sunshine05
29th April 2010, 07:31 PM
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/No_-Va_-enforces-immigration-as-Arizona-rages-92335879.html
N.Va. enforces immigration laws as Ariz. rages
By: David Sherfinski
Examiner Staff Writer
April 29, 2010
Protesters march in front of the Arizona House building where legislators were meeting to take up the issue of an immigration enforcement bill Tuesday, April 13, 2010, in Phoenix. The bill, which is a Senate bill S.B. 1070 requires officials and agencies of the state and political subdivisions to fully comply with and assist in the enforcement of federal immigration laws and gives county attorneys subpoena power in certain investigations of employers. Establishes crimes involving trespassing by illegal aliens, stopping to hire or soliciting work under specified circumstances, and transporting, harboring or concealing unlawful aliens, and their respective penalties. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
The national outcry over Arizona's immigration law is nothing new for Prince William County residents — hundreds ofpeople on both sides of the illegal immigration debate poured into marathon public hearings in fall 2007 when the county was passing its crackdown.
Since then, the county has turned over more than 2,000 suspected illegal immigrants to the federal government, and crime last year reached a 15-year low.
Other Northern Virginia jurisdictions also have turned over hundreds of suspected illegal immigrants to Immigration and Customs Enforcement through their own programs.
But law enforcement officials remain wary about their new roles enforcing federal law, and immigration experts and immigrant advocates warn that such steps can have negative consequences, such as racial profiling and a loss of trust with local police.
N.Va. enforces immigration laws as Ariz. rages
By: David Sherfinski
Examiner Staff Writer
April 29, 2010
Protesters march in front of the Arizona House building where legislators were meeting to take up the issue of an immigration enforcement bill Tuesday, April 13, 2010, in Phoenix. The bill, which is a Senate bill S.B. 1070 requires officials and agencies of the state and political subdivisions to fully comply with and assist in the enforcement of federal immigration laws and gives county attorneys subpoena power in certain investigations of employers. Establishes crimes involving trespassing by illegal aliens, stopping to hire or soliciting work under specified circumstances, and transporting, harboring or concealing unlawful aliens, and their respective penalties. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
The national outcry over Arizona's immigration law is nothing new for Prince William County residents — hundreds ofpeople on both sides of the illegal immigration debate poured into marathon public hearings in fall 2007 when the county was passing its crackdown.
Since then, the county has turned over more than 2,000 suspected illegal immigrants to the federal government, and crime last year reached a 15-year low.
Other Northern Virginia jurisdictions also have turned over hundreds of suspected illegal immigrants to Immigration and Customs Enforcement through their own programs.
But law enforcement officials remain wary about their new roles enforcing federal law, and immigration experts and immigrant advocates warn that such steps can have negative consequences, such as racial profiling and a loss of trust with local police.