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Charlotte sheriff warns of jail overcrowding dangers amid train stabbings

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Charlotte sheriff warns of jail overcrowding dangers amid train stabbings

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Just days after another stabbing on Charlotte’s light rail, and only days after Iryna’s Law went into effect, Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden warned that it would lead to dangerous overcrowding.

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein signed Iryna’s Law in October, which was named after 23-year-old Iryna Zarutska, who was stabbed to death on the Charlotte light rail in August. Decarlos Brown Jr., a repeat offender, has been charged in her murder. The legislation imposes stricter pretrial release rules for repeat and violent offenders.

Speaking at a Monday news conference, the sheriff said the law adds numerous new requirements for his office and added that politicians used Zarutska’s stabbing as a “political agenda.”

“And we believe that the only reason that this caught national attention is because it was caught on video and it was displayed across the United States, and our local politicians at that time saw it was a political agenda, or they could highlight her as a refugee and not an immigrant,” McFadden said. “This is why they created Iryna’s Law.”

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Sheriff Garry McFadden discussed Iryna’s Law on Monday, Dec. 8. (Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office/Facebook)

CHARLOTTE RESIDENTS SAY THEY FEEL LESS SAFE AS CITY FACES SECOND TRANSIT STABBING

McFadden insisted that the new legislation will lead to overcrowding in Mecklenburg County Jail.

“This law will cause our detention centers’ numbers to rise. We will have more people staying inside a detention center at a longer stay than normally. Because it attacks the new bond referendum and it attacks also the discretion that the magistrates and the judge has on releasing people,” he said.

Iryna Zarutska curls up in fear as a man looms over her during a disturbing attack on a Charlotte, North Carolina, light rail train. (NewsNation via Charlotte Area Transit System)

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The sheriff said that following Zarutska’s violent attack in August, local judges “were attacked violently on social media.”

“And we took additional measures to protect them because of the violent nature of social media, and parts of other media, and also just the violence that they received just personally,” he said. “And so, they live in fear now, and I have to say that, because for an entire day, we had to talk to the magistrates on how to live safely, how to travel safely, and in the middle of all of that, they were concerned after the shooting of Charlie Kirk, because they said to me, ‘Well, what if they shoot me because of this?’ And so, they’re going to be more cautious and reluctant to allow people to be released.”

Ukrainian Iryna Zarutska came to the U.S. to escape war but was stabbed to death in Charlotte. (Evgeniya Rush/GoFundMe)

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He argued that county staff will now be responsible for managing “a much more difficult population,” particularly individuals with heightened mental-health needs who must remain in custody longer under the new rules.

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“On top of the other population, of the people who are arrested for robbery, rape and murder. All these people are still gonna be housed here at the detention center. So when people say, ‘Well, is that gonna cause a problem for your staff?’ Of course, it is. Why? Because my staff is not gonna be subject to having to deal with people with much more mental health problems than we had in the past. Or we’re gonna be dealing with families who will not understand why their loved ones are not being released.”

WATCH: North Carolina lawmakers pass tough-on-crime bill in honor of Iryna Zarutska

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The sheriff said that none of the new requirements were accompanied by state funding.

“House Bill 307 did not bring us any resources, and it did not bring any funding,” he said, adding that lawmakers should not impose such sweeping mandates without input from the agencies that must carry them out.

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He asked legislators in Raleigh to include sheriffs in future conversations about criminal-justice policy, saying they “need a seat at the table and a voice” when new laws directly affect local detention operations.

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Illegal immigrant arrested after showing up to Florida Border Patrol office for contract IT work

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Illegal immigrant arrested after showing up to Florida Border Patrol office for contract IT work

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FIRST ON FOX: An illegal immigrant who reported to a U.S. Border Patrol site in Florida to perform some Information technology contractual work was arrested when authorities were made aware of his citizenship status, officials said. 

Angel Camacho, a Venezuelan citizen, reported to a USBP center in Dania Beach, Florida, Jan. 6 to do some IT work when U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials began vetting him, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told Fox News Digital. 

During its investigation, it was revealed Camacho was in violation of U.S. immigration laws, authorities said. 

Angel Camacho reported to a Florida U.S. Border Patrol center to perform contractual work when he was arrested, a Department of Homeland Security official said.  (Getty Images )

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“CBP vets all external visitors before allowing them to enter secure facilities to ensure safety and operational integrity,” DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement. 

“During the vetting process, CBP uncovered this individual was a tourist visa overstay in the country for over five years.”

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This photo shows a U.S. Border Patrol patch on a border agent’s uniform in McAllen, Texas, Jan. 15, 2019. (Suzanne CordeiroAFP via Getty Images)

Camacho was arrested and transferred to ICE custody, Bis said. 

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His criminal history includes theft and resisting a Florida Highway Patrol officer, officials said. Federal authorities have nabbed several illegal immigrants in the process of trying to obtain employment in law enforcement and education. 

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One Sierra Leone citizen was recently arrested as he was training to become a Pennsylvania corrections officer. 

Another illegal immigrant, Ian Roberts, served as the former superintendent of Iowa’s largest district, Des Moines Public Schools, before he was arrested by ICE. 

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High school teacher arrested in alleged sex case involving student

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High school teacher arrested in alleged sex case involving student

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A Georgia high school teacher was arrested Wednesday after allegations of inappropriate contact between a teacher and a minor student surfaced at Lee County High School.

Danielle Weaver, 29, of Leesburg, is charged with child molestation and improper sexual contact by an employee, agent or foster parent, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI).

Lee County High School requested the Leesburg Police Department investigate the allegations on Feb. 3, and the GBI was called to assist the following day.

Danielle Weaver, 29, of Leesburg, Ga., is charged with child molestation and improper sexual contact by an employee. (Lee County Sheriff’s Office)

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Investigators identified Weaver as the “subject,” and identified the victim as a student under 18 years old at Lee County High School, according to officials.

GBI agents continued the investigation along with the Leesburg Police Department, and arrest warrants were obtained for Weaver on Tuesday.

A Google Maps street view photo of Lee County High School in Leesburg, Ga. (Google Maps)

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Weaver turned herself in to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday, and was later released on bond, according to a report from WALB News.

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This investigation is active and ongoing, according to the GBI.

The incident allegedly happened at a high school in Georgia. (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

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Once complete, the case file will be given to the Southwestern Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for prosecution.

Leesburg is located in South Georgia, and is about an hour and a half north of Tallahassee, Florida.

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Lee County High School’s communications team did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

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Federal court clears way for Ten Commandments to be displayed in Louisiana public school classrooms

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Federal court clears way for Ten Commandments to be displayed in Louisiana public school classrooms

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A federal appeals court cleared the way Friday for a Louisiana law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public school classrooms, lifting a lower court block and reigniting debate over religion in public education.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit voted 12-6 to lift a block first imposed in 2024, finding it was too early to determine the constitutionality of the law. Critics argue the requirement violates the separation of church and state, while supporters say the Ten Commandments are historical and foundational to U.S. law.

The court said in the majority opinion that it was unclear how schools would display the poster-sized materials, noting that the law allows additional content, like the Mayflower Compact or the Declaration of Independence, to appear alongside the Ten Commandments.

The majority wrote that there were not enough facts to “permit judicial judgment rather than speculation” when evaluating potential First Amendment concerns.

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A federal appeals court on Friday lifted a lower court block on Louisiana’s Ten Commandments classroom law, bringing the measure closer to taking effect. (John Bazemore/AP)

In a concurring opinion, Circuit Judge James Ho, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, wrote that the law was constitutional and “consistent with our founding traditions.”

“It is fully consistent with the Constitution, and what’s more, it reinforces our Founders’ firm belief that the children of America should be educated about the religious foundations and traditions of our country,” Ho said, adding that the law “affirms our Nation’s highest and most noble traditions.”

Circuit Judge James L. Dennis, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton, wrote in a dissenting opinion that displaying the Ten Commandments in classrooms would amount to “exposing children to government‑endorsed religion in a setting of compulsory attendance.”

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A federal appeals court ruling on Feb. 20 allows Louisiana’s Ten Commandments classroom mandate to proceed for now. (Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images)

“That is precisely the kind of establishment the Framers anticipated and sought to prevent,” he added.

The ACLU of Louisiana and other groups representing the plaintiffs said they would pursue additional legal challenges to block the law.

“Today’s ruling is extremely disappointing and would unnecessarily force Louisiana’s public school families into a game of constitutional whack-a-mole in every school district,” the groups wrote in a joint-statement. “Longstanding judicial precedent makes clear that our clients need not submit to the very harms they are seeking to prevent before taking legal action to protect their rights.”

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Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry praised the appeals court decision on Feb. 20 allowing the Ten Commandments classroom law to move forward. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, file)

Republican Gov. Jeff Landry on Friday praised the court’s decision, writing on Facebook, “Common sense is making a comeback!”

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill issued a statement following the ruling, saying schools “should follow the law.”

“Don’t kill or steal shouldn’t be controversial. My office has issued clear guidance to our public schools on how to comply with the law, and we have created multiple examples of posters demonstrating how it can be applied constitutionally,” she said.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said schools should follow the Ten Commandments display law after a federal appeals court lifted a lower court block on Feb. 20. (Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

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Joseph Davis, an attorney representing Louisiana in the case, celebrated the court’s decision.

“If the ACLU had its way, every trace of religion would be scrubbed from the fabric of our public life,” he said in a statement. “That position is at odds with our nation’s traditions and our Constitution. We’re glad the Fifth Circuit has allowed Louisiana to display the Ten Commandments in its public school classrooms.”

Friday’s ruling came after the full court agreed to reconsider the case, months after a three-judge panel ruled the Louisiana law unconstitutional.

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A similar law in Arkansas faces a federal court challenge, while Texas implemented its own Ten Commandments classroom requirement last year.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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