The hub of the national debate over immigration has migrated briefly from Arizona to Virginia, as the state’s Attorney General issued a legal opinion Monday that allows law enforcement to check the immigration status of anyone stopped by police for any reason. Previously, Virginian officers could only perform such a check for individuals arrested or jailed. While this regulation doesn’t go as far as the part of the Arizona law blocked last week, Ken Cuccinelli explained during a Monday news conference, “Our opinion basically said that Virginia law enforcement has the authority to make such inquiries so long as they don’t extend the duration of a stop by any significant degree That’s consistent with Supreme Court authority.”
Virginia legal opinion supports checks of immigration status [WaPo]
