Incident details
- Date of incident
- May 25, 2026
- Location
- Newark, New Jersey
- Targets
- Jonathan Fernandes (Documented)
- Assailant
- Law enforcement
- Was the journalist targeted?
- Yes
Assault
Photojournalist Jonathan Fernandes, who was shoved with a police baton while covering an immigration protest outside a detention facility in Newark, New Jersey, on May 25, 2026.
Photojournalist Jonathan Fernandes was thrust backward by a federal officer with a baton while covering a protest against Immigration and Customs Enforcement and its treatment of detainees in Newark, New Jersey, on May 25, 2026.
Protests outside the Delaney Hall immigration detention facility began May 22, when many detainees went on a hunger strike. Members of Congress, state and local lawmakers and rights groups have alleged dire conditions at the facility.
Federal officers responded to the protests with chemical irritants, physical force and arrests. The Department of Homeland Security has denied allegations of detainee mistreatment.
Fernandes told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that officers were pushing back a crowd of protesters and media when he was thrown back by an officer lunging at him with a baton. Fernandes, on assignment for Documented New York, was wearing visible press credentials.
“I was not in anyone’s way at all,” he said. “He could see my badge, that I’m holding a camera and not participating in any way.”
At a protest outside Delaney Hall the following day, Fernandes was pepper-sprayed by a federal officer.
In a statement emailed to the Tracker on June 1, DHS said anyone who obstructs law enforcement or disrupts its operations would be prosecuted. It did not address its use of force against members of the press.
“We remind members of the media to exercise caution as they cover these violent riots and remind journalists that covering unlawful activities in the field does come with risks,” the statement read. “Our officers take every reasonable precaution to mitigate those dangers to those exercising protected First Amendment rights.”
The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker catalogs press freedom violations in the United States. Email tips to [email protected].
