NEWARK, N.J. — Newark Mayor Ras Baraka has filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, alleging false arrest, malicious prosecution, and defamation against attorney Alina Habba and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Special Agent Ricky Patel.
The complaint, filed Thursday, accuses Habba and Patel of acting outside the scope of their legal authority and with malice during what it describes as the violent and unwarranted arrest of Mayor Baraka during a peaceful visit to the Delaney Hall ICE facility in Newark on May 9, 2025.
According to the filing, Habba “blatantly and publicly professed her plan to use the power of the office of the United States Attorney to help Republicans,” quoting her as saying, “We could turn New Jersey red… Hopefully, while I’m [interim U.S. Attorney].” The complaint also references a post Habba made on her personal account on X, the social media platform owned by Elon Musk, at 3:05 p.m.—before Mayor Baraka had been charged, processed, or removed from the GEO Group property—where she wrote: “NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW,” in what the lawsuit claims was a false public accusation of criminal activity.
“Alina Habba and I agree on one thing—no one is above the law,” said Nancy Erika Smith of Smith Mullin, who is representing Mayor Baraka. “This administration is clearly targeting Democratic elected officials with abuse and phony charges in an effort to instill fear. The handcuffing of an aide to Congressman Nadler in his private office is just one more example of alarming authoritarianism. I am proud to represent Mayor Baraka, who is standing up to Trump and the government agents, like Habba and Patel, who are abusing their power.”
Following the incident, all charges against Baraka were dismissed. In a pointed rebuke, U.S. Magistrate Judge André Espinosa wrote, “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… The hasty arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, followed swiftly by the dismissal of these trespassing charges a mere 13 days later, suggests a worrisome misstep by your Office.”
The lawsuit references videos and photographs from the day of the incident that reportedly show Mayor Baraka being invited onto the property by a GEO Group employee. According to the complaint, when DHS Agent Patel told the mayor to leave the premises, he complied. However, the filing alleges that five minutes after Baraka exited the property, roughly 20 DHS agents—many of them armed and masked—confronted the mayor and accompanying members of Congress.
The complaint further states that Patel ordered agents to “take him down,” referring to Baraka, resulting in the mayor being thrown to the ground and handcuffed behind his back. It also alleges that agents pushed and assaulted members of Baraka’s security team and members of Congress.
Mayor Baraka is seeking damages and accountability for what he and his legal team call a politically motivated abuse of power and a public humiliation carried out under false pretenses.
