“At the end of the day, this is all about political intimidation,” she told reporters.
New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver pleaded not guilty Wednesday morning in US District Court to multiple federal charges connected to her physical confrontation at an immigration detention center.
McIver is facing a three-count indictment for allegedly assaulting federal agents during a May 9 visit to Delaney Hall, a privately owned facility used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Newark, New Jersey. Prosecutors allege she struck one agent with her forearm, “forcibly” grabbed him, and used her forearms to hit another agent. If convicted, she could face up to 17 years in prison.
Outside the courthouse in Newark, McIver denied wrongdoing and said the charges are politically motivated. “At the end of the day, this is all about political intimidation,” she told reporters alongside her attorney.
The charges stem from a visit to Delaney Hall by McIver and several other Democratic lawmakers. Prosecutors claim, per officers' body cam footage, that the visit turned physical when McIver attempted to interfere with the arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. Baraka was reportedly ordered to leave the facility by a federal officer and was arrested after refusing to comply.
The case is being led by interim US Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba. This week, the Campaign for Accountability, a left-wing watchdog group, filed a complaint against Habba with the New Jersey Office of Attorney Ethics. The complaint alleges prosecutorial misconduct in connection with the McIver case.
“In an atmosphere where other oversight bodies are caving to political influence, the bar’s duty to independently enforce these rules is ever more important,” said the group’s executive director, Michelle Kuppersmith, according to Politico.
When announcing the charges against McIver, Habba stated that prosecutors had attempted to resolve the matter without criminal action but that McIver declined. The watchdog complaint argues it was improper for Habba to condition charges on McIver’s compliance with directives from the prosecutor.
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