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A federal judge overseeing the Trump administration’s prosecution of U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver on charges of assaulting and obstructing immigration officers outside a New Jersey detention center asked the government to remove social media posts he called “damaging” to the congresswoman.
US District Judge Jamel Semper heard pre-trial arguments in the case on Tuesday republican chairman donald trumpUS Justice Department against representing Democratic Congresswoman newarkThe largest city in the state. Semper did not issue a ruling from the bench but told government lawyers that the nine social media posts should be removed.
Posts from the Department of Homeland Security’s Congress as “a reckless stunt by sanctuary politicians” and said the visit was not about oversight, a key point of the congresswoman and other lawmakers who accompanied her to Newark’s Delaney Hall detention facility in May.
“That is not factual,” Semper said. “Its prejudicial nature is self-evident.”
A message seeking comment from Homeland Security was sent Tuesday.
McIver’s lawyers have argued that the department’s posts could jeopardize his chances of a fair trial.
The judge also asked the government to turn over additional video footage of McIver after his lawyers told the court they had not received footage they knew existed but had not been turned over.
He also said he would take time to review a motion from McIver’s lawyers to dismiss the case against him based on his authority as a member of Congress to oversee the federal government.
McIver, a Democrat, was charged by the interim U.S. Attorney Alina HubbaOn May 9, following a visit to Delaney Hall, a Republican appointed by President Donald Trump. Immigration and Customs Enforcement uses the privately owned 1,000-bed facility as a detention center.
He has declared himself innocent.
“This process has not stopped me from doing my job,” McIver said outside court Tuesday.
In June he was charged with three counts of assault, resisting, obstructing and interfering with federal officers. Two of these cases carry a maximum prison sentence of up to eight years. The third is a misdemeanor that carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison.
Joining McIver in court Tuesday were Democratic representatives Bonnie Watson Coleman, Rob Menendez and Nelly Pou, as well as Newark Mayor Ras Baraka.
Baraka was arrested on trespassing charges that were later dropped and is suing Habba for what he called malicious prosecution.
Hubba’s tenure as acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey is being challenged in court, with appellate judges hearing arguments in that case a day before McIver’s appearance in court.
The nearly two-minute video clip released by the Department of Homeland Security shows McIver inside a chain-link fence at the facility just before Baraka’s arrest, on the other side of the barrier where others were protesting. McIver and uniformed officers pass through the gate, and she yells with the others that they should round up the mayor.
The video shows McIver in front of a packed group of people and officers. At one point his left elbow and then his right elbow pushes an officer wearing an olive green uniform wearing a dark face covering and emblazoned with the word “Police.”
It is not clear from police bodycam video whether the contact was intentional, accidental or the result of a scuffle in the chaotic scene.
The government’s complaint alleges that he “slammed” his arm onto an agent and then tried to restrain the agent by grabbing him.
The indictment also says he put his arm around the mayor to try to prevent his arrest and again says he hit his arm hard and grabbed an agent.
Watson Coleman and Menendez were with McIver at the detention center that day and have disputed the charges.
Members of Congress are legally authorized to visit federal immigration facilities, even without notice, as part of their surveillance powers. Congress passed the 2019 appropriations bill clarifying that authority.
McIver first came to Congress in a special election following the death of Representative Donald Payne Jr. in September, leaving a vacancy in the 10th District. He was then elected to a full term in November.