Newark Mayor Ras Baraka ordered a mandatory nightly curfew around the Delaney Hall immigration detention facility on Sunday, capping more than a week of protests outside the facility. It did not work.
Protesters ignored the order. Hundreds of riot police were eventually deployed to clear the streets, multiple people were arrested, and members of the media were pushed out of the area. The curfew covers a half-mile radius around the facility on Doremus Avenue and runs from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. nightly until further notice.
MAYOR RAS J. BARAKA STATEMENT
— City of Newark (@CityofNewarkNJ) May 31, 2026
ACTIVATING CURFEW FOR PUBLIC SAFETY AT DELANEY HALL pic.twitter.com/2LakahTDpg
"Due to the escalating situation at Delaney Hall and the increasing need for police intervention, immediate action is required to protect public safety. Multiple individuals have already been arrested and found in possession of weapons, underscoring the seriousness of the threat.
"To ensure the safety and well-being of all residents, a mandatory curfew for a half-mile area surrounding Delaney Hall is being implemented, effective immediately.
"Beginning at 12 a.m., Doremus Avenue will be closed to all pedestrian traffic. Vehicle access will be strictly limited to those with verified official business in the area. This curfew will remain in effect nightly from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. until further notice.
"Individuals found in violation of this curfew will be subject to enforcement actions. A warning to leave the area will be issued initially. However, any continued non-compliance will result in removal from the area and the issuance of appropriate summonses and/or further legal action."
The order made clear that anyone who refused to leave faced removal, summonses, or further legal action. Troopers issued verbal warnings around 8:30 p.m., roughly half an hour before the deadline. Armored vehicles were already visible in the area.
None of it moved the crowd.
As 9 p.m. came and went, demonstrators stayed put. State and local officers moved into position. Shortly after 10 p.m., hundreds of officers in riot gear advanced into the protest zone, detaining multiple people and forcing demonstrators away from the facility. Reporters on the scene were run out of the area as well.
NOW: Multiple arrests underway by New Jersey State Police during protests outside the Delaney Hall ICE detention center.
— TWT UNLEASHED (@TWT_UNLEASHED) June 1, 2026
Video shows officers detaining individuals on the ground as law enforcement responds to the situation. pic.twitter.com/H9nPIxCp8S
Video from the scene showed police lines sweeping through the area. One immigration activist, Asma Elhuni of Resistencia en Acción NJ, was seen being led away in handcuffs. More arrests followed. The Department of Homeland Security's X account amplified footage showing protesters surrounded by law enforcement officers on all sides, a crowd-control tactic commonly referred to as kettling.
LAW AND ORDER. https://t.co/A2oA8WK7JQ
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) June 1, 2026
In the days before the curfew, some demonstrators had attacked police barricades, thrown projectiles, and lit tires on fire in the street. Gov. Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ), who deployed state police to the area earlier in the week, said Sunday morning:
"These actions put both peaceful protestors and law enforcement in danger. We need to take this opportunity to lower the temperature."
Sherrill had originally sent state police to Newark to establish what she called peaceful protest zones. The troopers took over from ICE agents who had been clashing with demonstrators for days. Since then, police have used horses, tear gas, and an expanding perimeter of metal gates and concrete barriers to keep protesters away from the facility.
Read More: Mikie Sherrill Tries a Desperate Pivot After Coddling NJ Anti-ICE Rioters, and No One Is Buying It
An Undercover Look Into the Camp the Anti-ICE Crew Set Up in Newark
The protests started after advocates claimed detainees inside Delaney Hall launched a hunger strike over conditions at the 1,000-bed facility, which opened last May. Lawyers for some detainees alleged their clients were being given expired food and denied medical care. Democratic members of Congress who toured the facility echoed those claims.
The Trump administration denied all allegations of misconduct. A DHS spokesperson said operations at Delaney Hall would "continue as usual.”
By late Sunday night, arrests were still being made. The curfew remained in effect.
Editor’s Note: Democrat politicians and their radical supporters will do everything they can to interfere with and threaten ICE agents enforcing our immigration laws.
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