(AP) -- COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - The South Carolina Senate has turned back a proposed change to a bill designed to further crack down on illegal immigration.
Senators defeated it Wednesday before adjourning for the day. It would have removed citizens' ability to sue local governments for not following the law.
The measure would direct officers to check the immigration status of a person they suspect is in the country illegally. The questions must follow a stop or arrest for something else. Producing a valid driver's license would satisfy the query.
The proposal resembles a measure passed in Arizona last year that brought a flurry of lawsuits. South Carolina's bill differs by not holding someone on that suspicion. It directs law enforcement to call Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.
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