The progressive Democrat-controlled county board of Arlington, Virginia, located just across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., unanimously voted on Tuesday to ban police from informing ICE and other federal government immigration authorities about arrests of illegal alien Terrorists, gang members, violent felons and human traffickers, revoking previously granted authority given to “maintain community safety.”
Arlington County Board, official photo.
The five board members, Chair Takis P. Karantonis, Vice Chair Matt de Ferranti, Maureen Coffey, Susan Cunningham and Julius D. “JD” Spain, Sr., all voted to strike Section 7 of “Arlington’s Commitment to Strengthening Trust with Our Immigrant Communities“, adopted in 2022 and updated in November 2024 in response to President Trump’s reelection.
Like their fellow Democrats in Congress across the Potomac and across the country, the board has chosen to go in hard in support of illegal alien terrorists and gang members at the expense of the lives and safety of American citizens and legal immigrants.
Section 7 detailed instances when Arlington police could contact ICE to report illegal aliens:
ACPD may initiate contact with federal immigration authorities only under the following circumstances, as set forth in Arlington County Police Directive Manual 523.04, after receiving the approval of either the on-duty Watch Commander or any supervisor with the rank of Lieutenant or above:
(a) An undocumented immigrant who
(i) Has been identified as a gang member and is wanted or arrested for a violent felony or a criminal street gang offense; or
(ii)an undocumented immigrant who is arrested for a felony offense or is a confirmed gang member, where circumstances indicate notification to federal immigration authorities is prudent to maintain community safety. Such circumstances must be based on specific, articulable facts that clearly establish a threat to the community. Determination of a person being identified as a gang member will be in accordance with the criteria set forth in the Code of Virginia § 52-8.6 and § 18.2-46.1. The approving supervisor as defined in 7. shall ensure the Gang Unit is consulted before making notification to federal immigration authorities under this subsection.
(b)An undocumented immigrant who is arrested for a terrorism or human trafficking offense.
Arlington Now reported in April that police contacts with ICE were up for the year since President Trump took office (excerpt):
As of last week, the Arlington County Police Department had contacted Immigration and Customs Enforcement 17 times since the start of the year. This is ACPD’s highest rate of voluntary cooperation with the federal agency since the county began publishing these numbers in 2022, according to data provided to ARLnow.
The agency initiated contact with ICE 18 times in all of 2024, seven times in 2023 and four times in 2022…
…Since that time, however, the County Board has quietly taken some steps to support Arlington’s immigrant communities and thwart immigration officers. At a meeting days after Trump took office, for instance, Board members allocated $250,000 in funds that have since made their way to two organizations providing legal support for undocumented Arlington residents.
At a meeting earlier this month, Karantonis said the Board “is currently reviewing” the trust policy and plans to share more details soon.
“Our review is motivated by significant shifts in national immigration enforcement policies that mark a departure from the supremacy of the rule of law, the principles of due process and respect for every person’s constitutional rights,” he said. “We have heard ongoing and growing concerns from our residents in this room and across our entire community.”
WTOP-FM reported on comments by the board on passage of the vote to protect illegal alien terrorists and gang members (excerpt):
“What the removal of Section 7 actually means is that we are not going to allow anymore that our law enforcement proactively contacts the federal government immigration authorities on any issue,” Board Chair Takis Karantonis said…
…“In recent weeks and recent months, we have seen a significant decrease of trust, especially for our immigrant community, to contact local law enforcement when it was really necessary,” Karantonis said. “That means we have seen a decrease in safety in our own community.”
Board member Maureen Coffey, meanwhile, criticized the national political landscape, explaining that “sending people to foreign prisons and claiming we have no way to get them back is not normal. Stating that due process isn’t required for immigration proceedings is not normal.”
“Our responsibility is public safety, and it does not keep our community safe to have people afraid to call 911 when they have an emergency,” Coffey said. “It does not keep our community safe to have people scared to ask Human Services for help that their family is entitled to.”
The post Treason? D.C. Suburb Arlington County, Virginia, Votes to Ban Police From Contacting Federal Immigration Authorities Over Arrests of Illegal Alien Terrorists, Gang Members, Violent Felons and Human Traffickers appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.