VIRGINIA — Gov. Glenn Youngkin issued an executive order Thursday directing Virginia State Police (VSP) to assist with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) removal and enforcement operations.
VSP and the Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) were directed to sign agreements with ICE, appointing officials to assist the federal effort.
As part of the order, a task force within VSP would be established to identify and apprehend illegal immigrants, and VADOC correction officers would be trained and assigned as Designated Immigration Officers (DIOs).
In a statement, Youngkin said, “Dangerous criminal illegal immigrants should not be allowed back into our communities to assault, rape, and murder.” They should be returned to where they came from.
According to Younkin’s order, just under 950 inmates at VADOC had an open immigration detainer as of February 27th.
An immigration detainer is a notice to federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies that ICE intends to take custody of a particular person.
Detainers are typically issued after ICE establishes probable cause that the individual is removable, such as being convicted of a crime or posing a threat to national security or public safety.
The executive order stated that a significant number of the detainees are violent criminals.
Youngkin stated that partnerships between the VSP and VADOC will strengthen Virginia’s commitment to justice and the rule of law, as well as improve our ability to prevent dangerous offenders from reentering our communities.
The executive order will shift officials’ reactionary cooperation to more proactive measures.
The order specified three directives, which included:
- Initiate a VSP Task Force consisting of federally deputized officers who will help in the identification and apprehension of “criminal illegal immigrants who pose a risk to public safety” throughout Virginia.
- Establish a VADOC Jail Enforcement Model Program to leverage multiple detention and processing facilities throughout Virginia and train corrections officers as Designated Immigration Officers (DIOs).
- Instruct the Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security to contact every official in charge of a local or regional jail in Virginia to confirm their “full cooperation” with ICE in its enforcement and removal operations.
In a statement, VSP said it was currently taking measures to comply with the executive order and is in the process of entering into an agreement with ICE.
“Virginia State Police’s mission is to provide for a secure Commonwealth,” Colonel Matthew D. Hanley, Superintendent of Virginia State Police, stated. “As will be the case here, we frequently partner with other agencies to support the Governor’s initiatives on violent crime.”
