Raleigh. The nonpartisan, nonprofit organization El Pueblo condemns the advancement of the anti-immigrant bill HB318, which passed today in the state House of Representatives and moved to the Senate.
HB318 expands the anti-immigrant provisions of state law HB10, passed in 2024, which requires all sheriffs in the state to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The bill expands the list of offenses that require sheriffs and jail administrators to consult with ICE to determine the immigration status of detainees and adds that same burden to judicial magistrates before determining their pretrial release.
Additionally, it delays the start of the mandatory 48-hour detention period for immigrants while they wait for ICE to take custody and requires sheriffs to notify ICE before releasing them.
After the passage of HB318 in the House of Representatives, El Pueblo issued the following statement:
“By expanding the list of offenses that require sheriffs and magistrates to consult with ICE to determine the immigration status of detainees, HB318 will put a greater number of immigrants at risk of deportation, even those accused of non-violent crimes, without even giving them the opportunity to defend themselves in court.
Experience has shown that forcing local authorities to collaborate with ICE makes our communities more unsafe by instilling fear and mistrust between community members and law enforcement, discouraging victims and witnesses from reporting crimes and cooperating with authorities.
This bill also dangerously opens the door to abuse, racial profiling, and potentially civil rights violations by law enforcement.
Legislation like HB318 is based on false anti-immigrant rhetoric that criminalizes immigrants without recognizing their enormous contributions to the economy and the progress of the state and the country.”
El Pueblo asks community members to contact their senators to ask them to vote against HB318 through the following form: bit.ly/protejaNC
The organization also urges the community to closely follow the progress of this and other bills through its policy blog at: elpueblo.org/policy-change/
