Rep. LaMonica McIver indicted by grand jury over incident at ICE detention facility
A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver for allegedly assaulting law enforcement officers outside of an immigration detention facility last month, officials announced Tuesday.
The three-count indictment charges the Democratic congresswoman with "forcibly impeding and interfering with federal law enforcement officers" at the facility, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Alina Habba said in a post on X.
"As I have stated in the past, it is my Constitutional obligation as the Chief Federal Law Enforcement Officer for New Jersey to ensure that our federal partners are protected when executing their duties," Habba said. "While people are free to express their views for or against particular policies, they must not do so in a manner that endangers law enforcement and the communities those officers serve."
The indictment is a standard procedural step after Habba's office charged McIver via a criminal complaint last month.
McIver has vowed she will fight the charges and plans to plead not guilty.
"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," she said in a statement on X. "This indictment is no more justified than the original charges, 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. But it won't work -- I will not be intimidated."
On May 9, McIver and a few other members of Congress were at Delaney Hall, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Newark, New Jersey, to conduct oversight.
Tensions escalated when a federal officer ordered Newark Mayor Ras Baraka to leave a secured area of the facility or face arrest, and pushing and shoving allegedly occurred, according to prosecutors.
"During her continued attempts to thwart the arrest, McIver slammed her forearm into the body of one law enforcement officer and also reached out and tried to restrain that officer by forcibly grabbing him," the Department of Justice said in a press release on Tuesday. "McIver also used each of her forearms to forcibly strike a second officer."
Following the charges via criminal complaint, McIver alleged in a statement that the decision was politically motivated.
"The charges against me are purely political -- they mischaracterize and distort my actions, and are meant to criminalize and deter legislative oversight," McIver said.
Top House Democrats also released a joint statement last month defending McIver, vowing to "vigorously" respond to what they say is an illegitimate abuse of power.
"An attack on one of us is an attack on the American people. House Democrats will respond vigorously in the days to come at a time, place and manner of our choosing," the leaders said.
If convicted, the maximum penalty for the charges in the indictment ranges from one to eight years, Habba said.
Baraka was arrested at the facility and charged with trespassing, though Habba later dropped the charge.
