The Prince William jail turned over 82 illegal immigrants to federal authorities between Oct. 27 and Nov. 30, showing no slowdown in the number of criminals being caught by the county’s crackdown despite changes that took effect in July.
“We’ve been going 24/7 the past few months,” said jail Superintendent Col. Pete Meletis. “We weren’t doing near that much” at the start, he added.
A total of 82 inmates were turned over to federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement in July, August and September 2007, immediately after the jail entered into a formal partnership with ICE. The number spiked to 83 in October 2007, when a similar partnership between ICE and the Prince William police department was approved by the county’s Board of Supervisors.
Since then, Meletis’ staff has dealt with about the same number of transfers monthly, he said.
“It’s one of those kinds of programs where you’re not going to get” the same numbers each month, Prince William Sheriff Glendell Hill said. “You have to be prepared for 80 when 80 comes.”
Hill said that because the time spent processing each inmate has been reduced since the crackdown was implemented, the system is now more efficient and is better equipped to handle high numbers of illegal immigrants. The jail staff devoted to the program also has doubled from five to 10 since the crackdown began.
Suspects in Prince William, Manassas and Manassas Park are now all booked in a central location, after a $53 million jail expansion in October. Overcrowding in the jail has been a long-standing problem, according to Hill, who previously served as the detention center superintendent for 11 years.
“This facility has been needed for many years now,” he said. “Prince William County has seen unprecedented growth here — with that, unfortunately, come people who [break the laws].”
Hill added that the county “certainly needs” the expansion’s second phase, which includes a second addition to the jail. Because of the county’s budget woes, he said he did not know whether it would be built anytime soon.
When asked whether he thought he had sufficient staff to handle the current workload, Meletis simply said, “I think we’re fine for now.”
Beginning July 1, officials were required to check the immigration status of anyone arrested. The original immigration resolution passed in October 2007 gave police officers authority to inquire into the status of anyone they had probable cause to believe was in the country illegally.
