The congresswoman accused of assaulting immigration agents outside a detention center in Newark last year is appealing a judge’s decision not to throw out the charges.
Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-10) is facing 17 years in prison over allegations she assaulted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers outside Delaney Hall in Newark as officers moved to arrest city Mayor Ras Baraka on May 9, 2025. McIver and two other members of Congress were at the facility that day to conduct an oversight visit.
McIver has argued that she is protected under a clause of the U.S. Constitution that protects members of Congress while engaging in official legislative acts, and has moved to have the three counts she faces thrown out. Federal prosecutors say her alleged assaults are not connected to any legislative acts.
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In November, U.S. District Court Judge Jamel K. Semper allowed two of the three counts she faces to move forward, and then in January, Semper declined to dismiss the third charge, paving the way for McIver to stand trial.
McIver had previously said she would appeal Semper’s November ruling to the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals, and on Tuesday, she filed notice saying she is appealing his January ruling, too.
McIver, a first-term House member who joined Congress in 2024, pleaded not guilty in June. She has argued that the Trump administration is targeting her as political retaliation, and she has said prosecutors are treating her differently than Jan. 6 rioters who faced the same charges until they were pardoned by Trump.
Since her arrest, she’s been the target of Republican attacks, including from the president.
During a Wednesday hearing of the House Committee on Homeland Security, Rep. Eli Crane (R-Arizona) claimed immigration issues facing the nation were caused by Democrats, and noted without naming McIver that a member of the panel assaulted an ICE agent.
“Mr. Crane, I don’t know what your obsession is with me, but I am so tired of you mentioning me, and you should take that obsession and need to put it to the people of Arizona, not me. Keep my name out of your mouth,” McIver told him.
“Yeah, well, if you quit assaulting ICE agents, then I wouldn’t keep bringing you up,” Crane responded.
“Watch your mouth when you’re talking about me,” McIver said.
McIver’s attorney, Paul Fishman, and a spokesperson for her congressional office did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The White House declined to comment.
McIver returned to Delaney Hall for an oversight visit in December, the first time she visited it since the incident last spring.
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