Fairfax Prosecutor Steve Descano Rejects DOJ Probe Over Deals for Illegal Immigrants as House Hearing Nears Thursday
Updated
Updated · Fox News · May 11
Fairfax Prosecutor Steve Descano Rejects DOJ Probe Over Deals for Illegal Immigrants as House Hearing Nears Thursday
2 articles · Updated · Fox News · May 11
Steve Descano called the Justice Department’s civil-rights investigation a partisan attack, rejecting allegations that his office weighed immigration consequences in charging, plea and sentencing decisions.
The probe was opened last week after a complaint tied to Stephanie Minter’s killing, with victim advocate Jennifer Harrison saying she filed it for Minter’s mother, Cheryl Minter.
Abdul Jalloh, 32, an illegal immigrant from Sierra Leone, is accused of fatally stabbing Stephanie Minter, 41, at a Virginia bus stop earlier this year; DHS said Descano’s office had been warned about him.
Descano’s spokeswoman said the policy has been public for more than five years and the DOJ letter arrived a week before his scheduled House testimony on Fairfax County’s sanctuary policies.
The case adds to scrutiny of Descano, whose rise was backed by a $627,653 Soros-family PAC donation, as Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon says the DOJ will examine whether his policies put the community at risk.
How should the justice system balance victim safety against the unique immigration consequences for a defendant?
When does a prosecutor's discretion in criminal cases cross the line into a federal civil rights violation?
With warnings reportedly ignored, where does accountability lie when prosecutorial policy precedes a violent crime?