Free Republic

An Alexandria woman who apparently had been abducted from a shopping mall and forced into her own car by robbers was killed yesterday in Prince William County when the car crashed as the robbers fled from pursuers, authorities said. The woman was identified as Barbara Jean Bosworth, 61, of White Post Court. She was killed about 3 p.m. near Route 1 in the Woodbridge area when the speeding car went out of control and crashed into trees, according to Prince William County police. Police said two men who were in the car with Bosworth were critically injured and flown to...

If you ever ran into Nokesville dad Thomas S. Vander Woude, chances are you would also see his son Joseph. Whether Vander Woude was volunteering at church, coaching basketball or working on his farm, Joseph was often right there with him, pitching in with a smile, friends and neighbors said yesterday. When Joseph, 20, who has Down syndrome, fell into a septic tank Monday in his back yard, Vander Woude jumped in after him. He saved him. And he died where he spent so much time living: at his son's side.

MANASSAS, VA — Joe Biden’s had a lot of praise for Alaska Governor Sarah Palin — maybe too much praise. He’s said all day that Palin did “a good job” in her convention speech last night, and calling her a tough debate opponent, he seems to be raising expectations for her debate performance next month. But he can also sounds a bit patronizing. At a sparsely attended discussion at George Mason’s Prince WIlliam County campus, Biden went a step further in at the same time praising and denigrating Palin — demoting his Republican rival in remarks about last night’s big...

For years immigrant entrepreneurs have taken over small stations with relatively weak signals, providing what for many Caribbean and Latin American immigrants is a key source of information about their local communities, U.S. life and politics, and news from the homeland. When Carlos Aragon, a native of El Salvador, founded Radio Fiesta six years ago on the second story of a strip mall in Woodbridge, he intended it to play just that role for Hispanics in Prince William County. "The intention was to create a bridge between the Hispanic and the Anglo community, interviewing politicians and informing the community and...

The family that planted corn in the front yard of their $500,000 home is gone from Carrie Oliver's street. So are the neighbors who drilled holes into the trees to string up a hammock. Oliver's list goes on: The loud music. The beer bottles. The littered diapers. All gone. When she and her husband, Ron, went for walks in their Manassas area neighborhood, she would take a trash bag and he would carry a handgun. No more. "So much has changed," she said in a gush of relief, standing with her husband on a warm summer evening recently outside a...

Prince William County (VA) officials Friday attributed a 19.3 percent decline in crimes against people from 2006 to 2007 to last year’s crackdown on illegal immigrants. Board of Supervisors Chairman Corey Stewart said the major difference between Prince William and other counties where crime is on the rise is the county’s “very aggressive crackdown on illegal immigration...” But Nancy Lyall of Mexicans Without Borders, an immigrant advocacy group, said that the declining crime rates are misleading....Prince William’s homicides declined by 43.8 percent, from 16 to nine, the incidence of rape increased by 33.3 percent, from 21 to 28, robberies declined...

Exactly 15 years ago this week the world first heard the story of John Wayne and Lorena Bobbitt. John Wayne, an ex-Marine, was accused of coming home drunk and raping his wife. Lorena was accused of retaliating by cutting off her husband's penis while he was asleep. Lorena went from anonymous to notorious - her story the subject of countless newspaper and magazine articles. Now in her first ever network morning show interview she discusses how she's using her notoriety to help others. "All of a sudden, my private life is out in the open and it's an open book...

Loudoun County law enforcement officials said yesterday they will start routinely checking the immigration status of all people arrested in the county if deputies suspect they are in the United States illegally, implementing a policy similar to one that set off controversy in neighboring Prince William County. Sheriff Stephen O. Simpson (I) told the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors that he had reached agreement with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency to participate in a program that ultimately seeks to deport illegal immigrants convicted of serious felonies.

The U.N. plans to examine Prince William County's aggressive crackdown on illegal immigrants during a visit next week. Jorge Bustamante, the United Nation's special rapporteur on migrants' rights, plans to receive briefings on local enforcement measures, and meet with local officials. County Chairman Corey Stewart said he is willing to meet with Bustamante, but sharply rebuked the international body for what he called an anti-American agenda. But the UN should not have a role, said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies. "Our immigration policy is not a subject for the U.N. or any foreign institution, pure...

WASHINGTON-The United Nations plans to examine Prince William County’s aggressive crackdown on illegal immigrants during a visit next week. Jorge Bustamante, the United Nation’s special rapporteur on migrants’ rights, plans to tour Manassas and Woodbridge, receive briefings on local enforcement measures, and attempt to meet with local officials. He contacted immigrant leaders in the county two months ago to begin preparing for a visit, saying he was interested in the landmark nature of the county’s actions. Special rapporteurs are tasked with reviewing human-rights issues of international concern to raise political pressure and shape public opinion, but cannot issue sanctions. The...

 From: Obama for America [mailto:info@barackobama.com] Sent: Tuesday, June 03, 2008 5:19 PMTo:Subject: Thursday: Barack Obama in Prince William County  Please join Barack Obama for a Rally in Prince William County, where he'll talk about his vision for bringing America together and creating the kind of change we can believe in.Rally with Barack ObamaNissan Pavilion7800 Cellar Door DriveBristow, VAThursday, June 5thDoors Open: 3:00 p.m.Program Starts: 6:00 p.m. http://va.barackobama.com/bristowThe event is free and open to the public. Tickets are NOT required, but an RSVP is strongly encouraged. Admission is on a first-come, first-served basis.For security reasons, do not bring bags. Please limit personal...

WOODBRIDGE, Va. – Business at Pedro Vargas' store, Club Video Mexico, has slid so steeply that only eight people walked through the door one day last month. One thing he has been selling, however, are one-way bus tickets from northern Virginia to Texas and Mexico. Soon he'll be getting his own ticket out of town – seeking a friendlier and more lucrative place to do business. “The last few months have been very, very bad for us,” said Vargas, who plans to move this summer from Prince William County, about 25 miles southwest of Washington, to Utah, where he recently...

The linked video attempts to portray the dire consequences of Prince William County's anti-illegal immigration ordinance, and it includes pans of the inside of two empty restaurants in the area. I'm trying to "bust" the filmmakers; see my earlier discussion of the video here. Note that they've been promoted by both the Washington Post and Youtube. Could someone in the area look into whether these restaurants are really as empty as claimed, or whether this was a setup, and then post their findings here? The restaurants are El Portal Restaurant in Woodbridge and the Casablanca restaurant/dance club on Route 28...

The Prince William Board of County Supervisors last night approved an addition to its 2-month-old crackdown on illegal immigrants, considered one of the most aggressive in country. With the board's decision, county police can verify the immigration status of anyone they arrest, even for minor infractions such as speeding or jaywalking.

WASHINGTON -- Prince William County's illegal immigration crackdown appears to be spurring some families to send their children to schools elsewhere in northern Virginia. According to the Prince William school system, enrollment in English as a Second Language classes dropped by 759 students from September through March. During that same period, 623 ESOL students from Prince William enrolled in Fairfax County schools, compared with 241 in the same period the previous year. Eighty-three enrolled in Arlington County, 75 enrolled in the city of Alexandria and 23 signed up in Loudoun County. Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey Stewart...

Hundreds of foreign-born families have pulled their children from Prince William County public schools and enrolled them in nearby Fairfax County, Arlington County and Alexandria since the start of the school year, imposing a new financial burden on those inner suburbs in a time of lean budgets. The school-to-school migration within Northern Virginia started just as Prince William began implementing rules to deny some services to illegal immigrants and require police to check the immigration status of crime suspects thought to be in the country illegally. ... According to the Prince William school system, enrollment in the English for speakers...

Federal immigration officials acknowledge that they have failed to keep pace with the number of illegal immigrants arrested in Prince William County and are meeting with county leaders to resolve the problem. "Both parties recognized that due to the dramatic increase in the number of aliens being sent to [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] beyond the originally projected caseload, closer coordination will be required," said agency spokeswoman Ernestine Fobbs. "It's a large influx. We are removing them as efficiently and quickly as we can." Miss Fobbs did not further explain the extent of the delay or the process. In July,...

Prince William County police yesterday said 41 of the 89 illegal immigrants encountered last month were arrested but charged only with violating local laws. Names, addresses and other identifying information on the 89 were given to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, who could arrange deportations. The Washington Times and other news media incorrectly reported that all 89 had been charged. Police Chief Charlie T. Deane emphasized yesterday that county police have nothing to do with enforcing immigration laws. The new procedure, considered to be a first in the country for combining local and federal enforcement, began March 3. Twenty-one...

Months after Prince William County began one of the country's toughest crackdowns on illegal immigrants, officials and residents report signs that substantial numbers of people have left the county, particularly from Hispanic neighborhoods. Dave Whitlow, town manager of Dumfries, said officials started noticing the change a few months ago when they canvassed communities popular among Hispanic families and found roughly 165 residences vacant among 1,600 houses and town houses. Shopkeepers and teachers of English as a second language also have noticed a drop-off. "We are having many more leaving," said Mr. Whitlow, who could not estimate what percentage of those...

WASHINGTON - Prince William County's crackdown on illegal immigration could be having a chilling effect in some local schools. "It certainly is an anomaly that we would have a little more than 600 fewer students in the ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) program than what we had at the beginning of the year," says Prince William County school spokesman Ken Blackstone. "We are always concerned when there's anything that would create an apparent anomaly like this, a drop in enrollment." Many of the students who left the school system left after the county's crackdown on illegal immigrants started...

When Northern Virginia's Latino soccer leagues kick off the 2008 season early next month, fans of Honduras de Manassas will have to travel outside their base in Prince William County to see their team score goals. So will supporters used to watching Juventus Sure¿o crush the competition in Woodbridge. Devotees of longtime Manassas powerhouse Fiorentina will need to switch allegiance. Their team is sitting out this season. As Prince William proceeds with its crackdown on illegal immigrants, one result is a shake-up and shrinking of the area's entrenched Hispanic soccer leagues. The reason is simple, organizers say: Players and fans,...

Man Bites Dog by: Malcolm A. Kline, February 22, 2008 Believe it or not, in the Dominion state, a Democratic governor is trying to cut education spending while Republicans in the state assembly fight those cuts. “In response to Governor Kaine’s proposal to address the $2 billion budget shortfall between fiscal years 2008 and 2010 by eliminating over $220 million in dedicated General Fund support for local school divisions, House Republican members of the conference committee on the state budget expressed deep concern over the negative impact on the Governor’s proposed cuts,” read a Valentine’s Day press release from Virginia...

MANASSAS, Va. -- Controversial funding of a controversial plan to have police crack down on illegal immigrants has passed in Prince William County.The Prince William County Board of Supervisors voted 8-0 in favor of using almost $800,000 in contingency funds to allow police to begin enforcing the illegal immigration resolution passed last year. The board voted in 2007 to allow police to check the residency status of illegal immigrants if they are suspected of breaking a law. The measure also means that county services such as housing assistance, drug rehab for jail inmates and senior programs would be denied to...

RICHMOND — Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart, who engineered the county's crackdown on illegal aliens last summer, plans to run for lieutenant governor next year. Mr. Stewart, a Republican, told The Washington Times the job would give him the platform to pressure lawmakers into doing more to crackdown on illegal aliens. "By running statewide it gives me the bully pulpit to do that," he said. While several Republicans are said to be considering bids for attorney general next year, Mr. Stewart, a Minnesota native and Georgetown University graduate, is the party's highest-profile figure to indicate...

Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart, the politically ambitious architect of the county's illegal immigration crackdown, said he plans to run for lieutenant governor next year. It is well known that Stewart, a conservative Republican, is eyeing higher office. He frequently has been mentioned as a potential successor to U.S. Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.). And now that Davis has decided not to seek reelection, Stewart has declared himself the "preeminent Republican in Northern Virginia." Stewart said he spent the past month weighing his options while watching the General Assembly reach a virtual stalemate on...

American history is not all just glory and pride LETTER TO THE EDITOR Potomac News Sunday, January 27, 2008 Many believe that American history is all about glory and pride, but the government has to sugarcoat and delete the shameful events out of our children's history books for that to be believable. But just because it's not in their biased schoolbooks doesn't mean it didn't happen. Slavery has been a necessity since America was founded. Africans were stolen from their homes and forced to work for free. Today, according to U.S. law, slavery is abolished, but those jobs still need...

On a hot August afternoon at the Prince William County Fair in northern Virginia, Greg Letiecq tried to make eye contact with passersby gorging themselves on funnel cakes and cotton candy. Standing before a booth draped with American flags and "Help Save Manassas" signs, Letiecq was enjoying a kind of local celebrity. The Washington Post had recently run a front-page story on how his blog, Black Velvet Bruce Li, had become the "most influential local blog in Virginia." (A previous incarnation, Black Velvet Bruce Lee, was taken down in the wake of a slander suit.) Several days earlier, former Virginia...

Seven grass-roots organizations across Virginia have joined together to form a statewide coalition to lobby state officials for tougher enforcement of immigration laws. The umbrella group, called Save the Old Dominion, was started Dec. 13. A mission statement on the group's Web site, at www.savetheolddominion.org, says its members are dedicated to "preserving the commonwealth for future generations" and "pursuing legislative action in Virginia to reduce the number of illegal aliens unlawfully present in the commonwealth." Greg Letiecq, president of the group Help Save Manassas and a co-founder of Save the Old Dominion, said yesterday that the group plans to form...

The chairman of a federal civil rights panel clashed yesterday with Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart over the recent crackdown on illegal immigrants approved by the board. Linda Chavez, a conservative commentator who heads a U.S. Commission on Civil Rights panel examining whether the crackdown violates federal antidiscrimination laws, said she believed the supervisors based their action largely on anecdotal evidence of problems.... "Watching this, it seemed like there was little fact-finding prior to the board's consideration of this resolution. You seemed to have made up your minds [in advance]," Chavez said.... Stewart (R-At Large),...

U.S. Civil Rights Panel Faults Pr. William Immigration Plan Friday, December 14, 2007; 4:06 p.m. By Kristen Mack Washington Post Staff Writer Members of a federal civil rights panel said today that the crackdown on illegal immigrants approved by the Prince William Board of County Supervisors was based largely on anecdotal evidence of problems caused by illegal immigrants. The immigration subcommittee of the state advisory committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights came to Prince William today to hear from lawyers, demographers, local public officials and immigration rights advocates. The panel is examining whether the county's crackdown amounts to...

As Judith Europa described how the father of her children shot and killed three people in a Woodbridge house, she clung to one positive: She and others were alive yesterday because two men were as intent on protecting those they loved as the gunman was on destroying them. Europa said she was lying with four children on the floor of her sister's bedroom Sunday when Anastacio Sanchez-Miranda, 39, slipped into the Grandview Avenue house unnoticed, his jealousy seething. She and the children watched as her sister, Rosario Europa, 24, and brother-in-law, Juan Manuel Guevara, 28, were gunned down. Guevara had...

The federal government just made it a bit tougher for local jurisdictions to become trained in Immigration and Customs Enforcement. On Monday, Manassas police Chief John J. Skinner told the city council that the possibility of piggybacking the Prince William-Manassas Regional Adult Detention Center's memorandum of agreement with ICE won't be possible. Manassas, Manassas Park, Prince William County and the sheriff's department will now have to apply separately for federal approval, Skinner said. The Department of Homeland Security said it "was not prepared to establish a precedent for the rest of the country." Manassas has received the paperwork on the...

WOODBRIDGE, Va. (AP) — Three persons were killed and two wounded last night in a shooting after a child's birthday party. Police arrested a suspect hours later in Pennsylvania. Anastacio Sanchez-Miranda, 39, was arrested at about 2:30 p.m. at his sister's house in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., six hours after the shooting at the Woodbridge home was reported, police said. Investigators think the shooting was part of a domestic dispute, said First Sgt. Kim D. Chinn of Prince William County Police Department. She also said the mother of Mr. Sanchez-Miranda's children was at the house but unharmed. The woman, who police think...

Legal Challenge to Immigration Law Enforcement Dismissed!Rule of Law Prevails in VirginiaA federal judge dismissed a lawsuit Friday that challenged a suburban Washington county's (Virginia) recent effort to clamp down on illegal immigrants, one of the toughest such crackdowns in the country.U.S. District Judge James Cacheris said the plaintiffs (pro-illegal alien invasion supporters) lacked legal standing to challenge measures passed earlier this year by the Prince William County Board of Supervisors.One of the resolutions requires police to check the immigration status of people they detain if they have reason to suspect the person is an illegal immigrant. A second resolution...

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit Friday that challenged a suburban Washington county's recent effort to clamp down on illegal immigrants, one of the toughest such crackdowns in the country. U.S. District Judge James Cacheris said the plaintiffs lacked legal standing to challenge measures passed earlier this year by the Prince William County Board of Supervisors. One of resolution requires police to check the immigration status of people they detain if they have reason to suspect the person is an illegal immigrant. A second seeks to deny numerous county services to illegal immigrants, including business licenses, drug counseling, housing assistance...

Illegals-law challenge rejected By Seth McLaughlin December 1, 2007 Virginia Attorney General Robert F. McDonnell -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A federal judge yesterday threw out a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Prince William County's [Va.] new ordinance denying services to illegal aliens. Judge James C. Cacheris said during a brief hearing at U.S. District Court in Alexandria that the plaintiffs lacked standing to challenge the resolution passed earlier this year by the Prince William Board of County Supervisors. Judge Cacheris said he will issue a written ruling at a later time detailing his decision. The Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund filed...

A couple of Boy Scout troops lost more than $1,500 worth of Christmas trees to thieves between Nov. 19 and Friday. Troop 1390 out of Dale City and Troop 1396 out of Lake Ridge set up shop every year in the lot in front of the SunTrust Bank in the Forestdale Plaza on Dale Boulevard. The Scouts generally get a semi-truck load of balsam firs from Nova Scotia, said Doug Doerr, the scoutmaster for Troop 1390. This year someone stole 34 of the 300 trees the Scouts ordered. "We have never had a situation like this," said Doerr, who has...

It was the perceptive Aldous Huxley who wrote that the greatest discovery in life is to learn that you’ve always been exactly where you are supposed to be. Behold, in Northern Virginia, across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital, I am supposed to be in Falls Church, where I launched my weekly newspaper almost 17 years ago, and I am not supposed to be in nearby Herndon or Prince William County. That’s been confirmed for me by the radically different approaches the aforementioned jurisdictions, all relatively close by, have taken on the matter of immigration. To me, such an...

Arlington County's chief deputy sheriff has died in a car crash. Fifty-three-year-old Dennis Webb died Saturday afternoon in Prince William County when an out of control Jeep hit an SUV then returned to the road and hit Webb's car. Police say that 47-year-old Scott Edgell of Stafford was charged with reckless driving. They say that speed was a factor in the accident. No one else was hurt in the crash. Arlington Sheriff Beth Arthur says that Webb was one of the greatest guys you'd ever want to meet. She says he joined the department after retiring from a 22-year career...

Reading the tea leaves By Charles Bloomer Prince William County, here in Virginia, has earned a high profile recently because of its introduction of strict policies to exclude illegal immigrants for tax-payer funded services. The county’s resolution to restrict services had been passed twice by unanimous vote by the Board of County Supervisors. Dire consequences were being predicted for politicians who ran on either side of the issue. As a result, the county was being watched closely to see the impact of these policies on Tuesday’s election results. Now that the results are in, we can see that taking a...

BRISTOW, Va. - The principal of a Prince William County elementary school has been found dead in a county park. Police say the body of Derek Michael Drummond, 44, of Bristow, was found Monday afternoon by an 8-year-old girl and her grandfather who were hiking in Locust Shade Park. Police spokeswoman Erika Hernandez says there were no signs of trauma or foul play. Police are waiting for an autopsy report and results of a toxicology test. Drummond was principal of Cedar Point since it opened in 2001 and before that was principal of Occoquan Elementary School.

WASHINGTON - A resolution passed in Virginia's Prince William County last week to crack down on illegal immigrants might bring a mass relocation to welcoming states like Maryland, experts said. The law bars illegal immigrants from obtaining business licenses and using services for the homeless, elderly and drug-addicted. In addition, police must check suspects' immigration status if there is reason to believe they are here illegally. Full funding for the law has not yet been approved, so the effective date of the legislation has been delayed. Still, publicity about the law and its future enforcement may be enough to prompt...

Hispanic elected officials in the Washington area yesterday urged immigrant voters to vote next Tuesday to demonstrate their political power and counter what they called a troubling surge of anti-immigrant sentiment in parts of the region. Speaking in Spanish at a news conference in Arlington attended by several Spanish-language news organizations, the officials urged immigrant voters who are U.S. citizens not to worry about being intimidated at the polls. They unveiled a telephone hotline -- 1-888-VE-Y-VOTA -- that they said would be staffed by lawyers who could advise voters on how to protect their rights. Several of the speakers specifically...

Issue Could Sway State, Local Races After years of simmering in the background, illegal immigration has quickly emerged as one of the key issues in Virginia's Nov. 6 election, particularly in Northern Virginia, where voters say they are seeking candidates who will address it, according to a new Washington Post poll. Three-quarters of likely voters in Virginia said immigration is important to their votes in the election for state and local offices, while just a year ago, immigration ranked seventh of 10 listed issues in a Post poll before the U.S. Senate race. Since then, the percentage of Virginia voters...

As concern remains over the presence of an antibiotic-resistant staph infection in Prince William County Public Schools, officials continue efforts to keep parents informed. "We are trying to stay on top of this," said Irene Cromer, school district spokeswoman. Three new cases - all students - were confirmed at Glenkirk Elementary School, Saunders Middle School and Rippon Middle School, the school district announced Tuesday. The total number of cases of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus infection, or MRSA, in Prince William schools is 12.

Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Gerald E. Connolly (D) said yesterday that under no circumstances would he follow the lead of Prince William County and push for legislation to cut off services to illegal immigrants or authorize police to check the immigration status of suspects, measures he described as election season demagoguery. "I can just tell you Fairfax County is not going to go the route of some of our neighbors," Connolly, who is seeking a second term as chairman Nov. 6, said during a meeting with Washington Post reporters and editors. "We're not going to demagogue. We're not...

Supporters of the anti-illegal immigration measure adopted in Prince William County last week have argued that its most important purpose is to send a powerful signal to the county's mostly Latino illegal immigrants that they are no longer welcome. It appears the message has already been received: Terrified that new policies will lead to mass deportations, illegal immigrants and the many legal immigrant relatives and friends who live with them have been moving out of Prince William ever since July, when county supervisors first approved the plan's outline.

Prince William County Schools had four new cases of the antibiotic-resistant staph infection, bringing the total to nine. The new student cases were confirmed at Benton Middle School, Lake Ridge Elementary and Vaughan Elementary schools. The employee case was reported at Freedom High School. The school district released the information about the new cases Friday evening

PRINCE WILLIAM, Va. -- The Prince William County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday night and passed a resolution to deny some services to illegal immigrants. The policy is one of the toughest in the country and has already been met with protests, boycotts and a federal lawsuit. Officials had said the decision could impact several other counties around the country. The board voted to allow police to check the residency status of illegal immigrants if they are suspected of breaking a law. The measure also means that county services such as housing assistance, drug rehab for jail inmates and senior...

LAKE RIDGE, Va. — Prince William County, Va., last night was poised to give final approval to some of the nation's most stringent immigration laws. The Board of County Supervisors spent hours listening to testimony from 370-plus residents and others on either side of measures that would deny county services to illegal aliens and authorize police to check the immigration status in all arrests if there is probable cause to think that a suspect has violated federal immigration law. As the night wore on toward midnight, person after person addressed the board — people representing changing neighborhoods divided by the...