Dan Genz, The Examiner
2008-04-29 07:00:00.0
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WASHINGTON -

Council Chairman Corey Stewart on Monday backed a proposal for cameras in every county police car, signaling continued support for an illegal immigration crackdown on the eve of a high-profile vote on the issue.

Stewart had suggested eliminating the cameras last week to save $3.1 million. But with a contentious debate on county immigration policy looming tonight, the chairman reconsidered.

“I wasn’t a believer in the cameras at first, but I think it is a matter of officer safety,” Stewart said, adding, “The program is clearly working, and I don’t want to make any changes.”

More than 1,000 people have written supervisors in the last week about potential changes to the nation’s stiffest illegal immigration policy, which directs police to check the legal status of people questioned for driving violations and minor crimes.

Supervisors are considering modifications to the policy, including whether to remove legal status checks for minor traffic violators and those who have not yet been charged with another crime. That would allow dispensing with the expensive cameras, which are designed to document the arrests to protect officers from discrimination lawsuits.

But Stewart, who last week backed that plan, said Monday he now favors installing the devices to avoid weakening county immigration policy.

The last time supervisors considered a major vote on the issue, about 400 people testified over 12 hours.

The meeting will encompass other concerns as supervisors weigh the county’s $900 million budget, including a 23 percent tax rate increase and a plan to cut funding to programs for the elderly in Manassas.

But the most heated issue before the supervisors remains immigration.

“The perception from the citizens is that we’re backing off,” said Supervisor John Stirrup, R-Gainesville, the sponsor of the policy. “I don’t see the board backing off of the rule of law resolution in any way, shape or form.”

Others disagreed. “They have a unique opportunity that most human beings don’t have, which is to be able to go back in time to a day when they would like to do something different and have a do-over,” said Elena Schlossberg, a Haymarket resident.

dgenz@dcexaminer.com