Dear All Rise News subscribers,
Earlier this afternoon, I stood outside federal court in Milwaukee following the sentencing of former Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan.
This newsletter delivered gavel-to-gavel coverage of her trial and sentencing thanks to your support, but the work is not done. Dugan’s attorneys announced their intention to appeal her obstruction conviction, and the broader issues of judicial independence in the United States remain just as resonant.
This archived video conversation of my live-stream with Michael Popok discusses some of those topics.
When then-Judge Dugan was first arrested, hundreds of people showed up for her at the courthouse to protest her charges. The federal government took the highly unusual step of perp-walking her, denigrating her in public statements before a trial and disseminating a photograph on social media of her accompanied by agents. In the words of her lead defense attorney, the Trump Justice Department tried to make her a “poster child” for judges defying ICE. Reporting live from Milwaukee shows how much powerful support she continues to have from the community.
Tonight, she also still has her freedom.
Popok and I also discussed a major development in the case of E. Jean Carroll: an order for her to finally receive her more than $5 million sexual abuse and defamation judgment. Donald Trump previously posted a bond to pursue his appeal, but now that he has lost, the ruling orders the court to release the money to her.
As I return to New York City, I will have more to report on both stories.
All the best,
Adam
