Dive Brief:
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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Newark, New Jersey, Mayor Ras Baraka for trespassing and detained him for several hours after he tried to inspect the Delaney Hall ICE facility, a private immigrant detention facility in the city, on Friday.
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The U.S. Department of Homeland Security suggested that Democratic House Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, Rob Menendez and LaMonica McIver, who represent New Jersey districts, accompanied Baraka and were involved in a clash with ICE agents at the facility.
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Mayors and other officials reacted largely along party lines, with Democrats raising concerns about local versus federal authority.
Dive Insight:
The Department of Homeland Security stated in a post on its official X account that the Congress members assaulted ICE officers during the confrontation over Baraka’s arrest. “Members of Congress cannot break the law in the name of ‘oversight.’ All members and staff need to comply with facility rules, procedures, and instructions from ICE personnel on site.”
DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin wrote on her personal X account, “We will not tolerate assault against our ICE enforcement agents. By members of Congress or anyone else.”
Alina Habba, the acting U.S. attorney for the district of New Jersey, who was appointed by President Donald Trump in March, said in a post on her personal X account that Baraka “committed trespass and ignored multiple warnings from Homeland Security Investigations to remove himself from the ICE detention center” and had “willingly chosen to disregard the law.”
In a statement, CEO and executive director of the nonpartisan U.S. Conference of Mayors Tom Cochran called the arrest “deeply troubling” and said “America’s mayors register their strong support for Mayor Baraka.” As mayor, Cochran said, Baraka “has the right and the responsibility to ensure permits are issued to guarantee a facility operating in his city meets health and safety standards.”
On March 31, the City of Newark filed a complaint with Essex County Superior Court saying ICE was not following proper building safety protocols and that its failure to give city officials access to conduct inspections violated city and state law. On April 1, the City of Newark sued GEO Group, the private prison company that renovated Delaney Hall into a 1,100-bed migrant detention facility. Earlier last week, Newark city officials notified GEO of fire code violations at the facility.
Baraka, who spoke out against an immigration raid in Newark in January, has not released an official statement. After a judge ordered his release without bond on Friday evening, he told a crowd of supporters, “We did nothing wrong.”
Menendez defended the representatives’ actions on X, stating: “No matter what this Administration tells the American people, the law is very clear: Members of Congress have a legal right to enter any DHS detention facility to conduct oversight without prior notice – something I’ve done twice this year without issue.”
Democratic mayors from across the state and the region expressed outrage and support for Baraka.
Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop said on X: “Regardless of your views on ICE, the law is the law — and any facility operating in a New Jersey municipality must follow it.” He called the arrest “a dangerous precedent.”
“It is unacceptable that a sitting mayor, acting in the interest of his constituents and public safety, was denied entry and detained,” Linden, New Jersey, Mayor Derek Armstead stated on X. “This arrest sends a dangerous message about the suppression of local leadership and the silencing of those who challenge justice.”
Calling the Trump administration’s actions “unjust and potentially illegal,” Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott wrote on X: “Each overstep from this administration damages the fabric of our country’s values, the rule of law, and the trust that our communities have in government at all levels.”
