A Virginia police officer was suspended for doing what most Americans would expect him to do, arrest an illegal alien who broke the law in the United States. After a Fairfax County police officer discovered a man involved in a traffic accident didn’t have a Virginia driver’s license, he ran a check on him and realized he was an illegal alien who failed to appear in court for a deportation hearing. After the officer verified that the illegal alien had an outstanding warrant for his failure to appear in court, he notified the immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The illegal alien was arrested.
So far, everything about this story seems perfectly normal, right?
Not so fast—The illegal alien was apprehended by a Fairfax County Police officer, which means he is not allowed to call ICE when he finds an illegal alien who has broken the law by refusing to show up at court for a deportation hearing.
According to Fox News- The Fairfax County Police Department enacted a 2007 policy that prohibits officers from confirming a person’s immigration status and detaining them solely based on civil violations of immigration law.
The Fairfax County Police Department has suspended the unidentified officer for reporting the illegal aliens to the federal authorities.
The Fairfax County Police Department didn’t identify the officer in a statement released Tuesday but said the incident occurred on Sept. 21 when an officer was dispatched to a car accident.
An ICE agent was close by and arrived at the scene. The officer cited the driver for not having a driver’s license and turned them over to the federal agent.
“This is an unfortunate issue where the officer was confused,” Police Chief Edwin Roessler Jr. said. “We have trained on this issue a lot. This is the first time we’ve had a lapse in judgment, and the officer is being punished.”
The driver was released from federal custody after three hours and ordered to wear an ankle monitor. Roessler apologized for the incident and ordered an internal investigation upon learning of it.
“Our county is one of the most diverse counties in the nation, and no one should have the perception that FCPD is acting as a civil immigration agent for ICE,” he said.
If the police officer determined that a U.S. citizen had a warrant out for not paying child support, and arrested him, would the officer have been suspended?
