New Jersey officials want answers from the Department of Homeland Security after a raid in Newark by ICE that was conducted without a warrant.
It happened the morning of Jan. 23. About a dozen armed agents burst into Ocean Seafood Depot and asked to see employees’ documentation. Several people were detained. Some were citizens. One a military veteran.
“When I got this information I was appalled, upset, angry that this would happen here in this state, in this country, that this would be allowed,” said Mayor Ras Baraka at a news conference the next day. “I convened with my folks. I said, ‘We can’t just let this happen and not say anything.’”
He said what happened was unconstitutional. “The problem with this is that none of these people were rapists, or murderers, or criminals. The problem with it is that ICE went in there without a warrant,” said Baraka.
The owner of the business said his manager tried to show the agents his military veteran’s card, but they would not accept it.
State Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz was also at the press conference, where she made it clear to everyone how emotional an issue this is.
“I’m here with written notes because I knew this was gonna happen to me today,” said Ruiz as she became tearful, “because my biggest fear is that this happens inside of a classroom,” she said, sobbing, before ordering herself to “get it together,” and hearing applause from the crowd.
In 2022, undocumented immigrants in New Jersey contributed about $1.3 billion in state and local taxes, according to a study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.
The study notes that more than a third of the taxes paid by undocumented immigrants go toward funding programs — Social Security, Medicare, and unemployment — that they can’t access.