NC bill would mandate sheriffs' cooperation with ICE in felony immigration cases

Sheriffs in North Carolina could soon be required to comply when faced with a request from federal immigration agents.

House Bill 10 would have an impact when someone who is in the U.S. illegally is also charged with a felony or another serious crime.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement [ICE] can send a detention request, which asks a sheriff’s office to keep the person in jail until immigration officials can take custody.

In most counties in North Carolina, the sheriff’s office will comply with the request.

However, a few counties will not. Wake, Durham and Orange counties have argued that it’s unconstitutional to hold someone if they’ve made bail.

Plus, the bill would also change the list of crimes under which law enforcement agencies are required to look into a detainee's immigration status. The list now including felonies, Class A1 misdemeanors like assault, or violations of a domestic violence protective order.

Wake County Sheriff Willie Rowe provided WRAL News with a statement about the bill.

"This bill hinders the sheriff’s office's ability to build relationships with the community and takes away authority from the sheriff to set local law enforcement priorities," Rowe said.

Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page, who helped draft HB10, disagreed.

"If you have a criminal offender in your community, and remove that offender from your community, that makes your community safer," Page said.

The issue has been contentious at the state legislature.

Republicans say this bill is about community safety.

“This bill does not require law enforcement to round folks up who are not charged with crimes,” said state Sen. Danny Britt, R-Robeson. “This bill does not send law enforcement into the homes of folks who were not charged with crimes.”

Democrats argue this bill will undermine trust between the Latino community and law enforcement, and unfairly targets immigrants.

“I urge people to think about what they’re doing,” said state Rep. Marcia Morey, D-Durham. “Violating people’s human rights.”

On Monday, HB10 passed the state Senate 27-17 along party lines.

NC Senate passes deal to fund private school vouchers, require cooperation with ICE

The ICE requirement was bundled into a bill that would also provide hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for private school vouchers. It would eliminate a waitlist of more than 50,000 students for the vouchers.

The state House is set to vote on it Wednesday.

Republicans in the state legislature have been trying to pass some version of this bill going back to 2019.

Gov. Roy Cooper has previously vetoed several versions.

Minister reflects on four-year sanctuary for immigrant amid looming immigration bill

Associate Minister Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove said he was approached by an immigrant neighbor in 2017. The neighbor, Jose Chica, was going to face imminent deportation if he was not going to be able to take sanctuary.

Wilson-Hartgrove didn’t realize then that Chicas' request for sanctuary would last nearly four years.

"It was a real education about how difficult and complicated the U.S. immigration system is," Wilson-Hartgrove said.

It made Wilson-Hartgrove more aware of the challenges immigrants face.

"These kinds of bills have been encouraged by groups that are trying to use fear of immigration, fear of immigrants, to stir up a political base," Wilson-Hartgrove said of HB10.