PLEASANT PRAIRIE, Wis. — A Wisconsin municipal judge believes the arrest of Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan could potentially reach the U.S. Supreme Court and establish precedent for immigration enforcement in courthouses nationwide.
"We don't know exactly what the law is at this point, so this case may very well wind up deciding that law and what it's going to be," said Richard Ginkowski said.
Ginkowski is currently a Pleasant Prairie municipal judge and serves on the American Bar Association. Previously, he was a state prosecutor for 32 years.
Watch: Sitting judge says Dugan arrest could set legal precedent in immigration enforcement
Ginkowski shared his perspective on Dugan's case. It's the first time we're hearing from a sitting judge.
"I was stunned, but also, as a legal nerd, interested in the facts and the law," Ginkowski said. "This is uncharted territory."
Dugan is charged with obstructing or impeding a proceeding by a department or agency. Federal agents claim she helped divert the arrest of an undocumented immigrant by helping him exit the Milwaukee County Courthouse.
Ginkowski said the case raises significant questions about judicial intent and knowledge.
"What was the judge's intent? What was the element of knowingly violating the law? And that is determined from all of the facts and circumstances, things that none of us really knows right now because they haven't come out in court," Ginkowski explained.
The case highlights growing tensions between state and federal authorities regarding immigration enforcement, according to Ginkowski.
"Do you foresee federal agents continuing this cycle across the country? Is this opening the floodgates for more arrests to take place," TMJ4 Reporter Jenna Rae asked.
"Well that's a good question and the answer to that is really this has been going on for quite some time. For the last six and seven years, this tension has been boiling," Ginkowski responded.
The municipal judge explained that statutes regarding whether federal agents can make arrests inside a courthouse remain unclear, particularly regarding administrative warrants.
"One of the issues in the case in Milwaukee is apparently this warrant was an administrative warrant, and not signed by a judge," Ginkowski said. "There's some question as to whether or not those warrants can be enforced within a courtroom."
While states like New York and California have laws restricting such enforcement, Wisconsin does not have similar legislation, creating a legal vacuum.
"Could Judge Dugan's case, if it makes it to the Supreme Court, be the case law that sets the precedent moving forward for this," Rae asked Ginkowski.
"Easily. This easily could be the case that winds up in front of the United States Supreme Court because it really illustrates the tension that exists here," Ginkowski responded.
Dugan is scheduled to appear in federal court on May 15.
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