Wisconsin judge pleads not guilty to helping man evade immigration agents

Prosecutors say Hannah Dugan escorted man out of court via back door after learning Ice agents were there

A Wisconsin judge pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges that she helped a man who is in the country illegally evade US immigration authorities looking to arrest him in her courtroom.

The Milwaukee county circuit judge Hannah Dugan entered the plea during an arraignment in federal court, an early step in the criminal justice process. Defendants routinely plead not guilty at this point to give their attorneys time to investigate and to preserve their right to a trial.