Prince William County has turned over more than 2,500 suspected illegal immigrants to the federal government since July 2007.
Through June 30, 2,786 federal detainers were issued and the county jail turned over 2,586 suspected illegal immigrants to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to Col. Pete Meletis, superintendent of the Prince William County/Manassas Regional Jail.
Of those, 434 detainers were issued and 495 suspects were turned over to ICE since Feb. 1 — a fairly steady pace, Meletis said.
In 2007, Prince William County began participating in the federal 287(g) program that deputizes local law enforcement officials to enforce certain federal immigration laws.
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, who advocated for 287(g) authority for the state police during his time as attorney general, made a formal request for the partnership in a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano.
The hot-button issue of immigration resurfaced in Virginia after a nun was killed in a car crash Aug. 1. Carlos A. Martinelly Montano, 23, who has been charged with drunken driving, involuntary manslaughter and felony driving on a revoked license, was in the country illegally and had been picked up and released by the federal government.
ICE recently agreed to release information about the crimes and custody status of suspected Prince William illegal immigrants turned over to the agency, said spokesman Richard Rocha.
“We anticipate that research to take a few weeks,” he said.
But ICE will not provide personal information such as names or addresses.
“Under DHS’s Privacy Policy, the Privacy Act, which protects against the release of certain personal information, extends to aliens as well as U.S. citizens,” Rocha said.
In a letter to ICE Assistant Secretary John Morton, Prince William Board of Supervisors Chairman Corey Stewart, R-at large, had requested that the names of offenders and their offenses be given to the county’s police department.
In addition to partnering with the federal government, Prince William passed a resolution in 2007 directing police officers to check the residency status of criminal suspects if they had reasonable suspicion that they were in the country illegally. It was revised in April 2008 so that police officers would be required to check the status of everyone arrested.
