Comments at Arlington County Board Meeting, July 19, 2025.
On July 17, 2 months after Arlington County revoked its policy of limited cooperation with ICE, Fox News’ Griff Jenkins reported the arrest of a twice deported Guatemalan rapist released from County jail to a Courthouse street after Arlington police refused to honor an ICE detainer for his arrest. According to the national news report:
“Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons blasted the release, telling Fox News it puts agents and the public at risk.
“‘This is the whole reason why sanctuary jurisdictions do not keep America safe,’ Lyons said. ‘It lets criminals back on the street to reoffend again. If Arlington had cooperated, we could have arrested him in a secure facility — instead, our agents had to track him down in the community, where they could have encountered others.’
“The Cabrera [case] underlines the dangers posed to the public when jurisdictions do not comply with federal law enforcement, Lyons said.
“Cabrera was arrested on June 4 for a probation violation and released from Arlington County Adult Detention Center on July 11 despite an active ICE detainer.
“‘Here you have an aggravated felon that’s been deported multiple times… and Arlington County is releasing him back into the community. To reoffend again. It’s just not right and it doesn’t keep the public safe.’
“Lyons said that Arlington County’s actions put agents at risk. This comes at a time when agents are being doxxed, and attacks on them have skyrocketed by 830% since January.”
While there is little sympathy for ICE in sanctuary jurisdictions like Arlington, people should be concerned about their own safety. According to Arlington Police, crime in the county was up 11 percent in 2024.