More Arrests At ICE Prison In New Jersey After Mayor Taken Into Custody (UPDATE)

NEWARK, NJ — More arrests took place outside a controversial federal immigration detention center in New Jersey’s largest city on Monday.

A coalition of faith leaders and clergy members held a protest outside of Delaney Hall at 451 Doremus Avenue in Newark, chanting and holding up signs that read “Stop Deportations Now” and “No Profits From Human Suffering.” Several protesters linked arms and stood defiantly in front of the prison gates, while their peers made speeches and sang songs.

Watch video footage posted by attendees at the protest here and here.

Video footage shared online shows police attempting to get demonstrators to leave the area near the gates. Several protesters responded by lying motionless on the ground and refusing to budge. Other videos show police moving demonstrators to allow cars to pass through the gates.

Eventually, Newark police officers arrested a male and female protester. They were charged with obstruction and resisting arrest, according to the Newark Department of Public Safety.

An officer suffered a minor laceration to the arm and will remain on duty. No other injuries were reported, authorities said.

Officials with ICE announced plans to reopen Delaney Hall earlier this year. The 1,000-bed facility is the first federal detention center to open under President Donald Trump’s second term. It is run by the GEO Group, one of the largest private prison companies in the world. The move allows ICE to expand its detention and deportation capacity in the Northeast region of the country.

ICE started housing detainees at Delaney Hall on May 1.

Monday’s protest was the latest demonstration in an ongoing series of rallies, which have been taking place over the past week. Previous actions included a peaceful visit to the prison on Mother's Day.

Another rally is being planned for Thursday, May 15 at 9:30 a.m. outside the courthouse at 50 Walnut Street in Newark.

MAYOR ARRESTED

Monday’s arrests took place just a few days after Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was handcuffed outside the prison. He was accused of trespassing and ignoring warnings to leave the Delaney Hall facility – accusations that he has denied.

Baraka – a governor candidate who is running as a Democrat – was released from custody later that day after demands from advocates and elected officials, including Gov. Phil Murphy.

The mayor has accused ICE of opening the facility without the necessary construction permits, continued certificates of occupancy, or requests to change the building’s use.

“They failed to give city officials access to conduct inspections required under municipal ordinances and state code,” Baraka has alleged. “This violates city and state law.”

Alina Habba, the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey, accused Baraka of trespassing and ignoring multiple warnings from Homeland Security Investigations to remove himself from the scene.

“He has willingly chosen to disregard the law,” the Trump-appointed federal prosecutor said. “That will not stand in this state. He has been taken into custody.”

“No one is above the law,” Habba insisted.

“My office is undertaking a thorough investigation in coordination with our federal agency partners of what transpired on Friday at Delaney Hall,” Habba reported Monday. “As is true of every investigation this office handles, all available evidence will be thoroughly reviewed prior to making a determination on how to proceed.”

“I do not take these matters lightly,” she added.

CONGRESS MEMBERS ACCUSED

Three Congress members from New Jersey – Reps. LaMonica McIver, Bonnie Watson Coleman and Rob Menendez Jr. – also visited Delaney Hall on May 9, demanding entry to carry out their “oversight authority” and inspect the situation firsthand.

Homeland Security officials accused the lawmakers of “storming the gate” and breaking into the detention facility, sharing video footage from the scene and encouraging viewers to “check the tape.”

“Members of Congress storming into a detention facility goes beyond a bizarre political stunt and puts the safety of our law enforcement agents and detainees at risk,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said.

“Had these members requested a tour, we would have facilitated a tour of the facility,” McLaughlin added.

Homeland Security officials also said the allegations made by Newark politicians that Delaney Hall does not have the proper permitting are “false.”

“We have valid permits, and inspections for plumbing and electricity, and fire codes have been cleared,” officials claimed, releasing a list of some of the detainees who are currently incarcerated at the facility.

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Baraka and the three Congress members immediately hit back, calling the accusations “lies” and “manufactured truth.”

“Yes, check the tape,” Baraka insisted. “The aggression was from the people in masks, hiding their identity. And the whole world has seen it.”

Here’s what Watson Coleman had to say about the incident:

“Since DHS has been lying about this, allow me to correct the record. This scuffle, during which an ICE agent physically shoved me, occurred after we had entered the Delaney Hall premises. We entered the facility, came back out to speak to the mayor, and then ICE agents began shoving us. This is not how we entered the facility. We were escorted in by guards, because we have lawful oversight authority to be there.”

“Here’s the moment my colleagues and I were let into Delaney Hall,” Watson Coleman wrote, sharing a video clip of her own.

The congresswoman released another video clip, saying it shows the moment when Baraka “calmly” leaves the premises after being asked.

“The scuffle at the gate happened after when we came back out and ICE moved to arrest the mayor on public property,” Watson Coleman continued. “How did we ‘break in’ when we were already allowed inside?”

“The idea we ‘stormed’ a heavily guarded federal detention center is absurd – just more lies from the most dishonest administration in history,” she charged.

McIver claimed that ICE agents “shoved me” and “manhandled” Watson Coleman.

“They disrespected us and tried to stop us from conducting the oversight we’re elected to do,” said McIver, a former city council president in Newark. “But we’ll never back down in our fight for what is right.”

Menendez agreed.

“No matter what this administration tells the American people, the law is very clear: members of Congress have a legal right to enter any DHS detention facility to conduct oversight without prior notice – something I’ve done twice this year without issue,” he said.

Advocates have also disputed the allegations from federal authorities.

“This is lawless tyranny, and people of faith refuse to remain silent,” said Charlene Walker, executive director of Faith in New Jersey.

“We demand immediate closure, full transparency about those held captive, and faith leader access to provide spiritual care,” Walker said.

“We will resist, disrupt, and persist as our faith demands—until all are free,” Walker added.

“What we experienced outside Delaney Hall was a violent and coordinated attempt by ICE to silence the truth and hide the reality of what’s happening behind those walls: our beloveds are being disappeared,” Pax Christi New Jersey claimed, calling for people to attend Monday’s protest.

“We witnessed Congressmembers assaulted, Mayor Ras Baraka arrested, and faith leaders pushed aside by federal agents acting without accountability,” the group said. “We cannot allow this to stand.”

• See Related: NJ Mayor Arrested Protesting Controversial New ICE Detention Facility
• See Related: Newark Mayor Denies Trespassing At Immigration Detention Center

REACTIONS IN NEW JERSEY

After Baraka was handcuffed and taken into custody on Friday, several prominent Democratic leaders decried his arrest and demanded his release. They included U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, U.S. Reps. Mikie Sherrill and Josh Gottheimer, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, New Jersey Sens. Teresa Ruiz and Britnee Timberlake, Assemblywoman Eliana Pintor Marin and Assemblywoman Shanique Speight and East Orange Mayor Ted Green.

“Four years ago, I was proud to sign a law banning private immigration detention centers in New Jersey,” Murphy said. “And just last week, my administration was leading the fight to defend that law before the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.”

“Mayor Baraka is an exemplary public servant who has always stood up for our most vulnerable neighbors,” the governor added. “I am calling for his immediate release by federal law enforcement.”

• See Related: New Jersey Reacts After Ras Baraka Arrested Outside ICE Prison

Support for Baraka and the three Congress members has also come from U.S. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Hakeem Jeffries of New York.

Other elected officials have decried the actions of protesters and Baraka.

U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, a Republican who led Trump's re-election campaign last year, said the incident was "beyond acceptable."

"It was a direct attack on the rule of law," Van Drew claimed. "People in New Jersey are paying some of the highest taxes in the country, only to see that money used to fund illegal immigration as part of the state's sanctuary policies."

"We are tired of it," the congressman said. "No one is above the law. And when elected officials act as if they are, they undermine the very foundation of our democracy."

Former state assemblyman and governor candidate Jack Ciattarelli – who picked up a high-profile endorsement from Trump this week – called the incident "shameful."

“In Newark, the airport is in the midst of an unprecedented and dangerous meltdown, the public schools are failing students and families, and there is crime in the streets every day,” he wrote. “And yet its mayor and leading Democrat candidate for governor, Ras Baraka, is busy shilling for illegal immigrants at an ICE detention center with a cheap publicity stunt.”

Belleville Mayor Michael Melham, whose town is located nearby in Essex County, commented that he is "all for political theater — but at some point, someone needs to offer some perspective."

"Essex County operated an ICE detention facility for well over a decade (including during the Obama administration), earning millions upon millions by housing detainees," Melham pointed out.

• See Related: Essex County Ends Controversial Prison Contract With ICE

DELANEY HALL AND NEW JERSEY’S ICE BAN

President Donald Trump has insisted that a nationwide crackdown is needed to push back against a “large-scale invasion” of illegal immigration.

“This cannot stand,” Trump said after being inaugurated for his second term. “A nation without borders is not a nation, and the federal government must act with urgency and strength to end the threats posed by an unsecured border.”

Delaney Hall's owner, the GEO Group, was recently awarded a 15-year contract to run the new detention center in Newark that is valued at $1 billion.

“We are continuing to prepare for what we believe is an unprecedented opportunity to help the federal government meet its expanded immigration enforcement priorities,” GEO Group executive chair George Zoley said.

Meanwhile, advocates have argued that the reopening of Delaney Hall – which formerly held immigration detainees until it closed in 2017 and was turned into a halfway house – is a severe blow to constitutional rights.

It’s also a violation of New Jersey state law, advocates say.

Under a 2021 state law, all prisons in New Jersey – public or private – are banned from making new contracts with ICE to hold federal detainees. Prisons also can’t expand or renew old agreements.

The law has seen pushback since Gov. Phil Murphy signed it in 2021, however.

The GEO Group and CoreCivic – which runs the Elizabeth Detention Center in Union County – have challenged the state ban in court. The administration of former president Joe Biden took the side of private prison companies in that case, arguing that ICE needed detention centers near airports to expedite operations. A judge ruled in 2023 that CoreCivic could keep its jail in Elizabeth open.

Federal authorities and prison companies are now seeking to add more detention space in New Jersey, despite the state’s ban.

Trump’s immigration crackdown will likely create a massive profit for the GEO Group and CoreCivic.

According to the GEO Group, the 15-year, fixed-price contract for Delaney Hall is expected to generate in excess of $60 million in annualized revenues for GEO in the first full year of operations. The company estimated the 15-year value of the contract with normal cost of living adjustments to be approximately $1 billion.

According to Open Secrets, the GEO Group spent $1.38 million lobbying the federal government in 2024, and CoreCivic spent $1.77 million. Much of their focus was the appropriations bill funding the Department of Homeland Security, which includes the budget for ICE.

The day after Trump was reelected to his second term, the companies’ stock prices soared: GEO Group’s by about 41 percent and CoreCivic’s by nearly 29 percent. Read More: 2 Private Prison Companies With NJ Ties May Score Big Profits From Trump Deportations

Although the focus on federal immigration enforcement has ramped up since Trump took office, ICE raids also took place in New Jersey during Biden’s watch. Read More: NJ Activists Say Biden’s Playbook On Immigration Is Similar To Trump’s

A major immigration sweep took place in North Jersey the week before Trump’s inauguration, with ICE’s Newark field office arresting 33 non-citizens who have committed or been accused of crimes. Read More: Newark ICE Office Makes 33 Arrests, Deportations Loom

The Newark field office is located at 970 Broad Street, and processes federal detainees from across the state. Prior to New Jersey’s ban on ICE contracts took effect, hundreds of people were being arrested and deported from the office every month. Read More: ICE In NJ Deported 500 People From Country In 3 Months, Feds Say

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