Thread by @RickEsenberg

This is lawyerly obfuscation. It's not particularly good obfuscation, but, then, there's not much to work with. Maybe there is a defense to these charges but, if the complaint is accurate, it's not because no one could conclude that the Judge was trying to sneak Mr. Flores-Ruiz past federal agents. 🧵1/15

First, the calendar was not disrupted. The agents were asked to wait for Mr. Flores-Ruiz' case to be handled and agreed to wait in the hall. Judge Dugan was offended by the agents' presence and left the bench to seek them out. 2/15

Second, the argument that the affidavit only mentions her anger because she is a female is misdirection. These are intent crimes. Her reaction to being informed of the presence of federal agent goes to intent. 3/15

Third, the team was split and most left the space outside her room because Judge Dugan told them to speak to the chief judge. According to the complaint, she seemed to be trying to ensure that none of them remained outside the courtroom. Maybe that wasn't her intent but it looks like a reasonable inference. 4/15

Fourth, the judge then expedited consideration of the case , adjourning it apparently without consulting the prosecutor or the victims who were in the room.

Fifth, while Mr. Flores-Ruiz eventually entered a public hallway (I don't think you can leave the building any other way) she did it by directing them to a private hallway that is not open to the public and is not where you'd expect a party to leave the court. 6/15

Sixth, the fact that two members of the team looked down the hall and saw the defendant "briskly" walking away and took up pursuit doesn't, strictly speaking, matter to the obstruction charge which can't be defeated by arguing that they "should have" got him sooner. 7/15

Seventh, nor does the fact that they chose not to arrest with only two persons constitute a defense. That a lawyer thinks a "real" cop like, say, Harry Bosch would have tackled him in the hallway doesn't matter. Had they been able to arrest him before he got on the elevator, we'd still be looking at the same charges. 8/15

Eighth, there was no "keystone cops" caper. The DEA agent followed them outside so he could request the remainder of the team to follow and effectuate the arrest. 9/15

Ninth, that they had to "scramble" to get him is a result of the attempt to help him get away. They chased him because he ran - something that may not have happened if he was in a hallway on the sixth floor. 10/15

But, again, not of this much matters. 11/15

Of course, Judge Dugan can argue that this doesn't constitute obstruction or concealment. I don't know that she'll succeed. I'm not sure the argument that she only caused the agents "minor inconvenience" is true or relevant. 12/15

I suppose you could try to construct a 10th Amendment argument but "don't make our job harder" is not the type of commandeering that violates federalism and claiming that states have a right to shield persons in public areas from federal law enforcement is a tough sell. 13/15

But, if the affidavit supporting the complaint is accurate, the idea that she was arrested for doing her job or that she wasn't trying to prevent the arrest of a person in the country unlawfully is a nonstarter. But she's got a really good defense lawyer, so we'll see. 14/15

Finally, you can argue that the feds shouldn't have bothered but a judge acting to interfere with federal law enforcement is kind of a big deal. If that's what happened, no one should be surprised that there are consequences. 15/15