Crackdown on illegal immigration hitting its stride
Dan Genz

Prince William County’s one-two punch against illegal immigration is starting to hit its stride, with residents beginning to feel the impact of a crackdown on inmates and police training set to begin next week.

More than 450 inmates cycling through the Prince William Manassas Adult Detention Center have been flagged as illegal immigrants, and at least 240 have been turned over to federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.

Training begins next week for the second, more controversial step of directing police officers to check the U.S. residency of people questioned for traffic offenses or minor misdemeanors. County officials say the policy will not take effect until at least March, allowing time for all 535 officers to complete an eight-hour training session.

Advocates of immigrants lament that the county is beginning an aggressive expansion as the effect of the jail checks are just beginning to be felt; critics of illegal immigration hail the plan as removing criminals from the community at a necessary clip.

There has been confusion in the community about whether the new police policy is already up and running because so many inmates have been checked at the jail, immigrants’ advocates said.

But county officials contend the reason is the jail’s new immigration-screening policy with ICE taking effect.

“We have not changed our policy,â€