Judge lectures DOJ over Ras Baraka arrest at ICE facility— as NJ Rep. LaMonica McIver is released without bail
Both officials were part of a group of rowdy Democratic politicians who stormed Delaney Hall in Newark to protest the reopening of the migrant detention center.
Baraka was arrested at the scene and federal prosecutors decline to pursue charges, while McIver was slapped with felony charges including assault days after the May 9 fracas.
3 Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested May 9 after a group of Democratic lawmakers stormed an ICE detention facility. The charges were later dismissed with prejudice.
Brian Branch Price/ZUMA / SplashNews.com
Advertisement
U.S. Magistrate Judge Andre Espinosa called the arrest of Baraka — a leading candidate in next month's Democratic primary for NJ governor — a 'worrisome misstep,' and criticized the 'apparent rush' to bring the case that resulted in the feds' 'embarrassing' withdrawal of the misdemeanor charge.
'Your role is not to secure convictions at all costs, nor to satisfy public clamor, nor to advance political agendas,' Espinosa told the DOJ lawyer, The Hill reported.
'Your allegiance is to the impartial application of the law, to the pursuit of truth and to the upholding of due process for all,' Espinosa chided as he dismissed the complaint with prejudice — meaning it can never be resurrected.
Advertisement
The judge further castigated the DOJ, characterizing an arrest as a 'severe action carrying significant reputational and personal consequences.'
Baraka's attorneys both said he was innocent of the charge and that his exoneration was a fait accompli.
Meanwhile, McIver made her first appearance in New Jersey federal court to answer to felony assault charges filed against her after the ICE facility protest.
3 NJ Rep. LaMonica McIver was not arrested at the protest, but was hit with federal charges including assault days after by the New Jersey US Attorney's office.
AP
Advertisement
Appearing via video screen, McIver, 38, was read her rights before being released on her own recognizance.
She faces up to eight years in prison if convicted.
Until her preliminary hearing — set for June 11 — McIver is not allowed to travel outside of the country unless it's required for official work purposes, and she must notify the government before doing so.
McIver, who has represented New Jersey's 10th Congressional District since last September, slammed the charges as 'purely political' and blamed the ICE agents at the scene for escalating the confrontation.
Advertisement
'It was very unnecessary,' she told CNN Tuesday, calling the charges 'absurd' as she insisted she was 'there to do my job.'
'If I'm going to be charged with a crime for doing my job, it really speaks to where we're headed in this country.'
3 A two-count criminal complaint against McIver alleges she used physical force against federal immigration officials.
U.S District Court for the District of New Jersey
Acting New Jersey US Attorney Alina Habba defended filing the felony charges, telling The Post that the congresswoman's alleged assault of federal agents was beyond the pale.
'This has nothing to do with congressional oversight, and it has nothing to do with politics. It's about respecting those who risk their lives to keep us safe,' said Habba, who was formerly President Trump's personal lawyer.
In the caught-on-camera scuffle outside the Delaney Hall Detention Center — which houses violent criminal migrants including MS-13 gangbangers — McIver was seen shoving and shouting at Homeland Security and ICE agents, which led to her being slapped with a two-count criminal indictment Monday.
'McIver slammed her forearm into the body of … a uniformed HSI agent. She also reached out and tried to restrain [the agent] by forcibly grabbing him,' the complaint details.
Investigators used bodycam footage and aerial camera stills to show McIver's actions during the melee. They say the images offer proof that she assaulted the federal officers and tried to stop them from arresting Baraka.
Advertisement
After the mayor was arrested, she allegedly 'forcibly struck' an ICE agent, according to the complaint.
Reps. Robert Menendez Jr. (D-NJ) and Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) were also at the protest.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
38 minutes ago
- Yahoo
'Going the wrong way': Colorado Gov. Polis on Trump's E.U. tariff negotiations
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis joins "PoliticsNation" to discuss Trump's tariff deal with the E.U., which includes hundreds of billions of European investment in American energy, investments and military equipment and no tariffs on American goods in exchange for 15% blanket tariffs on European goods. The governor also talked about ICE arrests and the 2028 state primary sequence for the Democratic Party. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Deputy Attorney General to meet today with Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell
U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche is meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's former girlfriend, on Thursday in Florida, where she is serving time for her role in their sex trafficking scheme to abuse girls, according to a CNN report. Blanche had announced Tuesday that he had contacted Maxwell's attorneys to pursue any potential new leads as Trump's MAGA base excoriates the administration over its handling of the so-called 'Epstein Files.' A July 6 DOJ memo had concluded there were no more significant disclosures to be made in the case. Maxwell will be transported from Florida Correctional Institution-Tallahassee, where she is being held, to the U.S. attorney's office, which is located inside Tallahassee's federal courthouse, ABC News reported. Blanche declined to comment at the courthouse on Thursday morning but David Oscar Markus, an attorney for Maxwell, told ABC: "We're looking forward to a productive day.' Maxwell, 63, was sentenced to 20 years in 2021 for her role in a scheme to sexually exploit and abuse multiple girls with Epstein and is serving time at the federal prison. Her attorneys have taken an appeal of her conviction to the Supreme Court. On Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal reported that President Donald Trump was told in May by Attorney General Pam Bondi that his name appeared in the Epstein Files 'multiple times'. The president denied to reporters earlier this month that his name was in the files. Appearing in the files does not indicate that an individual has committed any wrongdoing, nor has Trump ever been accused of misconduct in connection with the Epstein case. 'This is another fake news story, just like the previous story by The Wall Street Journal,' White House communications director Steven Cheung told the WSJ about the claims Trump was named in the files. The president has filed a $10 billion defamation suit against the WSJ and its owners after it published a report last week claiming that Trump gave Epstein a bawdy birthday card in 2003. Trump has vehemently denied the claims. On Tuesday, the House Oversight Committee approved a subpoena for Maxwell. At the White House later that day, Trump said that the subpoena for Maxwell "sounds appropriate." Maxwell's brother praised Trump this week for making a 'positive statement' about his sister, in an interview five years ago, when the president said: 'I wish her well.' Appearing on Piers Morgan Uncensored, Ian Maxwell hailed Trump's 2020 remark. 'I don't think that anyone else showed the slightest piece of humanity, not anybody at that time, and yet he did. He didn't need to. He's the president of the United States, the most powerful man in the world. He could've just sloughed it off. He didn't. He made a positive statement. I am very grateful to that and I know Ghislaine was too,' he said. Last week, Trump requested Bondi release 'any and all pertinent' grand jury transcripts related to the Epstein case. So far two judges have denied Bondi's requests on legal grounds. The White House has been trying to quell the uproar, including from its MAGA base, following the DOJ's July 6 memo, which stated there was no 'client list' of high-profile associates linked to Epstein's sex trafficking scheme. The memo also confirmed the official investigation that the sex offender died by suicide in 2019 and said no further investigations were needed. Earlier this year, Bondi has said she had a 'truckload' of files to review from the FBI, and insinuated that the 'client list' was sitting on her desk. In February, she released 'Phase 1' of the files, a tranche of documents that included mostly publicly available information. After the July 6 DOJ memo was released, the president's MAGA following erupted, demanding more information. Democrats, as well as prominent members of Trump's own party, including his former Vice President Mike Pence, joined the calls for increased transparency around the case. Trump has pushed for the media and his supporters to move on. 'Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy's been talked about for years. You're asking — we have Texas, we have this, we have all of the things. And are people still talking about this guy, this creep? That is unbelievable,' Trump replied to a reporter, who asked him about the Epstein memo at a Cabinet meeting on July 8. The president has used Truth Social to blast his 'past supporters' for buying into 'this 'bulls***,' hook, line and sinker.' He wrote: 'Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats' work, don't even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success, because I don't want their support anymore!' Earlier this week, a CNN reporter called Trump to ask about unearthed archived photos capturing Epstein at his 1993 wedding to Marla Maples, the president replied: 'You've got to be kidding me.' The phone call lasted just 30 seconds before Trump hung up, the network reported. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Ghislaine Maxwell could dodge congressional subpoena for her testimony in Epstein investigation, lawyer says
Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell is unsure whether she will comply with a recent congressional subpoena to testify about his abuse of girls and whether others were involved, amid continued pressure for the government to disclose more about the case. 'We have to make a decision about whether she will do that or not,' her attorney David Oscar Markus told Politico. 'That's been scheduled for the week of August 11th and we haven't gotten back to them on whether we'll do that.' Maxwell could invoke the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination to avoid testifying, while Congress could offer the former British socialite immunity. Maxwell is currently in a Florida federal prison serving a 20-year sentence for conspiring with Epstein to sexually abuse minors, which she has sought to overturn in the Supreme Court. Her lawyer said, Maxwell is hoping Donald Trump pardons her. A bipartisan group on the House Oversight Committee voted Tuesday to subpoena Maxwell amid renewed interest into the Epstein scandal. Maxwell sat with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche in recent days for an in-depth interview in Florida. The interview featured Maxwell answering questions about '100 different people,' her lawyer said. DOJ officials spoke to her as fallout from the president's handling of releasing information in the Epstein case continues to mount. Democrats have criticized Maxwell's conversations with the DOJ, arguing they are a conflict of interest given the political pressure the Trump administration is facing to disclose more about the Epstein case and Trump's personal relationship with the disgraced investor. 'Under no circumstances should anyone from Trump's DOJ be allowed to privately interview Ghislaine Maxwell,' Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote on X of the interview. 'The conflict of interest is glaring. It stinks of high corruption.' The battle over Epstein info has played out beyond just Congress, which House Speaker Mike Johnson broke early for an August recess as legislators pressured the administration to disclose the full Epstein files. Last week, President Trump filed a $10 billion defamation lawsuit against right-wing media mogul Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal's parent companies News Corp and Dow Jones, after the paper reported that Trump sent a 'bawdy' birthday letter to Epstein. The president has denied the letter is valid. The Epstein saga has created a rare wedge between Trump and members of his base and party. Trump and his allies campaigned on releasing more information about Epstein, and initially, the White House made steps toward fulfilling that promise, releasing what it called 'Phase 1' of the Epstein files to a group of conservative commentators and online personalities in February. However, most of it was redacted or already disclosed. Earlier this month, the Department of Justice announced there was no 'Epstein client list' despite speculation, and that no more disclosures would be made about the case, infuriating parts of the MAGA base. The president has chastised his own supporters for their intrigue over Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial, calling the scandal a Democrat-led 'scam' and 'con job.' The president, who has previously denied being mentioned in the Epstein files, was in fact told by the Justice Department he was one of numerous high-profile figures mentioned in the course of investigations into Epstein, the Wall Street Journal has reported.
