New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver was charged on Monday with allegedly assaulting law enforcement officers outside an ICE detention facility earlier this month. (Getty Images/Department of Homeland Security)
BLUE STATE ICE FACILITY RAMPS UP SECURITY WITH NEW BARRICADES AMID CLASHES WITH PROTESTERS
According to a DOJ press release, Baraka was allowed into the facility’s secured area and then federal agents warned him to leave but he refused to do so.
When officers tried to arrest Baraka, McIver allegedly blocked them, putting her arms around the mayor, and "slammed her forearm" into one officer while grabbing another and using both of her forearms to forcibly strike the second officer.
Each of the first two counts carries a maximum eight-year prison sentence. The third carries up to one year.
The charges are being brought be Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Alina Habba, who has represented President Donald Trump between his two presidencies. Habba previously said that McIver "assaulted, impeded, and interfered with law enforcement."
McIver denounced the charges earlier this month, likening them to previous attempts by the Trump administration to silence political opponents.
Newark Democratic Mayor Ras Baraka speaks outside Delaney Hall ICE facility during the protest. Security personnel stand in front of Delaney Hall on May 7, 2025. (Getty Images and AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
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Baraka was arrested but had a trespassing charge against him dismissed.
Meanwhile, the Campaign for Accountability, a liberal watchdog group, filed an ethics complaint with the New Jersey Office of Attorney Ethics on Tuesday, accusing Habba of serious ethical misconduct related to her prosecution of McIver and the arrest of Baraka.
The complaint alleges they were politically targeted in retaliation for participating in the protest and oversight visit because their policies conflict with those of the Trump administration.
Fox News' Jasmine Baehr contributed to this report.
Michael Dorgan is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business.
You can send tips to michael.dorgan@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @M_Dorgan.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dem-rep-plead-not-guilty-federal-charges-incident-newark-ice-facility