Latest news with #DelaneyHall
Associated Press
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Meet Rep. LaMonica McIver, the Democrat being prosecuted over encounter outside NJ immigration jail
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges she assaulted officials during an oversight visit to an immigration detention center in May. It's a rare federal prosecution against a current member of Congress on charges other than corruption or fraud. Outside court, the congresswoman was defiant, saying the charges won't stop her from doing her job. The 39-year-old Newark, New Jersey, native is in her first full term in Congress, and has garnered more attention than many longer-tenured members. Here's a closer look at the 10th District Democrat: 'Still has that fight' McIver was born in Newark, New Jersey's largest city, and grew up in what Newark Mayor Ras Baraka — who was her elementary school teacher — said was a tough neighborhood. Baraka has become one of her most vocal and highest profile supporter and was in court Wednesday to support her. Federal immigration officials arrested Baraka outside the Delaney Hall detention center on May 9 on a trespassing charge they later dropped. McIver was seen guarding him in video released from the encounter. In an interview, he recalled McIver as a smart student whose mother sent her to help with one of his elections, passing out campaign literature. He recalled running unsuccessfully for years before finally getting elected, and said McIver was at his side for much of it. 'She's the same person in spirit who she was in the fifth and sixth grade,' Baraka said. 'She still has that fight in her, that ability and desire, you know, not to be bullied or pushed around and to, you, know, represent herself, her community—she's still doing that.' Early years McIver attended Bloomfield College and Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey, where she obtained a master's degree. She worked in public education, including stints with Newark and Montclair public schools, and in 2018 was elected to the Newark City Council. She became the council's president in 2022. A measure lowering the voting age to 16 for school board elections in the city passed under her tenure, among others. New Jersey state Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz said she forged a bond with McIver during the COVID-19 pandemic when they attended their daughters' soccer games. They discussed balancing work and life. 'This is a women who loves her family,' Ruiz said. This is woman who loves public office. This is the woman who loves her city, her state and her country.' A request for an interview or comment sent to McIver's office was not answered. Rise to Congress In 2024 McIver emerged victorious from the Democratic field and won a special election in September after Rep. Donald Payne Jr. died in office. She won a full two-year term in November. LeRoy Jones, who chairs the state Democratic Party as well as its Essex County counterpart, described her as a rising star. She can 'walk with Kings and Queens but still has the common touch,' he said. In Congress, McIver sponsored legislation to remove a cap on shelter expenses that beneficiaries can claim for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program as well as a gun buyback measure aimed at making neighborhoods safer. Neither bill has advanced in the GOP-led House. The charges McIver faces three counts of assaulting, resisting, impeding and interfering with federal officials. If convicted, she could potentially face prison time, though a judge could impose a lesser penalty. McIver's lawyer, former U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Paul Fishman, said Wednesday 'she pleaded not guilty because she is not guity.' The charges stem from a congressional oversight visit to the center that McIver and Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman and Rob Menendez undertook that resulted in Baraka's arrest after officials determined he wasn't authorized to enter. Members of Congress are authorized by law to conduct visits. A criminal complaint alleges that she 'slammed' her forearm into an agent and then tried to restrain the agent by grabbing him. The indictment also says she placed her arms around the mayor to try to stop his arrest and says again that she slammed her forearm into and grabbed an agent. A nearly two-minute video clip released by the Homeland Security Department shows McIver at the facility inside a chain-link fence just before Baraka's arrest on the other side of the barrier, where other people were protesting. McIver and uniformed officials go through the gate, and she joins others shouting that they should circle the mayor. The video shows McIver in a tightly packed group of people and officers. At one point, her left elbow and then her right elbow push into an officer.
CNN
25-06-2025
- Politics
- CNN
US Rep. LaMonica McIver pleads not guilty to assault charges stemming from immigration center visit
US Rep. LaMonica McIver pleaded not guilty Wednesday to federal charges accusing her of assaulting and interfering with immigration officers outside a New Jersey detention center during a congressional oversight visit at the facility. 'They will not intimidate me. They will not stop me from doing my job,' she said outside the courthouse in Newark after the brief hearing. McIver, a Democrat, was charged in a complaint by interim US Attorney Alina Habba, a Republican appointed by President Donald Trump, following the May 9 visit to Newark's Delaney Hall. Immigration and Customs Enforcement uses the privately owned, 1,000-bed facility as a detention center. This month she was indicted on three counts of assaulting, resisting, impeding and interfering with federal officials. Habba said two counts carry a maximum sentence of up to eight years in prison. The third has a maximum of one year. During Wednesday's hearing, McIver stood and told US District Judge Jamel Semper: 'Your honor, I plead not guilty.' The judge set a November 10 trial date. Outside the courthouse, McIver warned that anyone who pushes back against the Trump administration will find themselves in a similar position. McIver's lawyer, former US Attorney for New Jersey Paul Fishman, said McIver pleaded not guilty because she is not guilty. He said federal agents created a risky situation at Delaney Hall. The indictment is the latest development in a legal-political drama that has seen the Trump administration take Democratic officials from New Jersey's largest city to court amid the president's ongoing immigration crackdown and Democrats' efforts to respond. The prosecution is a rare federal criminal case against a sitting member of Congress for allegations other than fraud or corruption. During the same visit to the detention center, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested on a trespassing charge that was later dropped. Baraka is suing Habba over what he called a malicious prosecution. A nearly two-minute video clip released by the Department of Homeland Security shows McIver at the facility inside a chain-link fence just before Baraka's arrest on other side of the barrier, where other people were protesting. McIver and uniformed officials go through the gate, and she joins others shouting that they should circle the mayor. The video shows McIver in a tightly packed group of people and officers. At one point her left elbow and then her right elbow push into an officer wearing a dark face covering and an olive green uniform emblazoned with the word 'Police.' It is not clear from police bodycam video if the contact was intentional, incidental or the result of jostling in the chaotic scene. The complaint alleges that she 'slammed' her forearm into an agent and then tried to restrain the agent by grabbing him. The indictment also says she placed her arms around the mayor to try to stop his arrest and says again that she slammed her forearm into and grabbed an agent. Democrats including New Jersey Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman and Rob Menendez, who were with McIver at the detention center that day, have criticized the arrest and disputed the charges. Members of Congress are legally authorized to go into federal immigration facilities as part of their oversight powers, even without notice. Congress passed a 2019 appropriations bill spelling out that authority. McIver, 39, first came to Congress in September in a special election after the death of Rep. Donald Payne Jr. left a vacancy in the 10th District. She was then elected to a full term in November. A Newark native, she was president of the Newark City Council from 2022 to 2024 and worked in the city's public schools before that.
CNN
25-06-2025
- Politics
- CNN
US Rep. LaMonica McIver pleads not guilty to assault charges stemming from immigration center visit
US Rep. LaMonica McIver pleaded not guilty Wednesday to federal charges accusing her of assaulting and interfering with immigration officers outside a New Jersey detention center during a congressional oversight visit at the facility. 'They will not intimidate me. They will not stop me from doing my job,' she said outside the courthouse in Newark after the brief hearing. McIver, a Democrat, was charged in a complaint by interim US Attorney Alina Habba, a Republican appointed by President Donald Trump, following the May 9 visit to Newark's Delaney Hall. Immigration and Customs Enforcement uses the privately owned, 1,000-bed facility as a detention center. This month she was indicted on three counts of assaulting, resisting, impeding and interfering with federal officials. Habba said two counts carry a maximum sentence of up to eight years in prison. The third has a maximum of one year. During Wednesday's hearing, McIver stood and told US District Judge Jamel Semper: 'Your honor, I plead not guilty.' The judge set a November 10 trial date. Outside the courthouse, McIver warned that anyone who pushes back against the Trump administration will find themselves in a similar position. McIver's lawyer, former US Attorney for New Jersey Paul Fishman, said McIver pleaded not guilty because she is not guilty. He said federal agents created a risky situation at Delaney Hall. The indictment is the latest development in a legal-political drama that has seen the Trump administration take Democratic officials from New Jersey's largest city to court amid the president's ongoing immigration crackdown and Democrats' efforts to respond. The prosecution is a rare federal criminal case against a sitting member of Congress for allegations other than fraud or corruption. During the same visit to the detention center, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested on a trespassing charge that was later dropped. Baraka is suing Habba over what he called a malicious prosecution. A nearly two-minute video clip released by the Department of Homeland Security shows McIver at the facility inside a chain-link fence just before Baraka's arrest on other side of the barrier, where other people were protesting. McIver and uniformed officials go through the gate, and she joins others shouting that they should circle the mayor. The video shows McIver in a tightly packed group of people and officers. At one point her left elbow and then her right elbow push into an officer wearing a dark face covering and an olive green uniform emblazoned with the word 'Police.' It is not clear from police bodycam video if the contact was intentional, incidental or the result of jostling in the chaotic scene. The complaint alleges that she 'slammed' her forearm into an agent and then tried to restrain the agent by grabbing him. The indictment also says she placed her arms around the mayor to try to stop his arrest and says again that she slammed her forearm into and grabbed an agent. Democrats including New Jersey Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman and Rob Menendez, who were with McIver at the detention center that day, have criticized the arrest and disputed the charges. Members of Congress are legally authorized to go into federal immigration facilities as part of their oversight powers, even without notice. Congress passed a 2019 appropriations bill spelling out that authority. McIver, 39, first came to Congress in September in a special election after the death of Rep. Donald Payne Jr. left a vacancy in the 10th District. She was then elected to a full term in November. A Newark native, she was president of the Newark City Council from 2022 to 2024 and worked in the city's public schools before that.
CBS News
25-06-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
N.J. Rep. LaMonica McIver faces arraignment on federal assault charges
New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver is due back in court Wednesday to face arraignment on related to a clash at the ICE detention facility at Delaney Hall in Newark. McIver's supporters, including Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and immigrants rights groups, rallied outside of federal court in Newark to call for the charges to be dropped. In a statement, McIver said she would plead not guilty. McIver is facing charges for the same May incident which resulted in Newark Mayor Ras Baraka's arrest, although trespassing charges against Baraka have since been dropped. Interim New Jersey U.S. Attorney Alina Habba has nonetheless moved forward with the charges against McIver. If convicted, she faces eight years in What happened at Delaney Hall Back in May, McIver was with Baraka and two other members of Congress to conduct federal oversight of Delaney Hall, a 1,000-bed facility that ICE is using as a detention center. The facility has been the site of numerous protests over conditions there, and Baraka has challenged the federal government over it, saying the facility lacked the proper permits to reopen be put to use. The Department of Homeland Security initially claimed the group of lawmakers came "storming into [the] detention facility" as part of a "bizarre political stunt." A scuffle ensued, resulting in Baraka's arrest. McIver was charged after a DHS agent alleged in an affidavit she and others attempted to stop Baraka's arrest by forming a human shield around him, and that she "slammed her forearm into the body" of a uniformed agent and "reached out and tried to restrain" the agent from grabbing Baraka. In footage posted online by DHS, McIver, wearing a red jacket, can be seen along the Delaney Hall fence as Baraka is being arrested. As the group of protesters and law enforcement start to brush up against each other, McIver is spotted using her elbows to move herself past an officer In the days since the incident, a group of detainees broke out of the facility through a hole in the wall. Almost all have been recaptured, though one remains at large. contributed to this report.
Fox News
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Dem rep to plead not guilty to federal charges for incident at Newark ICE facility
A New Jersey Congresswoman who was involved in a much-publicized altercation outside an immigration facility last month is expected to appear in court later today to face charges for allegedly obstructing Homeland Security agents. Rep. LaMonica McIver, D-N.J., is charged in a three-count indictment of forcibly impeding federal officers during the attempted arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka at the Delaney Hall immigration facility on May 9. She says she will plead not guilty to the charges. McIver and two other members of Congress said they were conducting a congressional oversight visit that coincided with an immigration protest, when a clash ensued with federal agents. 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. "The facts of this case will prove I was simply doing my job and will expose these proceedings for what they are: a brazen attempt at political intimidation," McIver said in a statement. "This indictment is no more justified than the original charge and is an effort by Trump's administration to dodge accountability for the chaos ICE caused and scare me out of doing the work I was elected to do," she continued. "But it won't work—I will not be intimidated. The facts are on our side, I will be entering a plea of not guilty, I'm grateful for the support of my community, and I look forward to my day in court." 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.
