Article Text
Fairfax County’s Board of Supervisors rejected an effort to review its Trust Policy after Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity argued that the rules may undermine public safety in cases involving repeat violent offenders.
Herrity, the board’s only Republican, proposed directing county staff to study possible changes to the policy and report to the board’s Safety and Security Committee. His proposal died without discussion after none of the other nine supervisors—all Democrats—offered the required second motion.
Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk was listed as a joint sponsor but did not second the proposal.
Adopted in 2021, the Trust Policy generally bars county employees from sharing information about a person’s citizenship or immigration status with federal immigration authorities unless the disclosure is required by law or a court order. The policy is intended partly to assure immigrants that they can report crimes, cooperate with police and use public services without fearing an immigration referral.
Critics, including the Trump administration and former Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, have objected to the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office declining to recognize informal detainer requests from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The sheriff’s office has said ICE is notified whenever an undocumented person is taken into custody. According to the office, federal authorities are then responsible for securing a court order or having agents present when the person is released.
Herrity tied his request to several cases in which people living in the country without authorization were accused of serious crimes. He specifically cited the Feb. 23 fatal stabbing of Stephanie Minter, 41, at a Hybla Valley bus stop.
Abdul Jalloh was charged with Minter’s murder. Federal immigration officials said Jalloh entered the United States without authorization from Sierra Leone in 2012. He had been arrested repeatedly in Fairfax County, including four times on malicious-wounding charges, before Minter’s death.
Herrity said the county board cannot repair every problem in the legal system but should take whatever steps it can to protect residents. He characterized his proposal as an attempt to begin that process and warned that Minter’s killing was not the first case involving a repeat violent offender accused of committing another violent crime after being released.
The requested review also would have considered additional support for crime victims and witnesses of any immigration status. Herrity’s proposal acknowledged that some people may avoid reporting crimes because they fear deportation.
Fairfax County police maintain a separate internal policy limiting cooperation with ICE. Immigrant-rights advocates expressed concern last year that revisions to those rules might have weakened existing protections.
After his proposal failed, Herrity said the board should be willing to reassess any county policy that could affect public safety. He argued that the Trust Policy prevents cooperation with federal agencies even in cases involving repeat violent offenders.
Board Chairman Jeff McKay rejected the claim that the policy obstructs local law enforcement. He said it encourages residents to cooperate with police, helping investigators solve crimes and victims obtain justice.
McKay pointed to Jalloh’s multiple arrests as evidence that the policy does not provide immunity from prosecution. He also said county police had actively sought to keep Jalloh jailed because of his criminal history.
“This is not a failure of the Trust Policy,” McKay said, adding that the board remains committed to holding people accountable and working with every part of the community to maintain public safety.