Democrat congresswoman will be charged for allegedly assaulting ICE officer, Alina Habba says

The Department of Justice indicated that the congresswoman who was allegedly caught on video assaulting an ICE officer at Delaney Hall, a New Jersey detention center, will be charged criminally.

Alina Habba, the interim U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey, released a statement saying that charges against New Jersey Mayor Ras Baraka (D) would be dropped, but Rep. LaMonica McIver of New Jersey (D) would be charged.

'I have persistently made efforts to address these issues without bringing criminal charges and have given Representative Mclver every opportunity to come to a resolution, but she has unfortunately declined.'

"After extensive consideration, we have agreed to dismiss Mayor Baraka's misdemeanor charge of trespass for the sake of moving forward. In the spirit of public interest, I have invited the mayor to tour Delaney Hall. The government has nothing to hide at this facility, and I will personally accompany the mayor so he can see that firsthand. The citizens of New Jersey deserve unified leadership so we can get to work to keep our state safe," Habba wrote in the statement.

"The dismissal against the mayor is not the end of this matter," she added.

"Representative LaMonica Mclver assaulted, impeded, and interfered with law enforcement in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 111(a)(1)," Habba continued. "That conduct cannot be overlooked by the chief federal law enforcement official in the state of New Jersey, and it is my constitutional obligation to ensure that our federal law enforcement is protected when executing their duties. I have persistently made efforts to address these issues without bringing criminal charges and have given Representative Mclver every opportunity to come to a resolution, but she has unfortunately declined. No one is above the law — politicians or otherwise. It is the job of this office to uphold justice impartially, regardless of who you are. Now we will let the justice system work."

McIver issued a statement after the announcement in which she reiterated her defense that the trip was part of congressional oversight responsibilities.

"Earlier this month, I joined my colleagues to inspect the treatment of ICE detainees at Delaney Hall in my district. We were fulfilling our lawful oversight responsibilities, as members of Congress have done many times before, and our visit should have been peaceful and short," she wrote.

"Instead, ICE agents created an unnecessary and unsafe confrontation when they chose to arrest Mayor Baraka. The charges against me are purely political — they mischaracterize and distort my actions and are meant to criminalize and deter legislative oversight," McIver added.

"This administration will never stop me from working for the people in our district and standing up for what is right," she concluded. "I am thankful for the outpouring of support I have received and I look forward to the truth being laid out clearly in court."

RELATED: Video shows NJ Democrat refusing to take responsibility for alleged ICE assault when confronted by Blaze Media

Photo by Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images

Mike Howell, president of the Oversight Project, told Blaze News:

U.S. Attorney Habba was right to charge Rep. McIver for assaulting law enforcement. You aren't allowed to break the law in the false name of conducting oversight. What Rep. McIver was doing that day was not congressional oversight by any definition. As the Oversight Project pointed out in our legal analysis, released quickly after the violence outside the ICE facility in New Jersey, congressional oversight can only be authorized through the proper channels. In Rep. McIver's case, she would have needed authorization from her Chairman Mark Green. She did not have that authorization and was acting rogue, not that [that] would have immunized her from assaulting law enforcement anyway. If she tries that defense in court, she will lose big. We hope she spends any jail time she serves studying the actual rules of congressional oversight and would gladly help assist her in that education.

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