Immigration Enforcement in Fairfax, February 2026

Following national coverage of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s expansion of operations, a
neighbor reached out to MCA to ask how Fairfax County handles requests for cooperation from federal
agencies.
MCA contacted Fairfax Police (FCPD), Schools (FCPS), and Sheriff’s offices for clarity.
FCPD representatives stated that they follow the county’s Trust Policy, which establishes “mandatory countywide
standards for information sharing and other protections for our immigrant neighbors.” In the case of
FCPD, that means that immigrants can access emergency services without fear that immigration status will be
proactively shared with federal authorities.
In practice, all employees of Fairfax County are “not allowed to request, record, access in County records or
disclose to any person or entity the citizenship or immigration status of an individual, unless the action is (a)
required by valid state or federal law or regulation, judicial warrant, court order or subpoena or (b) has been
authorized by the individual or guardian.”
FCPD representatives made clear that “Fairfax County does not and will not enforce civil federal immigration
laws.” Full information on how FCPD and the County treat immigration can be found here.
At FCPS, MCA spoke with our School Board representative, Karl Frisch, as well as Chief Safety and Security
Officer Brian Lambert. Frisch stated that FCPS has its own Trust Policy, which ensures that school employees
do not collect or maintain information on immigration status of students or their families.
At Mantua Elementary, which recently installed 32 exterior cameras that provide real-time viewing access to
senior employees and central office security staff, camera footage is hosted on-site and cannot be accessed by
federal law enforcement without a lawful judicial order. Lambert reports that principals and staff are trained
that if any federal agency comes on-site to request information or access to facilities, they are to “Stop, pause,
ask why they are there, call FCPD, and call division counsel.”
For more on how FCPS installs and utilizes video cameras, which are used in the interior as well as exterior of
Woodson High and Frost Middle School, you can read details under Regulation 8614, which governs security
procedures for video surveillance.
The Sheriff’s department, which is responsible for adult detention center operations and court security, did not
respond to multiple requests for comment.