Rep. LaMonica McIver of New Jersey is scheduled to make her initial appearance in federal court on Wednesday following charges stemming from an altercation with federal agents at a Newark immigration detention center earlier this month.
The Democratic congresswoman will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the District of New Jersey at 11 a.m., where she will be formally presented with the charges and advised of her legal rights. The judge is also expected to determine the conditions of her release.
The charges arise from a May 9 incident at the Delaney Hall detention facility, where McIver and two fellow members of Congress arrived to carry out what they described as their constitutionally mandated oversight responsibilities. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was also present and was briefly arrested during the confrontation—though charges against him were later dismissed.
In a CNN interview on Tuesday, McIver called the charges “absurd” and claimed the confrontation was provoked by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
“I was there to do my job alongside my colleagues,” she said. “This is our obligation—it’s written into our duties to oversee facilities like this. ICE escalated the situation unnecessarily.”
McIver added that the incident highlights broader concerns about the treatment of lawmakers engaging in oversight. “If I’m going to be charged with a crime for doing my job, it speaks volumes about the direction this country is heading and the challenges we face as elected leaders,” she said.
According to the Department of Justice, McIver allegedly assaulted two federal agents—one with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and another with ICE. A criminal complaint, citing body-worn camera footage, accuses McIver of using her forearm to strike an HSI agent and attempting to physically restrain him. She is also alleged to have pushed and struck an ICE officer during the incident.
In a statement released after the charges were filed, McIver denied any wrongdoing and suggested the prosecution was politically motivated.
“Earlier this month, I joined my colleagues to inspect the treatment of ICE detainees at Delaney Hall in my district,” McIver wrote. “We were fulfilling our lawful oversight responsibilities. Our visit should have been routine, but ICE agents unnecessarily escalated the situation by choosing to arrest Mayor Baraka.”
The confrontation reportedly intensified when Mayor Baraka attempted to accompany McIver and Reps. Robert Menendez Jr. and Bonnie Watson Coleman into the facility. Federal authorities denied him entry, prompting a heated exchange, according to witnesses cited by the Associated Press.
Prosecutors allege McIver played a central role in preventing agents from arresting Baraka, at one point forming a “human shield” to obstruct officers from placing him in handcuffs after he allegedly refused repeated commands to leave the property.
McIver’s court appearance marks the latest development in a high-profile case that has reignited debate over congressional oversight, local authority, and the limits of federal enforcement at detention facilities.
