Newark’s Democratic Mayor is suing New Jersey’s top federal prosecutor over his arrest at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility last month.
Ras Baraka filed a federal lawsuit against Alina Habba and Department of Homeland Security agent Ricky Patel for false arrest and malicious prosecution in violation of his Fourth Amendment rights. He is also suing Habba for defamation because of a statement she made about his arrest on her personal social media account.
“Today I filed a federal lawsuit against Alina Habba and DHS Agent Ricky Patel for false arrest, malicious prosecution, and defamation. They abused their power to violently arrest me at Delaney Hall despite being invited inside. No one is above the law,” Baraka said in a statement.
A candidate in New Jersey’s gubernatorial primary, Baraka filed the suit on the day early polling opens for the contentious June 10 contest for the Democratic nomination. His gubernatorial primary opponents and outgoing Governor Phil Murphy strongly condemned the arrest, which Democrats considered a major escalation of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement strategy.
Patel oversaw Baraka’s arrest at the Delaney Hall ICE detention center on the same day three Democratic lawmakers clashed with law enforcement at the ICE facility. Representative LaMonica McIver (D., N.J.) is now facing assault charges for her actions during the scuffle with law enforcement.
Habba is the interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey and a former lawyer for President Trump. She lacks prosecutorial experience, but became a well known MAGA operative before Trump appointed her to the prestigious role.
She later announced she would drop a trespassing charge against Baraka, leading to condemnation from a federal judge who dismissed the charge with prejudice.
Habba criticized the “shocking” leak of Baraka’s plan to sue her in a statement reacting Monday night to the news of his pending lawsuit.
“My advice to the mayor – feel free to join me in prioritizing violent crime and public safety. Far better use of time for the great citizens of New Jersey,” Habba said.
Baraka’s defamation claim against Habba highlights a statement she made on her personal social media account accusing Baraka of committing trespass and ignoring multiple warnings from Homeland Security agents to leave the premises. The lawsuit also accuses Habba of making defamatory statements on Fox News and conspiring with DHS officials to parrot false claims about his arrest.
Baraka’s lawsuit insists he was let into Delaney Hall by an agent with the GEO Group, the private company that owns the ICE property. Baraka left the facility upon orders from Patel even though he was not supervising the property.
A group of DHS agents at Patel’s request arrested Baraka after he exited the property, handcuffed him, and held him in federal custody for over five hours. Baraka’s lawsuit alleges that Patel delayed the submission of a charging document to keep him detained for longer.
He is seeking an undisclosed amount of damages and attorneys fees for the arrest and detainment.