Virginia Panel Rejects Detention Center for Illegal Immigrants

[defendandprotect]

Virginia Panel Rejects Detention Center for Illegal Immigrants

Protesters Tuesday in Manassas, Va., as Prince William County officials took on illegal immigration issues.
By IAN URBINA/Jay Paul for The New York Times
Published: October 17, 2007

RICHMOND, Va., Oct. 16 — A Virginia state panel on Tuesday rejected a controversial proposal to create the country’s first state-run facility where illegal immigrants arrested for certain crimes could be held until federal officials deport them or while awaiting trial.

A state panel co-chaired by State Delegate David B. Albo weighed in on illegal immigration issues.
Instead, the panel recommended that the state provide additional money so local officials could build more jail space to house immigrants awaiting deportation. It also called on local jail officials to check the immigration status of all inmates and deny bail to most illegal immigrants who committed crimes.

In recent years, Virginia has become a testing ground for some of the strictest policies in the nation to curb illegal immigration.

This week, officials in Prince William County, Va., were weighing proposals to deny county services to illegal immigrants and to direct the police to jail those immigrants who could not show documentation proving they were in the United States legally.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/17/us/17prison.html?em&ex=1192766400&en=5423b063958cb516&ei=5087%0A

[defendandprotect]

1. This sounds like a rather dangerously fascist idea ----

QUOTE: In recent years, Virginia has become a testing ground for some of the strictest policies in the nation to curb illegal immigration. UNQUOTE

Is Virginia seen as a hotbed of illegal immigrant, or simply one of our most nearly-fascist states?

[Virginia Dare]

2. Probably the latter..

although in Northern Virginia, there is a large immigrant population.

See Squatch's thread from yesterday:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2066292

[LakeSamish706]

3. I don't see it as a fascist idea at all.. I see it as doing the job that the Feds should..

be doing, but are not. You have illegal Aliens in the State that are committing crimes against society and you need to control them. This will also keep them in a place that you can easily find them for deportation when the time comes. Seems pretty simple to me!

[High Plains]

4. Yeah, concentration camps were a simple solution, too.

You are aware, of course, that most undocumented workers are, uh, here working, not creating a crime wave, right?

[LakeSamish706]

6. Whatever... They are still illegal... and should be treated as such...

I will never understand that if things are so bad for "Illegal Aliens" in their own countries, why don't the people force change? Instead of risking arrest and deportation from the country you are fleeing to, change the scope in your own country. I realize that this sounds easier than it really is to do, but others have done it...

[Frances]

5. I think the panel's idea is a better one

If you have a huge camp "concentrating" all of the criminal illegal aliens in one spot, you are asking for trouble, in my opinion.