The North Carolina Senate could vote soon on a newly revised version of the controversial immigrant bill.
House Bill 10 would require sheriffs to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) if they arrest someone and determine that person is living in the country unlawfully.
On Friday, Republican leaders announced an agreement on the bill. This comes after a House committee voted against the Senate version of HB10 back in May .
“It is amazing that we have to have a bill like this,” NCGOP spokesperson Matt Mercer told ABC11 in May. “It seems to be common sense that law enforcement should cooperate with one another.”
In a statement, Durham County Sheriff Clearance Birkhead condemned the bill, saying in part:
“House Bill 10 is not only an attack on the immigrant community…but also on the ability for sheriffs, like me, to determine how best to serve the communities and keep them safe.”
Wake County Sheriff Willie Rowe is also publicly against HB10.
In a statement obtained by ABC11, Sheriff Rowe said, “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. The bill will prohibit jails from releasing individuals on bail- even if they are eligible for release under North Carolina law- based on a “request, approval, or other instruction” from the federal government. I want to make our communities safer, but HB 10 will make us less safe by fomenting distrust in local law enforcement. No one should fear interacting with the Wake County Sheriff’s Office because of their federal immigration status.”