Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges she assaulted and interfered with immigration officers at a New Jersey detention center during a congressional oversight visit with two other lawmakers.
The New Jersey Democrat was charged in a criminal complaint by Alina Habba, interim U.S. attorney for New Jersey and President Trump’s former personal attorney, and was indicted this month on three counts.
The charges stem from McIver’s oversight visit to Delaney Hall — a detention center that is privately owned but is being used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement — which devolved into a clash.
She was joined by fellow Democratic New Jersey Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman and Rob Menendez during the visit. Congress’s oversight powers extend to federal immigration facilities, which members of Congress can enter even without notice.
Prosecutors claim McIver sought to block the arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka (D), who was invited by the lawmakers to the facility but ordered by a federal officer to leave. She tried to restrain and “slammed her forearm” into one officer and struck another, the indictment says.
A video clip released by the Homeland Security Department shows McIver shouting to circle the mayor. At one point, her elbows pushed into an officer, but it’s unclear whether the contact was intentional or the result of the tightly packed scene.
U.S. District Judge Jamel Semper set a Nov. 10 trial date, according to The Associated Press.
McIver has denied wrongdoing and said last month that she rejected a plea deal, suggesting officials wanted her to “admit to doing something that I did not do.”
“Rep. McIver has confidently entered her official plea: not guilty,” said Hanna Rumsey, a spokesperson for McIver. “She is crystal clear that she will not back down as leaders across this country are targeted for speaking up.
“These charges have always been about politics and Rep. McIver will not be deterred from doing the work the people of New Jersey elected her to do,” Rumsey added. “The Congresswoman will not fold.”
Baraka faced a trespass charge stemming from the incident, but it was dismissed. A federal judge later suggested the mayor’s arrest amounted to a “worrisome misstep” by Habba’s office.
Updated at 12:10 p.m. EDT
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