City Comptroller Brad Lander on Friday pleaded not guilty to a violation stemming from a protest against the conditions migrants are being held in at 26 Federal Plaza — and later spoke about the possibility of hitting the campaign trail as well as the courtroom in the new year.
At his Manhattan Federal Court arraignment, the outgoing comptroller was released on his own recognizance by Magistrate Judge Henry Ricardo, who warned him not to break any federal, state, or local laws while the case is pending.
“I will drive very much under the speed limit, your honor,” quipped Lander, who has an admittedly poor speeding record.
The comptroller last month declined an offer from the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office that would have led to the misdemeanor charge against him being dismissed in six months if he avoided arrest on federal property.
The violation accuses him of unreasonably obstructing “the usual use” of the elevator bank area, where he was arrested by cops for the Department of Homeland Security alongside ten elected officials on Sept. 18.
The group sat on the building’s nonpublic 10th floor in an act of protest, demanding access to the holding cell areas where asylum seekers have reported being treated poorly since President Trump’s return to the White House. Everyone but Lander who was arrested accepted the deal offered by prosecutors.
The comptroller, who was also arrested in June advocating for migrants at the lower Manhattan facility, has said he wants to go to trial to elicit evidence about what Immigration and Customs Enforcement considers the “usual use” of the hidden 10th floor area and to argue that ICE agents are the ones violating the law.
The federal government has denied congressional and local lawmakers access to the cells.
“The crime was not us sitting on the floor of the 10th-floor elevator lobby. The crime is what ICE agents are doing on the other side of the 10th-floor door,” he said outside court Friday.
Trump administration officials have denied allegations about the hold cell area where hundreds of migrants have been detained after being ambushed by agents trying to leave the building after asylum hearings.
Asked by the Daily News whether he’d decided to mount a challenge against Democratic Rep. Dan Goldman in New York’s 10th congressional district, the comptroller said he was still making up his mind.
“I’m very seriously considering a run,” Lander said.
“I haven’t made any final decisions yet. I mean, these are urgent times — when ICE agents are abducting our neighbors, and Donald Trump is stealing money from New York City’s bank account — and I think people are looking for leaders who will put their bodies on the line.”
