Dan Genz, The Examiner
2008-05-05 07:00:00.0
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WASHINGTON -

Prince William County overwhelmed the federal government’s ability to remove illegal immigrants in the first year of their partnership by trying to deport many more inmates than anticipated, the nation’s immigration enforcement director said.

In a letter committing to redoubled efforts to execute the crackdown with the county, Immigration and Customs Enforcement chief Julie Myers said the jail tried to deport between 75 percent and 150 percent more inmates each month than agreed on last year.

“Everyone agreed that there has been a dramatic increase in the number of aliens who are being processed through your facilities. This number, however is well beyond the original projected caseload that was agreed upon,” wrote Myers, assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

The Manassas jail quickly began starting deportation cases against 70 to 100 inmates each month, well above the 40 estimated last year.

“Despite the increase in caseload, ICE understands the important partnership that we have with your county,” Myers said in the April 17 letter. “We are committed to working with you and officials from Prince William County to ensure our [agreement] works to serve our mutual needs.”

ICE officials last month cleared the jail of a backlog of more than 100 inmates awaiting transfers to federal custody, and have arranged twice-weekly pickups at the jail to address a problem that created major problems at the previously overcrowded jail.

For months, jail officials said delays by ICE in processing illegal immigrants detained at the Manassas jail were creating major problems, with some inmates waiting three weeks to be removed.

Jail officials say Myers’ letter reflects the unexpected, rapid growth of the program since it started in July and the federal agency’s renewed commitment to make it work.

“Both the Adult Detention Center and ICE budgeted and staffed with an idea in mind of what the volume was going to be, and we’re now realizing it’s a whole lot more than that,” Prince William Jail Board Chairman Pat Hurd said. “It just grew into a much larger program right away.”

In the fall, ICE officials described the 40-person-per-month limit as a “starting point,” with the region’s director for detention and removal, Vincent Archibeque, saying at the time, “We really don’t know how many cases we’re going to encounter.”

dgenz@dcexaminer.com