Cheryl Minter, a Virginia mother whose 41-year-old daughter Stephanie was stabbed to death at a bus stop in February, has launched a petition to remove Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Steve Descano, arguing that his office's policies put public safety at risk. The accused killer, Abdul Jalloh, 32, had been arrested more than 30 times before the attack, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
Stephanie Minter was found with multiple stab wounds inside a bus stop shelter in Hybla Valley on Feb. 23, Fairfax County police said. Jalloh, a Sierra Leone national who entered the U.S. illegally in 2012, was charged with second-degree murder. He has not been convicted in her death. DHS said his prior charges included rape, malicious wounding, assault and theft.
In a petition started with the help of the Victims' Rights Reform Council, Cheryl Minter wrote that her daughter «should be alive today» and that she had to «do what no parent should ever have to» — bury her child. «Thirty times the system had a chance to stop him. Thirty times,» she wrote. «I think about that every single day.»
Cheryl Minter told Fox News Digital she was shocked to learn of Jalloh's record. «And then this man who's killed her, just is let off like it's nothing. Like it's nothing,» she said. She questioned why Jalloh was released after an arrest she recalled from the winter before Stephanie's death, though the details of that case and who made the release decision have not been independently confirmed. «When you let these people back out on the streets, they're not gonna stop. Why would they stop?» she said.
The mother also pointed to Descano's 2020 plea bargaining policy, which advised prosecutors to «consider immigration consequences where possible» and weigh how charges could affect a defendant's immigration status. The policy is now under federal scrutiny. The Justice Department announced in May it was investigating whether Descano's office gave defendants in the country illegally preferential treatment over U.S. citizens in charging decisions and plea deals. The department said it had reached no conclusions, and the investigation does not establish how Jalloh's earlier cases were handled.
Descano defended his policy after receiving notice of the investigation. «My policies are fair, legal, and reflect the values of my community,» he wrote in a post on X. His office has separately said it is prosecuting Jalloh for Stephanie's murder, with a trial scheduled for January 2027, and cannot comment further on the pending case.
Congress is also pressing Descano for answers. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, subpoenaed him Sept. 16 as part of an investigation into whether prosecutors give preferential treatment to criminal suspects because of their immigration status. Jordan set a Sept. 25 deadline after accusing Descano's office of failing to fully comply with earlier requests. In a previous statement, Descano's office called the subpoena a «needless escalation» and accused the committee of waging a «partisan siege» against Fairfax County. It said the office had turned over more than 1,100 pages of documents, that Descano had voluntarily testified and that it would continue to respond to legitimate inquiries while working to keep the county safe.
Fairfax County police said Jalloh was arrested after an employee at a local business recognized him and called authorities the day after Stephanie Minter was killed. He was held without bond. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged a detainer on Feb. 25 after Jalloh was in custody, asking to be notified before his release, according to DHS. The agency said it had also lodged a detainer against him in 2020 and that an immigration judge later ordered him removed to a country other than Sierra Leone.
Cheryl Minter said employees of Descano's office working on her daughter's murder case have been «wonderful with me.» She said her criticism is aimed at the decisions she believes left a repeat offender free. «I want people never to stop talking about it,» she said. «I just don't want the talk to stop, and I'll do whatever to keep it going.» In the petition, she wrote: «Stephanie cannot speak for herself anymore. So I am.»
Asked what she wants from the petition, Cheryl Minter said her priority is changing those practices in Fairfax County and beyond. She also wants Descano out of office. «I think, first and foremost, is the change,» she said. «Second would be, I would love to see Descano out.» She acknowledged that an online petition cannot itself remove Descano but hopes it will drive scrutiny of his office.