1srelluc
Diamond Member
The Justice Department has launched an investigation into a radical Northern Virginia prosecutor who allegedly discriminated against US citizens by offering preferential treatment “only to illegal alien” criminal defendants.
The DOJ notified Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano on Wednesday that it is looking into potential civil rights violations related to his office’s plea bargaining, charging decisions and sentencing policies.
“Under my leadership, the Civil Rights Division will not allow local prosecutors to pick and choose winners based on their immigration status,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said in a statement.
“This investigation will uncover whether this prosecutor is putting the community at risk in offering sweetheart deals to illegal immigrants charged with serious crimes,” the head of the DOJ’s civil rights division added.
The investigation centers on Descano’s adoption of policies that instruct prosecutors to “consider immigration consequences where possible” and “consider … the collateral immigration consequences of the specific crime(s) the defendant is charged with” during plea bargaining, charging and sentencing.
The DOJ is examining whether Descano “engaged in unlawful discrimination in violation of Title VI and the Safe Streets Act and whether [his office] is engaged in a pattern or practice of law enforcement misconduct that deprives persons of rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States” by implementing that policy after his 2019 election.
During his campaign, Descano’s website included language similar to the current Fairfax County DA’s office’s policy.
“If two people commit the same crime, but only one’s punishment includes deportation, that’s a perversion of justice and not a reflection of the values of Fairfax County,” read the since-deleted line on Descano’s website, The Post previously reported.
These are the type of people the DOJ needs to go after. Root them out at the prosecutor level. He can't make up rules that reflect the "values" of just one county.
