Overview
- Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano testified Thursday before a House Judiciary subcommittee and rejected claims his office gives special treatment to undocumented defendants.
- The hearing followed last week’s opening of a DOJ Civil Rights Division investigation into whether Fairfax’s 2020 charging and plea guidance violated Title VI and the Safe Streets Act, which bar discrimination by recipients of federal funds based on race, color, or national origin.
- Lawmakers pressed Descano about his recent removal of campaign‑website language on weighing deportation risks in charging and pleas, and he said campaign statements do not set his office’s policy.
- Fairfax Sheriff Stacey Kincaid told lawmakers her office does not carry out federal civil immigration enforcement, adding that ICE can access the county jail at any time.
- Critics cited violent cases, including the February stabbing of Stephanie Minter that a Sierra Leonean immigrant is charged in, as Minter’s mother urged accountability and DOJ investigators have not announced any findings.