McIver makes court appearance
Congresswoman faces charges in ICE incident
By: Katie Sobko
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... Representative LaMonica McIver appeared in federal court via Zoom on May 21 [2025] for a routine initial hearing after she was formally charged with allegedly "Assaulting, resisting and impeding" Homeland Security investigators and ICE agents at Delaney Hall in Newark on May 9. [2025]
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The charges against McIver were first announced on May 19 [2025] by acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba on social media.
..... McIver was at Delaney Hall with her fellow Democratic Representatives Bonnie Watson Colemen and Rob Menendez.
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The congresswoman was released on her own recognizance and no bail was needed. The next hearing is scheduled for June 11 [2025] but that could change if prosecutors seek an indictment. In the event of an indictment, a formal plea would be entered.
..... McIver's lawyer Paul Fishman served as U.S. Attorney in New Jersey during the Obama administration, He said earlier this week [05/19/2025] the "decision to charge Congresswoman McIver is spectacularly inappropriate.
..... "She went to Delaney Hall to do her job. As a member of Congress, she has the right and responsibility to see how ICE is treating detainees," he said. "Rather than facilitating that inspection, ICE agents chose to escalate what should have been a peaceful situation into chaos. this prosecution is an attempt to shift the blame for ICE's behavior to Congresswoman McIver. in the courtroom, facts - not headlines - will matter."
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The freshman congresswoman said in a statement on May 19 [2025] that earlier in May she joined her colleagues to "inspect the treatment of ICE detainees at Delaney Hall in my district."
..... "We were fulfilling our lawful oversight responsibilities, as member of Congress have done many times before, and our visit should have been peaceful and short," she said.
..... "The charges against me are purely political - they mis characterize and distort my actions, and are meant to criminalize and deter legislative oversight."
..... She said the Trump administration "will never stop me form working for the people in our district and standing up for what is right," thanked those who have shown support and said she looks forward to the "truth being laid out clearly in court."