Newark Mayor Ras Baraka (D) filed a lawsuit against interim U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Alina Habba on Tuesday, accusing her of malicious prosecution over his arrest outside an ICE detention facility last month.
Baraka was arrested May 9 for allegedly trespassing at Delaney Hall, where he was joined by three members of Congress during a visit to inspect the conditions at the detention facility.
Baraka accused Habba and Assistant Homeland Security Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin of politicizing his arrest by promoting a “false and defamatory narrative” about the events that led to him being taken into custody.
McLaughlin accused Baraka of ‘storming’ the facility. Habba claimed he “ignored multiple warnings from Homeland Security” officials to leave the facility.
But in the lawsuit Baraka alleges that a security guard at Delaney Hall detention center in Newark, which is run by private prison company The GEO Group under contract with the Department of Homeland Security, allowed Baraka to enter the property.
“The false Affidavit was made with malice, particularly seeking to assure that the evening news included videos of the Black Mayor of Newark, New Jersey being led away in handcuffs by federal officials,” the lawsuit said.
Habba’s office dismissed its case against Baraka less than two weeks after his arrest, but not before the judge overseeing the case slam prosecutors for rushing the charges based on politics.
“The hasty arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, followed swiftly by the dismissal of these trespassing charges a mere 13 days later, suggests a worrisome misstep by your office,” Magistrate Judge Andre Espinosa said.
“The apparent rush in this case, culminating today in the embarrassing retraction of charges, suggests a failure to adequately investigate, to carefully gather facts and to thoughtfully consider the implications of your actions before wielding your immense power,” he added.
Baraka is seeking compensatory and punitive damages from Habba and Ricky J. Patel, a special agent in charge of the Newark division of Homeland Security investigations who Baraka says unlawfully took him into custody.
