DHS Blasts Fairfax County’s “Sanctuary Politicians” as Preventable Homicide Exposes Years of Failed Policies

A man is dead in Reston. His death was 100% preventable—and multiple Fairfax County Democrat officials share responsibility.

THE TIMELINE:

On Tuesday, December 16, Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano dropped charges against 23-year-old Marvin Morales-Ortez, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador. Despite Morales-Ortez having at least seven prior criminal charges in Fairfax County, prosecutors dismissed the case. Fairfax County police had obtained an emergency custody order to detain him after release, but couldn’t locate him before it expired. ¹

On Wednesday, December 17, Morales-Ortez allegedly shot and killed a man inside a Reston home. ICE confirmed he is in the country illegally. ¹

HOW DID WE GET HERE?

This wasn’t Morales-Ortez’s first brush with the Fairfax County justice system—and it wasn’t the first time he walked free when he should have been turned over to ICE or kept behind bars:

• 2021: Charged with first-degree murder in Fairfax County. Descano’s office dismissed it. ²
• Multiple occasions: Charged with assault, brandishing firearms, and other violent offenses. Released repeatedly. ¹
• This week: Charges dropped on Tuesday. Arrested for murder on Wednesday. ¹

SHERIFF KINCAID’S REFUSAL TO COOPERATE WITH ICE:

Sheriff Stacey Kincaid has systematically dismantled cooperation between Fairfax County and federal immigration authorities:

• Terminated the Intergovernmental Service Agreement with ICE, notifying officials on January 22, 2021 that her office “will no longer hold inmates past their release date” without a judicial warrant. ³
• Refuses to honor ICE detainers, calling them merely “an informal request” in an official policy statement. ⁴
• Signed a policy instructing deputies to release illegal immigrants on their scheduled release date without even notifying ICE. ⁵
• Requires ICE to obtain a judicial warrant—something ICE officials say is outside the scope of how immigration enforcement operates. ⁶

When ICE filed detainers on Morales-Ortez, Kincaid’s office ignored them—just like they’ve done for years with countless other criminal illegal immigrants. ¹

The Department of Homeland Security responded with a scathing statement: “This is nothing more than sanctuary politicians trying to pass the blame for their REFUSAL to protect American citizens. To honor a detainer, officials do NOT need a judicial warrant. The sanctuary politicians of Fairfax have blood on their hands. They should have turned this serial criminal illegal alien over to ICE—instead they chose to RELEASE him back into Virginia neighborhoods.” ¹

DESCANO’S PATTERN OF DROPPING CHARGES:

Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano has made a career of going easy on criminals—including dangerous illegal immigrants:

• His office has publicly stated it will not work with ICE on civil immigration enforcement, citing his commitment to “improve community safety, promote confidentiality, restore trust, preserve limited resources, and ensure all have equal protection of the law.” ⁷
• He has repeatedly nolle prossed (dismissed) serious charges, including violent felonies, against defendants who are in the country illegally. ⁴
• In at least one case involving convicted child sex offender Jose Fabricio Veizaga-Vargas, Descano’s office dropped a felony rape charge and the court suspended the entire six-month jail sentence—the Fairfax County Sheriff then refused to honor three separate ICE detainers on the man. ⁸

Supervisor Pat Herrity (R-Springfield) has called out this double standard for years: “If you’re a U.S. citizen and a violent offender, you’re treated worse than if you’re in the country illegally and a violent offender.” ⁷

THE TRUST POLICY—APPROVED BY THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS:

Kincaid and Descano don’t operate in a vacuum. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors—led by Chairman Jeff McKay and controlled 9-1 by Democrats—enacted the “Trust Policy” that prohibits Fairfax County police from notifying ICE when they arrest someone in the country illegally. ⁹

Herrity voted against the Trust Policy and has repeatedly called for its repeal: “I voted against the Trust Policy to start with. I think it hurts our police department’s ability to actually do their job and get violent offenders off the street. We’re no longer a part of the Northern Virginia Regional Gang Task Force because of the Trust Policy.” ⁹

THE CONTRAST: LOUDOUN COUNTY

Just across the county line, Loudoun County Sheriff Mike Chapman operates completely differently. He immediately notifies ICE when deputies arrest someone in the country illegally, and he honors ICE detainers. ⁶

ICE Washington D.C. Field Office Director Liana Castano urged Fairfax officials to reconsider: “The community may lose trust when the individuals that victimized them are released to the community without any further action. I think it may be backfiring.” ⁶

WHAT’S COMING IN JANUARY—IT GETS WORSE:

Rather than accountability, Sheriff Kincaid may be getting a promotion.

According to reports, Governor-Elect Abigail Spanberger is considering Kincaid for a top Virginia State Police position. ² The same sheriff who refused to cooperate with ICE. The same sheriff whose policies contributed to a preventable murder.

And Spanberger has already promised to rescind Governor Glenn Youngkin’s executive order requiring Virginia law enforcement to cooperate with ICE. ¹⁰

Under Governor Youngkin and President Trump, ICE arrests in Virginia have soared—over 4,000 arrests in the first half of 2025 alone, five times more than the same period last year. The Virginia Homeland Security Task Force arrested 2,512 violent criminals who were in the country illegally. ¹⁰

That’s what law enforcement cooperation looks like. That’s what protecting Virginians looks like.

When Spanberger, Lieutenant Governor-Elect Ghazala Hashmi, and Attorney General-Elect Jay Jones take power in January, they plan to end it.

Common-sense Virginians deserve better. A man is dead because sanctuary politicians chose ideology over public safety. Share this story. Remember these names. Hold them accountable in 2027.

Fox News, “DHS rips Dem-run county after illegal immigrant, alleged murderer released: ‘Blood on their hands,'” December 18, 2025. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dhs-rips-dem-run-county-after-illegal-immigrant-murderer-released-blood-hands ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

PJ Media, “Virginia County Released Illegal Alien Murderer Hours Before Shooting,” December 18, 2025. https://pjmedia.com/catherinesalgado/2025/12/18/virginia-county-released-illegal-alien-murderer-hours-before-shooting-n4947237 ↩ ↩²

Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office, “Sheriff Terminates Intergovernmental Service Agreement with ICE,” January 2021. https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/sheriff/sheriff-terminates-intergovernmental-service-agreement-ice ↩

Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office, “Policy Statement Concerning Treatment of Undocumented Inmates.” https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/sheriff/policy-statement-concerning-treatment-undocumented-inmates ↩ ↩²

WJLA 7News, “ICE, Gov. Youngkin call on Fairfax, other northern VA counties to honor detainers,” August 2, 2024. https://wjla.com/amp/news/local/illegal-immigration-ice-detainers-fairfax-loudoun-arlington-county-alexandria-virginia-governor-youngkin-inmates-violent-crime-election-issue-liana-castano-immigration-customs-enforcement ↩

WJLA 7News, “ICE, Gov. Youngkin call on Fairfax, other northern VA counties to honor detainers,” August 2, 2024. https://wjla.com/amp/news/local/illegal-immigration-ice-detainers-fairfax-loudoun-arlington-county-alexandria-virginia-governor-youngkin-inmates-violent-crime-election-issue-liana-castano-immigration-customs-enforcement ↩ ↩² ↩³

Fox News, “County supervisor in Virginia urging county leaders, sheriff to honor ICE detainers,” July 30, 2024. https://www.foxnews.com/us/county-supervisor-virginia-urging-county-leaders-sheriff-honor-ice-detainers ↩ ↩²

WJLA 7News, “ICE arrests Bolivian man convicted of child sex crimes claims Fairfax refused detainers,” August 26, 2024. https://wjla.com/news/local/virginia-crime-illegal-immigrants-arrests-bolivian-man-convicted-of-child-sex-crimes-fairfax-county-virginia-sheriff-stacey-kincaid-refused-detainers-ero-enforcement-removal-operations-jose-fabricio-veizaga-vargas ↩

WJLA 7News, “Fairfax County Supervisor calling on county leaders, sheriff to honor ICE detainers,” July 29, 2024. https://wjla.com/news/local/fairfax-county-supervisor-sheriff-office-immigration-crime-illegal-undocumented-suspects-criminals-sanctuary-city-policies-policy-pat-herrity-stacey-kincaid ↩ ↩²

Free Beacon, “Illegal Immigrant Arrested for Murder One Day After Being Released from Jail,” December 18, 2025. https://freebeacon.com/latest-news/illegal-immigrant-arrested-for-murder-one-day-after-being-released-from-jail/ ↩ ↩²