Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Alina Habba was warned by a magistrate not to make out-of-court statements about Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, following his arrest.
Baraka was arrested for trespassing last week outside an immigration detention center in Newark, New Jersey, which he and three members of Congress were attempting to gain access to.
U.S. Magistrate Andre M. Espinosa warned officials in the Trump administration against making statements about Baraka outside of court. Espinosa said he would “caution them to heed carefully to the rules of professional conduct” and make note of the “boundaries of propriety for public comment related to an ongoing investigation and/or prosecution.”
Earlier that day, Habba posted on social media that the mayor had “willingly chosen to disregard the law” and that he “committed trespass” before his arrest. Habba was a longtime personal attorney to President Donald Trump.
During the hearing, Espinosa also determined Baraka was not at risk of fleeing.
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“It doesn’t take me much effort to assess the facts here and conclude that the mayor of the largest city in New Jersey poses no substantial flight risk or no flight risk at all and no danger to the community that must be protected against any conditions,” Espinosa said.
Baraka is a candidate for governor of New Jersey in 2025.
