A law passed this year by the North Carolina General Assembly requiring sheriffs to work more closely with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement took effect Wednesday.
House Bill 318, known as the Criminal Illegal Alien Enforcement Act, now requires sheriffs to hold undocumented inmates for 48 hours past their release date and notify ICE two hours before release.
If an undocumented individual is charged with a felony, certain sexual offenses or DWI, sheriffs must contact ICE. If ICE doesn’t respond within 48 hours, the sheriff must release the person in accordance with bail conditions set by a judge or magistrate.
Gov. Josh Stein vetoed this bill in June, saying he believed the law was unconstitutional. The House and the Senate overrode his veto in July.
Those against HB 318 say the law is unconstitutional because it applies to people who have been accused, not convicted, of a crime, and forces sheriffs to hold them longer than would otherwise be allowed under the law.
