To: The Virginia State House and The Virginia State Senate
Opposition to HB1468 Requiring Va Law Enforcement to Hold Undocumented Immigrants for ICE
I opposed HB1468, which requires department of corrections and/or sheriff’s office personnel to hold keep undocumented immigrants in prison or jail until immigration can take custody of them. This bill requires these individuals to remain in detention for as long as this might take, even after they would ordinarily be released. This bill requires police and sheriff to act as immigration enforcement in addition to their obligation to serve and protect their community within their jurisdiction, without adding any funding for additional personnel (such as law enforcement officers or translators) or training to better understand current immigration law.
Why is this important?
This bill would create an undue burden on law enforcement officers, the prison or jail systems in their communities, and the surrounding communities. Each inmate in the Department of Corrections costs the State of Virginia approximately $25,129 annually, so each individual who is held for an undetermined amount of time, is costing taxpayers over that time. Additionally, this legislation will ultimately have a chilling effect within immigrant communities, which are already targets for crime, leading to victims in those communities not reporting crimes such as theft or assault because of fear of the implication for detention and deportation. Vulnerable groups such as the elderly, children, and women are the ones who suffer most in these circumstances.
The bill can be read here: https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?171+sum+HB1468
The bill can be read here: https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?171+sum+HB1468