immigration | ARLnow.com

Del. Lopez ‘incredibly grateful’ as protections for Salvadoran immigrants hold fast

Published September 11, 2026 at 3:45PM

FILE - President Donald Trump greets El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele, left, at the Shield of the Americas Summit, March 7, 2026, at Trump National Doral Miami in Doral, Fla. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

Silence from the Trump administration on protections for immigrants from El Salvador has at least one Northern Virginia lawmaker breathing a sigh of relief.

A deadline to decide whether over 170,000 immigrants from El Salvador can remain protected from deportation passed this week without any public announcement. The Department of Homeland Security issued a statement saying it would make an announcement “at an appropriate time” and that Temporary Protected Status for El Salvador would stay in effect until then.

News

Families of wage earners detained by ICE to receive up to $2K from Arlington County

By Scott McCaffrey

Published September 8, 2026 at 9:15AM

José Mejía Hernandez discusses injuries that he says he received during a recent ICE arrest (staff photo by Dan Egitto)

The Arlington County Board has set aside $50,000 for grants to support families whose primary wage earner has been detained by immigration enforcement.

Grants distributed by Arlington Thrive will provide up to $2,000 per affected family over the coming 10 months. Funds will support basic needs such as housing, food and utilities.

News

ACPD opens investigation into ICE allegedly injuring man on Columbia Pike

By Dan Egitto

Published September 4, 2026 at 3:00PM

José Mejía Hernandez discusses injuries that he says he received during a recent ICE arrest (staff photo by Dan Egitto)

Arlington police have opened an investigation into an immigration arrest on Columbia Pike that reportedly left a man with serious injuries.

Detectives met with the man, José Mejía Hernandez, last week, NBC4 reported. This prompted a swift response from Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner and Reps. Don Beyer, Suhas Subramanyam and James Walkinshaw today (Friday).

Schools

As students head back to school today, APS is 99% fully staffed

By Scott McCaffrey

Published August 31, 2026 at 8:30AM

Superintendent Francisco Durán at budget work session (screenshot via Arlington County)

Today (Monday) is the first day of class at Arlington Public Schools, and the school system is just over 99% staffed up to welcome its 27,000 students.

“We’re looking forward to welcoming them all back,” Superintendent Francisco Durán said at the Aug. 27 School Board meeting, where he detailed changes that will impact students and families during the school year.

News

Man allegedly injured by ICE in Arlington seeks ACPD investigation

By Dan Egitto

Published August 28, 2026 at 1:45PM | Updated August 29, 2026 at 12:32AM

Bystander footage of Jose Mejia Hernandez during an ICE arrest on Aug. 11 (courtesy of Carlos Jurado)

A man who says he was badly injured during an immigration arrest on Columbia Pike is demanding a criminal investigation.

Protesters gathered outside the Arlington County Justice Center this morning (Friday) in support of Jose Mejia Hernandez, who says he suffered a brain bleed and other injuries after Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers reportedly chased him and shot him with a Taser earlier this month.

News

ICE agents reportedly injure man in Arlington, prompting outcry from officials

By Dan Egitto

Published August 19, 2026 at 9:15AM | Updated August 19, 2026 at 11:26AM

José Mejía Hernandez speaks with Telemundo (via Noticias Telemundo/Facebook)

A man’s account of being badly injured in an encounter with immigration agents in Arlington has prompted condemnation from local elected officials and Arlington’s congressman.

Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.), Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti and Arlington County Board Chair Matt de Ferranti have all released statements on the case of José Mejía Hernandez. The Mexican immigrant has told multiple media outlets that immigration enforcement approached him on his way to a bus stop last week and shocked him with a stun gun when he tried to run.

News

Local duo rings in new Arlington exhibit on immigrant experiences in Virginia

By Scott McCaffrey

Published July 17, 2026 at 2:45PM | Updated July 17, 2026 at 4:06PM

Judith and Ingrid Morroy performing at Arlington Historical Society event (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

The opening of a new exhibition on Virginia’s immigrant experience included a concert by a duo that has lived it.

Judith and Ingrid Morroy performed Sunday afternoon (July 12) at the Arlington Historical Museum, marking the local opening of the “We the People: The World in Our Commonwealth” traveling exhibit of the Virginia Museum of History and Culture.

News

From paid leave to gun legislation, here’s what changes in Virginia on July 1

By Emily Leayman

Published June 29, 2026 at 4:45PM

Del. Adele McClure, D-2, at 2026 Juneteenth celebration (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

More than 1,100 bills have come out of the latest General Assembly session, and many take effect on July 1.

As Democrats gained a trifecta with the election of Gov. Abigail Spanberger and control of the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates, legislators passed bills focused on immigration enforcement, gun control, housing and tenant protections, reproductive rights and more. Democrats also passed Virginia’s first-ever paid sick leave, paid family and medical leave, and child care assistance programs for workers.

News

DOJ challenges Virginia laws restricting officer face coverings, ICE agreements

By Emily Leayman

Published June 17, 2026 at 9:15AM

Virginia State Capitol in Richmond (staff photo)

The Trump administration’s Justice Department is challenging several state laws passed by Virginia Democrats targeting the work of federal immigration enforcement officers.

The complaint, filed in the Eastern District of Virginia’s Richmond Division, challenges state laws that seek to ban federal law enforcement officers from wearing masks and restrict 287(g) agreements between federal immigration enforcement and state and local law enforcement agencies.

News

JUST IN: House committee targets Arlington police, sheriff’s office and prosecutors over ‘sanctuary policies’

By Dan Egitto

Published May 4, 2026 at 10:00AM | Updated May 5, 2026 at 1:10PM

Flags flying in the wind at Arlington County's justice center in Courthouse (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

The House Judiciary Committee is targeting all three of Arlington’s main criminal justice agencies over local policies that restrict contact with immigration enforcement.

In separate letters to the Arlington County Police Department, Arlington County Sheriff’s Office and Arlington Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, the committee took issue with the limits that these agencies have placed on their cooperation with immigration officers, arguing that such policies endanger the public.

Around Town

Nam-Viet Restaurant, the last outpost of Clarendon’s ‘Little Saigon,’ celebrates 40 years

By Katie Taranto

Published April 22, 2026 at 1:45PM

Historic photo of Nam-Viet's storefront (courtesy of Richard Nguyen)

A family-owned Vietnamese restaurant and the last remaining business from Clarendon’s Little Saigon community is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.

Tucked in a storefront near the corner of Wilson Blvd and N. Hudson Street, Nam-Viet Restaurant — started in July 1986 by the late Nguyen Van Thoi and his widow, Ngoc Anh Tran — carries on the legacy of what was once a hub of Vietnamese immigrant-owned businesses that opened in the neighborhood following the fall of Saigon in 1975.

News

Probation officer warned attempted rape suspect was ‘danger to self and others’ last year

By Jared Serre

Published April 16, 2026 at 11:45AM | Updated April 20, 2026 at 5:29PM

Luzvin Orvando Garcia Moran (mugshot via ACPD)

An Arlington probation officer warned a judge last year that a local man — now charged with attempted rape — was on the verge of a slippery slope of increasing violent crime.

Luzvin Orvando Garcia Moran, whose arrest has also caught the attention of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) because of his immigration status, remains in jail following a violent attack in Clarendon.