As promised, the Trump Administration, in its opening days, has launched major immigration crackdowns, even if the promised “mass deportations” have not yet come to fruition.
One such raid took place in Newark, New Jersey, this week. According to the city’s mayor, the raid crossed several lines.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka released a statement accusing ICE of detaining an individual who is not only a U.S. citizen but a military veteran.
MAYOR RAS J. BARAKA’S STATEMENT ON ICE RAID ON NEWARK BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENT
Read here: https://t.co/kUpEQqOAV4 pic.twitter.com/zCR9fKfe52
— City of Newark (@CityofNewarkNJ) January 23, 2025
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“Today, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents raided a local establishment in the City of Newark, detaining undocumented residents as well as citizens, without producing a warrant. One of the detainees is a U.S. military veteran who suffered the indignity of having the legitimacy of his military documentation questioned. This egregious act violates the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees ‘the right of the people be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures….’
According to a New York CBS News affiliate, the raid occurred at a fish market called Ocean Seafood Depot. The business owner told the station that a dozen ICE agents arrived and did not produce a warrant. The owner added that the manager had tried to show his veteran’s card, but agents did not look at it.
“A couple of the guys couldn’t show their identification,” the owner said, per the CBS report. “Twenty-six years in business, I’ve never seen anything like this.”
— Sen. Cory Booker (@SenBooker) January 24, 2025
The two Democratic senators from New Jersey, Cory Booker — himself a former Newark mayor — and Andy Kim, also issued a statement about the raid incident.
“We are deeply concerned about the news of an ICE raid in Newark today,” the statement said. “Actions like this one sow fear in all of our communities — and our broken immigration system requires solutions, not fear tactics.”
Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported that while cities are “alarmed” by the Trump-era ICE raids, there have been fewer arrested than in the same period in 2017- and the numbers are “relatively modest for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement surge operations — a possible indication that the Trump administration’s show of force has so far outpaced the government’s capacity to deliver on the president’s lofty goals.”
Photo courtesy of the Political Tribune media library.
