CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Although Charlotte isn't one of the 10 cities where U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will ramp up their efforts Sunday, a local immigration official says Charlotte's immigrant community is still on edge and at risk of deportations.
"People are afraid," said Jordan Forsythe Greer, an immigration attorney in Charlotte who works at Cauley Forsythe Law Group.
Federal officers with Immigration and Customs Enforcement will target some 2,000 undocumented immigrants across the country, according to the Trump administration.
"People need to be prepared," Forsythe Greer urged. "They need to have a safety plan,"
She says her phones have been ringing off the hook since the announcement of the raids.
"And I'm not the only one," Forsythe Greer explained. "I think every immigration attorney throughout the Carolinas has been contacted by people -- inquiring what their legal status is, whether or not they have orders of removals."
It's why she and her partners are urging immigrants to get educated on their rights.
"The fourth amendment applies to everyone. So, you have the right to be silent, you have the right to be free from any unreasonable search and seizure, you have the right to be in your home," she added.
She is also encouraging undocumented immigrants to have a plan in case authorities come in contact with them.
"That involves memorizing phone numbers, of friends, family, attorneys," Forsythe Greer noted.
Although Charlotte isn't being targeted this round, Forsythe Greer says deportations happen frequently in the region.
"Enforcement actions happen in the Carolinas every week," she said.
President Trump and officials with ICE say federal officers will only be targeting undocumented criminals who are criminals and pose a risk to our communities.