After being detained at a protest outside an immigration detention center, a New Jersey mayor sued a close ally of US President Donald Trump.
Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, New Jersey, accused acting US Attorney Alina Habba of “subjecting him to false arrest and malicious prosecution” in a civil complaint filed on Tuesday.
Additionally, the complaint lists Ricky Patel, a special agent with the investigations unit of the Department of Homeland Security, as a co-defendant.
Mayor Baraka is accused of suffering “severe reputational harm, emotional distress, and other damages” as a result of this false arrest, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit comes as a result of a May 9 protest outside Delaney Hall, a Newark immigration detention facility that is privately run.
As protesters gathered outside the gate, Baraka, a long-time critic of the facility, joined three Democratic members of the US House of Representatives for a tour of the 1, 000-bed detention facility.
The GEO Group, the organization’s owner, is accused of allowing Baraka to enter Delaney Hall’s wire gate. However, it states that Patel threatened arrest him if he refused to leave once more.
Baraka complied, but shortly after, Department of Homeland Security agents surrounded, handcuffed, and led him away as he stood with protesters outside the gate.
The agents “pushed, shoved, and assaulted” the mayor’s security team before arresting him, according to the complaint. The Delaney Hall grounds are alleged to be trespassed on by Baraka.
Despite being invited inside, Baraka claimed on social media that they abused their position to violently arrest me at Delaney Hall on Tuesday. “Nobody is above the law,” said one.
Baraka was initially accused of trespassing because of his actions during the demonstration by Habba. However, she had already moved to dismiss the charge on May 19 and the judge in charge had rebuked her.
Judge Andre Espinosa addressed a representative for Habba’s office, noting that “your role is not to secure convictions at all costs, nor to satisfy public clamor, nor to advance political agendas.”
Espinosa remarked, “The hasty arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, followed quickly by the dismissal of those trespassing charges by your office,” Espinosa continued.
An arrest, particularly one made of a prominent figure, is not a preliminary investigative tool. Only after a thorough, impartial evaluation of reliable evidence should it be taken place because it is a serious action that has serious reputational and personal repercussions.
LaMonica McIver, a US Congress member, was also present at the Delaney Hall protest, and she announced she would be pursuing criminal charges at the same time she announced she wanted the trespassing charge dismissed.
During Baraka’s arrest, Habba charged McIver with assaulting law enforcement. The investigation is ongoing. However, Representative McIver has called the allegations against her “purely political,” and she supported Baraka’s lawsuit in a statement released on Tuesday.
The statement reads, “The way Mayor Baraka was treated at Delaney Hall was outrageous.” There was never any legal or factual justification for his arrest or charge, the statement goes on. It is scandalous how the administration interacts with our justice system.
Habba herself voiced her opinion in the days leading up to Baraka’s lawsuit, calling it a waste of time.
On Monday, Habba wrote on social media that “he intends to sue the Feds.” Please join me in putting a priority on public safety and violent crime, my advice to the mayor. Much better use of time for New Jersey’s outstanding citizens.
Before joining Trump’s administration following his second inauguration in January, Habba had previously worked for the president’s personal legal team.
Trump’s second term as president has faced logistical challenges, including a lack of detention facilities, despite his pledge to pursue a “mass deportation” policy. Delaney Hall was given a 15-year contract by his administration to help meet the growing bed demand, which the facility first opened in May.
Baraka has argued that Delaney Hall was subject to improper local permission and has frequently participated in protests outside the immigration center. Any permitting violations are disputed by the GEO Group.
The Trump administration has long been accused of retaliating against those who oppose the president’s signature policies, including his immigration crackdown, by critics, particularly on the left.
For instance, in the lawsuit filed on Tuesday, Habba is accused of defaming Baraka during her trespassing arrest and detention.
According to the lawsuit, defendant Habba was acting for political reasons and was acting without proper legal grounds when she authorized and/or directed the arrest of Mayor Baraka.
Further, the complaint claims that Baraka “broke into” the detention facility and that other Trump administration employees “in promoting a false and defamatory narrative”.
In the Democratic primary for governor of New Jersey in November, Baraka will run. His lawsuit claims that the arrest and subsequent trespassing charge were intended to “damage him politically.”
