7 things to know about immigration enforcement, rights as ICE targets NC residents
ICE checkpoint rumors and news about arrests have left many immigrant families statewide feeling nervous and scared, they and their advocates say.
On Feb. 13, a Homeland Security Investigations team reported arresting 10 immigrants and a member of a Venezuelan gang in Raleigh. In Durham, three natives of India were arrested by Border Patrol officers in the Northgate Park neighborhood.
The Durham incident was captured on video by a neighbor who had attended a Siembra NC training event. The Greensboro-based organization has trained over 400 people in nine counties to be “ICE Watch verifiers” and will hold another workshop Feb. 27 in Greensboro.
Andrew Willis Garcés, a Siembra NC organizer, said about 70% of ICE arrests are still being made through local jails, despite high-profile ICE raids in larger cities.
Roughly 87% of those deported between July 2020 and June 2024 were citizens of Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, according to the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute. Mexican nationals constituted 63% of those deported during that period, it said.
In North Carolina, state law requires police and sheriff’s offices to verify the citizenship status of anyone arrested for a serious crime, including homicides, assaults and child abuse, and to hold them for 48 hours past their release date if ICE issues a detainer request.
“We don’t have eyes on ICE every time they go in the jail and bring somebody out,” Willis Garcés said. “Right now, jails are not required to keep records about who they turn over or release that information to the public, so we have very little visibility.”
Families are relying on each other and groups like Siembra NC for protection and support, said Reyna, a community organizer who spoke with The News & Observer on the condition that her last name not be used.
“Before, we really had to work for them to give us their permission to speak with them or to work with them or give us their number, but now they’re like, where do I sign (up), what do I need to do to get more information,” Reyna said.
Is being in the U.S. illegally a crime?
No. People can be charged with a civil offense if they are found in the country without authorization or have overstayed their visa.
However, someone caught crossing the border illegally can face a misdemeanor criminal charge and, if convicted, be ordered to pay a fine and/or serve up to six months in jail.
Someone who returns after being deported or denied entry can be charged with a felony and face up to two years in prison. An immigrant who re-enters the country after being deported for some criminal convictions can face 10 to 20 years in prison.
The expedited removal process was expanded in January. People who cannot prove they have lived in the U.S. for at least two years can be deported without a hearing. The National Immigrant Law Center says immigrants should carry evidence of their residence for the last two years, such as a signed lease or postmarked mail with a home address, and show it to police if arrested.
What happens when someone is arrested?
▪ They are fingerprinted, photographed and interviewed by an officer.
▪ Immigrants who had not committed a crime were previously given a court date and released on bond. It is not clear if that practice is being continued, or if immigrants are being held in a detention center until they can see a judge.
▪ Immigrants convicted of serious crimes or who return after being removed can be deported without a court hearing.
▪ Detained immigrants receive an Alien Registration Number, or A-number, that family or friends can use to track their cases.
▪ The judge at the first hearing can set bond, ask questions, accept pleas, and explain more about next steps. At immigration hearings, detainees can call witnesses and offer evidence and testimony about why they should be allowed to stay in the United States.
What rights do immigrants have?
▪ Immigrants share some rights with American citizens, including the right to remain silent, to refuse a search without a warrant, and to consult with an attorney.
▪ Immigrants with documents, such as a work visa, must carry them at all times and show them to law enforcement when asked.
▪ Police need a warrant signed by a judge to enter someone’s home or, if there’s no crime, to search the person or their property.
Are immigrants being jailed or deported?
ICE officials did not respond to The N&O’s questions about immigrants who have been arrested in North Carolina and where they are being held.
CBS News reported in early February that some ICE detainees were released because detention facilities and local jail beds were full. On Feb. 5, the Department of Homeland Security reported 38,521 beds across the country and 42,000 immigrants being held, CBS News said.
Military officials reported 68 migrants are now at Guantanamo Bay, where the administration can hold up to 30,000 detainees. So far, 900 military service members are being deployed to the naval base in Cuba, including 334 Marines from North Carolina.
Who can be deported?
▪ Immigrants convicted of a crime, who pose a threat to public safety, violate their visa, or cross the U.S. border illegally.
▪ Anyone whose temporary protection status is revoked, including Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which gives temporary protection from deportation to immigrants who came to the U.S. as children before June 15, 2007, and allows them to work.
Can you come back if you are deported?
The U.S. bans immigrants who repeatedly violate immigration laws or who commit serious or violent felonies. It’s a difficult process, legal experts say, but non-repeat immigration offenders and immigrants without criminal convictions can petition to return legally.
There is a waiting period to apply, depending on how they were deported:
▪ Five years if they are deported in an expedited removal process.
▪ Ten years if a judge orders them to be deported in a court hearing.
▪ Twenty years if a judge orders them to be removed for a second time.
Get more information or report ICE in the area
Siembra NC operates a Defense Hotline — 336-543-0353 — to report tips about ICE or police activity, and for stolen wages and other workplace issues.
Mexican citizens can also contact the Mexican Consulate in Raleigh, which offers workshops and provides resources and information about immigrant rights, a spokesperson said.
Long lines were reported outside the consulate in January as ICE enforcement ramped up.
Consular officials said in a Feb. 10 email that they are seeing 900 to 1,100 people a week for documentation services, including passports and birth certificates, and applications for dual citizenship. Interest in dual citizenship has increased slightly, especially for children born to Mexican parents in the U.S., they said.
Staff writers Dan Kane and Virginia Bridges contributed to this report.
In the Spotlight designates ongoing topics of high interest that are driven by The News & Observer’s focus on accountability reporting.
This story was originally published February 26, 2025 at 5:30 AM with the headline "7 things to know about immigration enforcement, rights as ICE targets NC residents."
