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A New Jersey mayor has filed a lawsuit against a federal prosecutor and close ally of United States President Donald Trump after he was arrested at a protest outside an immigration detention centre.

In a civil complaint filed on Tuesday, Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, New Jersey, accused acting US Attorney Alina Habba of “subjecting him to false arrest and malicious prosecution”.

The complaint also names Ricky Patel, a special agent with the Department of Homeland Security’s investigations unit, as a co-defendant.

“As a result of this false arrest”, the lawsuit argues that Mayor Baraka “suffered severe reputational harm, emotional distress and other damages”.

The suit is the latest fallout from a May 9 protest outside Delaney Hall, a privately run immigration detention facility in Newark.

Baraka, a longtime critic of the facility, had joined three Democratic members of the US House of Representatives for a tour of the 1,000-bed detention centre, as protesters gathered outside the gate.

The lawsuit alleges that a member of the GEO Group, which owns the facility, allowed Baraka to come inside Delaney Hall’s wire gate. But once inside, it says Patel ordered him to exit again, on threat of arrest.

Baraka complied, but a few minutes later, as he stood with protesters outside the gate, agents with the Department of Homeland Security surrounded the mayor, handcuffed him and led him away.

The complaint alleges that Patel ordered the agents to “take [the mayor] down” and that they “pushed, shoved and assaulted” the mayor’s security team before arresting him. Baraka denies trespassing onto the Delaney Hall grounds.

“They abused their power to violently arrest me at Delaney Hall despite being invited inside,” Baraka wrote on social media on Tuesday. “No one is above the law.”

Habba initially filed a trespassing charge against Baraka for his actions during the protest. But by May 19, she moved to dismiss the charge, prompting a rebuke from the judge overseeing the case.

“Your role is not to secure convictions at all costs, nor to satisfy public clamour, nor to advance political agendas,” Judge Andre Espinosa told a representative for Habba’s office.

“The hasty arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, followed swiftly by the dismissal of those trespassing charges a mere 13 days later, suggests a worrisome misstep by your office,” Espinosa added.

“An arrest, particularly of a public figure, is not a preliminary investigative tool. It is a severe action, carrying significant reputational and personal consequences, and it should only be undertaken after a thorough, dispassionate evaluation of credible evidence.”

At the same time as she announced she was seeking the dismissal of the trespassing charge, Habba revealed she would be pursuing criminal charges against US Congress member LaMonica McIver, who was also at the Delaney Hall protest.

Habba accused McIver of assaulting law enforcement during Baraka’s arrest. That case is ongoing. But Representative McIver has called the charges against her “purely political”, and she issued a statement on Tuesday in support of Baraka’s lawsuit.

“The way Mayor Baraka was treated at Delaney Hall was outrageous,” the statement reads. “It is beyond clear that there was never any legal or factual basis to arrest or charge him. The administration’s playing politics with our justice system is disgraceful.”

In the lead-up to Baraka’s lawsuit, Habba herself weighed in, suggesting the mayor’s complaint was a waste of time.

“He is planning to sue the Feds,” Habba wrote on social media Monday. “My advice to the mayor – feel free to join me in prioritizing violent crime and public safety. Far better use of time for the great citizens of New Jersey.”

Habba had served as part of Trump’s personal legal team before joining his administration following his second inauguration in January.

Trump has pledged to pursue a policy of “mass deportation” during his second term as president, but that goal has run up against logistical issues, including a lack of detention space. His administration awarded Delaney Hall a 15-year contract to help address the growing demand for beds, and the facility opened this past May.

Baraka, however, has argued that Delaney Hall failed to receive the proper local permitting and has been a visible presence at protests outside the immigration centre. The GEO Group denies any permitting violations.

Critics, particularly on the left, have long accused the Trump administration of retaliating against those who oppose the president’s signature policies, including his crackdown on immigration.

Tuesday’s lawsuit, for example, accuses Habba of defaming Baraka in her efforts to detain and charge him with trespassing.

“In authorizing and/or directing the arrest of Mayor Baraka without proper legal grounds, Defendant Habba was acting for political reasons and fulfilling her stated goal of ‘turning New Jersey red’,” the lawsuit argues.

The complaint further alleges that other members of the Trump administration participated “in promoting a false and defamatory narrative”, including that Baraka “broke into” the detention facility.

Baraka is running this November as a Democratic candidate in the race to be New Jersey governor. His lawsuit alleges the arrest and subsequent trespassing charge was designed to “damage him politically”.

Last month, Trump endorsed one of Baraka’s Republican rivals, businessman and former state Representative Jack Ciattarelli, for the governorship.

Baraka’s defence team say they will file a motion to dismiss trespassing charges pursued by the Trump administration.

Lawyers in the United States have said they will file a motion to dismiss trespassing charges directed at Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, following his arrest during a protest at an immigrant detention centre in New Jersey.

During a hearing in a New Jersey federal court on Thursday, Baraka’s defence team said that they believed he was being selectively prosecuted by the administration of President Donald Trump.

“We believe that the mayor himself was targeted here,” said Rahul Agarwal, one of Baraka’s lawyers.

“The mayor was invited into the facility on Friday,” Agarwal added, pointing out that Baraka was “outside the facility when he was ultimately handcuffed and detained”.

Baraka himself attended the hearing and spoke to supporters outside afterwards. On social media, he framed the criminal complaint as a sham.

“Today, the U.S. Attorney General’s office chose to move forward with a trial over trespassing charges at Delaney Hall. While the charges are unwarranted, we will fight this,” Baraka wrote. “This is bigger than me. It’s about all of us.”

The incident is the latest to underscore growing tensions between the Trump administration and local authorities who oppose his immigration crackdown.

Civil liberties groups have argued that the government is using its power to intimidate or coerce officials who do not align with its priorities on immigration.

The Trump administration’s complaint centres on the events of May 9, when lawmakers and protesters showed up at Delaney Hall, a new detention facility in Newark run by the private company GEO Group.

Baraka has long opposed the 1,000-bed facility, saying it lacks the proper permitting, and he has appeared outside its gates multiple times since its May 1 opening.

On the day of his arrest, Baraka joined three members of the US Congress — LaMonica McIver, Bonnie Watson Coleman and Rob Menendez — who arrived unannounced “to conduct lawful congressional oversight” of the facility, according to their statements afterwards.

Agarwal said that Baraka was the only person arrested in the incident. Baraka has maintained that he was invited in to the facility and shared a video on social media on Wednesday that he says shows a guard opening the gate to allow him inside the premises.

“Mayor Baraka was at Delaney Hall to join a tour of the detention facility with a congressional delegation as part of their authorized oversight responsibilities,” the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said in a statement on the arrest of Baraka last week.

“Mayor Baraka — and lawmakers across New Jersey and the country — are being targeted by the Trump administration for refusing to be complicit with its ongoing violations of due process.”

However, the government’s criminal complaint alleges that Baraka entered and remained inside the private facility despite multiple warnings to leave. He faces up to 30 days in prison.

“We believe there’s clear evidence that the mayor was within the property,” Assistant US Attorney Stephen Demanovich told US Magistrate Judge Andre Espinosa.

Video of the incident shows an official behind the gate at Delaney Hall telling Baraka he must return outside because “you are not a congressmember”.

Judge Espinosa on Thursday told Baraka he needed to be processed by US Marshals Service after proceedings came to an end.

The Associated Press said the request sparked a moment of confusion in the courtroom. Baraka pointed out that he had already been processed after his arrest, but ultimately agreed to give his fingerprints and take a mugshot a second time.

“They’re trying their best to humiliate and degrade me as much as they possibly can,” said Baraka. “I feel like what we did was completely correct. We did not violate any laws. We stood up for the constitution of this country, the constitution of the state of New Jersey.”

Baraka is considered a leading candidate in the 2025 New Jersey governor’s race.

US attorney says Baraka ‘committed trespass’ during protest of facility, which he argues opened without proper permits.

Rights groups and Democratic officials have decried the arrest of the mayor of Newark, New Jersey, during a protest at an immigration detention centre.

Mayor Ras Baraka had joined several lawmakers at the detention centre, called Delaney Hall, for a demonstration on Friday.

For weeks, he has been among those protesting the recently opened 1,000-bed centre, which critics see as a key link in President Donald Trump’s mass deportation efforts.

Those in attendance said Baraka sought to enter the facility along with members of the United States Congress on Friday, but he was denied entry.

A video reviewed by The Associated Press showed a federal official in a jacket with the logo for the Homeland Security Investigations unit telling Baraka he could not tour the facility because “you are not a congress member”.

Baraka then left the secure area, rejoining protesters on the public side of the centre’s gate. Video showed him speaking through the gate to a man in a suit. The man said, “They’re talking about coming back to arrest you.”

“I’m not on their property. They can’t come out on the street and arrest me,” Baraka replied.

Moments later, several Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, some wearing face coverings, surrounded the mayor and others on the public side of the gate. Baraka was dragged back through the security gate in handcuffs, while protesters yelled, “Shame!”

In a subsequent post on the social media platform X, Alina Habba, Trump’s former personal lawyer and acting US attorney for New Jersey, said Baraka had “committed trespass and ignored multiple warnings” to leave.

“He has willingly chosen to disregard the law. That will not stand in this state,” Habba wrote. “He has been taken into custody. NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW.”

US Representative LaMonica McIver was also at the centre on Friday, along with Representatives Bonnie Watson Coleman and Robert Menendez Jr, to conduct what they called an “oversight inspection”.

In a post on X, McIver said Baraka “did nothing wrong” and had already left the facility at the time of his arrest.

“This is unacceptable,” McIver said in the video.

For its part, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security accused the lawmakers of “storming” the facility in a “bizarre political stunt”.

Baraka has said the detention centre — located in Newark, not far from New York City — opened despite not having the proper local permits and approvals. He has launched a lawsuit to halt its operations.

The GEO group, which runs the centre in coordination with ICE, has denied his claims. It entered into an agreement with the federal government in February to run the Delaney Hall facility, under a 15-year contract valued at $1bn.

‘Unjust arrest’

Local elected officials swiftly condemned the federal agents’ actions, with the state’s governor, Phil Murphy, writing on X that he was “outraged by the unjust arrest” of Baraka.

Murphy called the mayor an “exemplary public servant who has always stood up for our most vulnerable mayors” and appealed for his release.

The governor noted that New Jersey had previously passed a law banning private immigration detention centres in the state, a Democratic stronghold, although it was partially struck down by a federal court in 2023. An appeal is ongoing.

Baraka, who is running in next month’s Democratic primary for governor, has been an outspoken critic of the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

He struck a defiant tone against the Trump administration in January, after ICE raided businesses in the city he leads.

“Newark will not stand by idly while people are being unlawfully terrorised,” he said at the time.