail. She’s a non-violent offender. I don’t even think jail time is appropriate. I’m happy with letting the facts stand for themself. She’s an anti-ICE judge. Her bias is obvious to everyone. And she’s a convicted felon because of it.
Chris Conley
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