The former New York City comptroller chose to prosecute the violation, despite the fact that it did not even rise to the level of a misdemeanor.
MANHATTAN (CN) – Congressional candidate Brad Lander appeared in court on Wednesday for one TICKET he got it last September, when he was arrested while trying to inspect immigration holding rooms in 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan.
The New York City Democrat, a former city comptroller and 2024 mayoral candidate, took the unusual step of seeking a mistrial for the violation, for which he faces no jail time. Lander said he hoped to use the proceedings to obtain information on ICE operations in New York through discovery and shed light on their controversial immigration enforcement efforts.
The crime he is charged with is so low that he was not entitled to a jury trial. Instead, a federal magistrate judge will issue a ruling Thursday morning.
Lander’s team argued that the case still has major implications.
“We understand that the stakes of this case may seem low; Mr. Lander is not facing prison time. But this case is extremely important,” defense attorney Michael Bass said during the opening. “The arrest is the rubber band and this case is another example of the (Trump) administration’s suppression of political dissent.”
Prosecutors acknowledged that the scope of the case is narrow in nature. According to his ticket, Lander illegally “blocked elevator banks” while he sat on the floor of 26 Federal Plaza to protest ICE.
“Today’s trial is for the court to decide a narrow issue: whether on September 18, 2025, Bradford Lander unreasonably obstructed the ordinary use of the elevators and elevator lobby of the 10th floor of 26 Federal Plaza,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Ariel Cohen told the court.
Video captured of the incident that day shows Lander and other elected officials sitting on the floor of the federal building, surrounding a sign that read “NYers Against ICE.” Lander and others chanted, “We will not move,” until he and several others, including state senators and assembly members, were arrested.
Lander’s legal team countered that no one tried to get in or out of the elevator behind him while he was sitting on the floor. If they did, he would have moved, his lawyers claimed.
“Mr. Lander did not block an elevator on the 10th floor of 26 Federal Plaza,” Bass said. “He was comptroller of the city of New York then, and he was concerned about the safety of his constituents.”
State Sen. Julia Salazar, one of the lawmakers arrested Sept. 18 along with Lander, testified for the defense that she and Lander were not trying to block the elevators at all. From where Lander was sitting, someone could have walked around him to get into the elevators, Salazar said.
Testifying in his own defense Wednesday, Lander insisted he wasn’t at 26 Federal Plaza that day to protest or cause trouble — he was there in his capacity as an elected official to assess the facility’s conditions as reviewed by his inmates.
“We made it clear that’s what we were there for, and we weren’t going to leave until they let us back in,” Lander said on the witness stand. “Our goal was to wait until we were allowed to inspect the 10th floor. Our goal was not to block the elevators or restrict anyone’s movement.”
“Of course I would have moved,” Lander added when asked if he would have accommodated someone going in or out of the elevator.
Prosecutors called only two witnesses during the one-day trial in the body. First up was John Melecio, the field office manager for 26 Federal Plaza, who testified that it would be “difficult” for someone to get out of the elevators if he blocked them. The other was Clifford Steichen, a senior inspector with the Federal Defense Service, who was the one who chained Lander’s wrists and arrested him.
Lander did not have access to immigration holding rooms that day. But details of the facility’s conditions were made public last month in another federal lawsuit, which found that ICE officials sent messages about “serious” health concerns that arose in overcrowded makeshift prison.
He was arrested at 26 Federal Plaza on another occasion months agowhen he tried to escort a man from immigration court through a crowd of ICE agents. Lander did not face any charges in that incident and was released that day.
A bubbly Lander spoke outside court after the roughly six-hour trial, where he told reporters his legal team “destroyed” prosecutors’ case “step by step.”
Lander is currently running in a contested election to unseat Democratic foe Dan Goldman, who represents New York’s 10th Congressional District. Leading the incumbent in most polls, Lander is touting Goldman from the left by increasing his support for Israel and taking corporate PAC donations.
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