Overview

• On June 3, Mayor Ras Baraka filed a federal lawsuit against interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba and HSI agent Ricky Patel, accusing them of false arrest, malicious prosecution and defamation tied to his detention facility arrest.
• Baraka was charged with trespassing when he tried to join a congressional oversight tour of the 1,000-bed Geo Group-operated ICE center, but Habba’s office dropped the charge on May 19.
• Federal Magistrate Judge André Espinosa reprimanded prosecutors for the hasty arrest and swift dismissal, calling the episode “embarrassing” to the Justice Department.
• Rep. LaMonica McIver faces two counts of assaulting officers from the same gate-line incident and is scheduled for a preliminary hearing later this month.
• The Justice Department’s suit against Newark and other New Jersey cities over sanctuary policies adds to the federal-local immigration enforcement clash as Baraka campaigns for governor.