LOCAL

ALEXANDRIA – Latinos in northern
Virginia filed a lawsuit Wednesday
against Prince William County in an
attempt to halt the implementation
of a resolution that aims to deny a
wide range of public services to illegal
immigrants.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District
Court in Alexandria and argues that
enforcement of the measure passed by
county lawmakers in July will subject
immigrants in the United States legally to
unnecessary government intrusion and
will violate their right to equal protection
under the law. The lawsuit says the
measure violates the U.S. Constitution
and federal and state laws.

The resolution allows local police to
check the residency status of individuals
they encounter, authorizes county
employees to collect immigration data
on people who seek public benefits and
seeks to deny public services, including
housing assistance, drug rehab for jail
inmates and senior programs, to illegal
immigrants.

“This ordinance, which expresses the
worst instincts of a few in the county, is
destroying the basic fabric of community
life,” said Cesar Perales, president of
the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and
Education Fund.

The group filed the lawsuit with the
Washington law firm Howrey LLP and
the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for
Civil Rights and Urban Affairs. It was
filed on behalf of 21 plaintiffs ranging
from U.S. citizens to undocumented
residents and others with transitional
status.

“Nowhere in the country have the
courts upheld the right of counties to
do what Prince William County is trying
to do,” Perales said.

Prince William County Board of
Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart
said he believed the resolution would
hold up in court.

The resolution has placed Prince
William County at the center of a debate
on how to handle the region’s growing
immigrant population. Gov. Timothy M.
Kaine and other officials have criticized
Congress for not doing enough to stop
illegal immigration, which has prompted
local jurisdictions to take the matter into
their own hands.