Another Judge Arrested, This Time for Obstructing an ICE Arrest (Update)

Reporting live Thursday from the Vatican ahead of Saturday’s funeral mass for Pope Francis, CBS Evening News co-anchor John Dickerson ended the show with a veiled hit on President Trump as a contrast to Pope Francis and other Catholic leaders as the former (using the catch-all phrase “American politics”) embraces “flash and hubris” while the other show humility and love. In much the same way his commentaries at the end of CBS Evening News Plus go (as well as his hot takes in general), they usually have a connection to current events and this was no exception.     “In three separate conversations I had today with a cardinal and archbishop and a priest, the comparison to American politics came up when talking about how the next pope will be chosen. But there is a significant difference between the two systems,” Dickerson began. This went into a more direct comparison with help from a writer for a far-left Catholic magazine: In American politics, candidates boast. Flash and hubris often win. In the conclave, those same traits are liabilities. As Colleen Dulle, Vatican reporter for America magazine, explained to me, he who enters a conclave a pope exits a cardinal, meaning, if any cardinal campaigns too openly for the job, his chances diminish.  To represent an implicit contrast to Trump, Dickerson ended by invoking George Washington and that true leaders in any form should be those who aren’t exactly looking for power: That same suspicion of ambition shaped the early American presidency. George Washington didn’t campaign, nor did many of the first American presidents. It was believed that gross ambition was a cancer. So maybe the systems aren’t that different. Both are shaped, at least in their ideal, by a common fear, that the person who most wants power may be the last person who should have it Co-anchor Maurice DuBois was in obvious awe: “Well said, John. What a concept.” It wasn’t entirely surprising to see Dickerson’s decision to offer a commentary blasting American politics when, earlier in the show, he started to go down this road by emphasizing “humility” in leaders as countercultural with a local priest in Rome (an American who previously served in New York City as Dickerson’s parish priest) (click “expand”): DICKERSON [TO BERRIOS]: What are you looking for in the next pope?      FATHER MATTHEW BERRIOS: A shepherd, first and foremost, a man that can listen, a man that can lead, but a man that knows how to be humble. DICKERSON: Why is humility so important? BERRIOS: Because that is a pure imitation of Jesus. Being a leader is not about vaunting yourself. It’s not about putting your name on buildings and proclaiming yourself. It’s about putting yourself in love at the service and care of others, especially of the most vulnerable. DICKERSON [TO BERRIOS]: Really sounds like your description of Pope Francis. BERRIOS: Absolutely. DICKERSON: The shepherd must smell like the sheep, Pope Francis said. And all day long, the flock has gathered as bells pealed, the rain fell to celebrate his push to put his life, his office and his church among the people. Not everyone embraced Francis’ style. Yet, in a church short on priests and losing parishioners, his authenticity, his joy, his humility wasn’t just holy, says Father Matt; it was necessary. [TO BERRIOS] Does the church have to find a balance that allows it to be more accessible for people in a modern world? BERRIOS: I think so. It’s trying to find the fundamental proclamation of faith and proclaim it in a way that is in the language of the everyday person spoken in the language of the culture. DICKERSON: Some people we spoke with here say Pope Francis made the church feel close, so close he could call himself the world’s parish priest. The task for the church now? Finding a pope who nurtures that same feeling, where it’s possible to run into your neighborhood priest in Rome and have it feel like more than a coincidence. To see the relevant CBS transcript from April 24, click here.

FBI Director Kash Patel announced Friday morning that the agency recently arrested a Wisconsin judge, claiming that she helped an illegal alien "evade arrest."Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested on obstruction charges, according to Patel. 'They were asked whether they had a warrant, and the agents presented the warrant as well as their identification.'The FBI director wrote in an X post that Dugan attempted to obstruct an "immigration arrest operation last week.""We believe Judge Dugan intentionally misdirected federal agents away from the subject to be arrested in her courthouse, Eduardo Flores Ruiz, allowing the subject — an illegal alien — to evade arrest," he stated."Thankfully, our agents chased down the perp on foot and he’s been in custody since, but the Judge’s obstruction created increased danger to the public," Patel wrote.He noted that the agency would have "more to share soon" on Dugan's arrest and thanked the FBI Milwaukee for its "excellent work." — (@) Federal sources confirmed Dugan's arrest to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, stating that she is scheduled to appear in court on Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen Dries. Dugan's arrest occurred at the courthouse, according to multiple Milwaukee County judges, the news outlet reported.Dugan declined the Journal Sentinel's request for comment regarding the investigation on Thursday. On Tuesday, she told the news outlet, "Nearly every fact regarding the 'tips' in your email is inaccurate."Flores-Ruiz, whom Dugan is accused of assisting in evading authorities, is reportedly a 30-year-old Mexican national facing three misdemeanor battery counts. His pretrial conference was scheduled for April 18 in Dugan's courtroom. When Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrived in Dugan's courtroom, the judge allegedly instructed Flores-Ruiz and his attorney to escape out a side door leading to a private hallway with an exit into a public area, sources told the Journal Sentinel. According to an email from Chief Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Carl Ashley to judges, the ICE agents had an arrest warrant."They were asked whether they had a warrant, and the agents presented the warrant as well as their identification," the email reads. "They were asked to go to Chief Judge's office. They complied. … They presented a warrant, which we copied."Dugan responded to Ashley's email on April 21, stating, "As a point of clarification below, a warrant was not presented in the hallway on the sixth floor."ICE previously arrested two individuals at the same courthouse in March and April.The FBI did not respond to requests for comment from the Journal Sentinel.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

University of Louisville officials have agreed to pay nearly $1.6 million to settle their case with Dr. Allan Josephson, the professor whom the university demoted, then canned for speaking out against child sex changes, after 15 years of distinguished service. "I'm glad to finally receive vindication for voicing what I know is true," Josephson said in a statement Monday. Gender ideology and the sex-change regime it gave rise to in the West have suffered a series of mortal blows in recent years. The practice of so-called gender-affirming care has been outed as ruinous pseudo-science; practitioners have been damned by their own words as freewheeling mutilators; and LGBT activists' narrative in support of sex changes has collapsed in the face of mounting contradictory evidence. Meanwhile, across the country and beyond, lawmakers have passed legislation and policy affirming the meaningful and immutable distinction between men and women, preventing the invasion by men of women's spaces, and protecting children from sex-change procedures. While popular opinion is now unmistakably against gender ideology and the corresponding medicalization of children, those who stood their ground against the sex-change regime in recent years often did so at great reputational and professional risk. Dr. Allan Josephson found this out the hard way. 'Runs counter to the messages of inclusion and welcome that we have been sending.' Josephson, a psychiatrist, joined the University of Louisville School of Medicine in 2003, where he led the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology without incident until Josephson spoke on a Heritage Foundation panel in October 2017 titled "Gender Dysphoria in Children: Understanding the Science and the Medicine." Josephson — who previously expressed concerns over the medical procedures to which children experiencing so-called gender dysphoria were being subjected — explained:Gender dysphoria is a socio-cultural, psychological phenomenon that cannot be fully addressed with drugs and surgery. Thus, doctors and others should explore what causes this confusion and help the child learn how to meet this developmental challenge. According to court documents, the psychiatrist's opinion apparently did not sit well with Brian Buford, the director of the university's LGBT executive center, who contacted the medical school's then-dean Toni Ganzel, suggesting that Josephson "might be violating the ethical standards for psychiatry" and drawing unwanted national attention for an opinion that "puts our reputation at risk and runs counter to the messages of inclusion and welcome that we have been sending." Ganzel, in turn, noted that Josephson's remarks did not "reflect the culture" that the school was "trying so hard to promote," said court documents. The concern-mongering over Josephson's perceived "highly conservative position" quickly snowballed. The doctor's colleagues began hectoring him about his remarks, and by the end of the November 2017, they were pressuring him to resign as division chief for daring to express an opinion out of line with the new orthodoxy. Under mounting pressure, Josephson agreed to resign as division head effective early December 2017. This did not, however, satisfy the ideologues in his midst who were apparently keen on institutional uniformity of vision on this issue. Court documents indicate that officials in the school's LGBT executive center as well as Josephson's division colleagues plotted to undermine him, partly by challenging his "inductive reasoning as unscientific and ask how much he's earned as an expert witness over the last two years on sexuality issues." 'Public universities have no business punishing professors simply because they hold different views.' Josephson was told not to treat non-straight patients and apparently surveilled, with his conduct detailed on what one division official dubbed an "Allan tracking document." Those colleagues who took issue with his remarks also criticized Josephson's work performance and productivity. By February 2019, it became clear that the school had decided not to renew the doctor's contract. Shortly thereafter, Josephson filed suit against several university officials, alleging First Amendment retaliation. The university fought the case all the way up to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, which ruled in September that:Josephson's speech was constitutionally protected, as it addressed a matter of public concern; the university officials failed to demonstrate that Josephson's "remarks had a significant disruptive effect on the Medical School's operations"; and a reasonable jury could find that each of the defendants "retaliated against Josephson because he engaged in speech protected by the First Amendment." Apparently aware they were fighting a losing battle, university officials apparently agreed to pay nearly $1.6 million in damages and attorney fee to settle the lawsuit. "After several years, free speech and common sense have scored a major victory on college campuses," said Travis Barham, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, the group that represented Josephson. "As early as 2014, Dr. Josephson saw the truth behind dangerous procedures that activists were pushing on children struggling with their sex," continued Barham. "He risked his livelihood and reputation to speak the truth boldly, and the university punished him for expressing his opinion — ultimately by dismissing him. But public universities have no business punishing professors simply because they hold different views." "Hopefully, other public universities will learn from this that if they violate the First Amendment, they can be held accountable, and it can be very expensive," added Barham. Josephson stated, "Children deserve better than life-altering procedures that mutilate their bodies and destroy their ability to lead fulfilling lives. In spite of the circumstances I suffered through with my university, I'm overwhelmed to see that my case helped lead the way for other medical practitioners to see the universal truth that altering biological sex is impossibly dangerous, while acceptance of one's sex leads to flourishing." Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The NFL draft opened with a lot more fanfare than usual in 2025, but received backlash just for mentioning the sitting president.As soon-to-play athletes in the NFL showed up in fancier suits and bigger chains than ever before due to name, image, and likeness deals, the pageantry of the 2025 NFL Draft was unlike any other, as seemingly the entire city of Green Bay, Wisconsin, showed up to an outdoor rendition of the night that looked more like a music festival than a sporting event.The night began, for some reason, with Commissioner Roger Goodell, former Green Bay Packers star Clay Matthews, and rapper Lil Wayne riding bicycles onto the stage.Matthews then stepped up to the podium to begin the night and revealed he had a message from the president."I just got off the phone with the president, Donald Trump," Matthews began, as the crowd reacted with a huge cheer. "He asked me to pass a message along to all 32 NFL franchises."Matthews then slowly opened an envelope before saying, "So let me tell you what it reads here, all right? It says, 'My fellow Americans, the Bears still suck!'"Matthews later posted a picture of his alleged presidential letter online. However, even just a passing mention of President Trump during the draft was enough to rattle a few cages.One fan called the instance "s***ty," while another who had "Trump for prison" in their X profile said to Matthews, "Another reason to hate you."One viewer even took the chance to call Matthews a "MAGA fascist." — (@) It was a unique draft night for many reasons, but no more awkward moment was felt than one involving Colorado's Shedeur Sanders, son of Pro Football Hall of Fame member Deion Sanders. Sanders had an entire set erected and a draft party set up in anticipation of his first-round selection. The set was complete with a shelf of prospective teams' hats, an interview area, and more. Unfortunately for Sanders, he was not drafted and had to address fans and media members after his name went uncalled."We all didn't expect this, of course," Sanders told fans. "But I feel like with God, anything is possible, everything is possible. I don't feel like this happened for no reason." Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty ImagesAs for the first overall selection, the Tennessee Titans chose Cam Ward from Miami with their No. 1 pick. The young quarterback thanked God for his selection as he fought back tears."The hard work that I put myself through, and just the unbelievable work ethic that I have — I just always had faith."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Run, JUDGE, Run! What Judge Hannah Dugan Did When Reporters Tried Questioning Her Speaks VOLUMES (Watch)

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It has been a crazy week, from the reveal and shadow-drop of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered to the release of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, a new turn-based RPG from the French studio Sandfall Interactive.

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