Judge Blocks Parts of Arizona Law
A federal judge Wednesday struck down key parts of Arizona’s anti-immigrant law, S.B. 1070, which not only had fueled anti-Latino bias within the State, but had encouraged many other states to propose similar laws.
U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton issued a preliminary injunction preventing several sections of Arizona's new immigration law from becoming law until the courts have a chance to hear the full case. LatinoJustice PRLDEF had filed an amicus brief last month asking the court to stop the law’s implementation and argued that the law would have resulted in Latino immigrants, regardless of status, being deprived of essential benefits, and impacting their day-to-day lives.
Judge Bolton found that, "There is a substantial likelihood that officers will wrongfully arrest legal resident aliens under the new (law)."
The decision today found that certain sections of SB 1070 are unconstitutional and blocks their implementation. Most importantly, no longer will local police will have to investigate the status of anyone they stop as the law had mandated.
Unfortunately, the court failed to block the implementation of other provisions of SB 1070, and their combined effect could still result in persecution of Latinos in Arizona, both by law enforcement agents and by the numerous private parties that have pledged to hunt down every last undocumented immigrant in the State.
In short, Latinos will still have to hide in the shadows for fear of having any contact with police, and those motivated by racial animus toward Latinos will still harass and intimidate them.
“We have argued in Hazleton, Oyster Bay, Mamaroneck and many other places that these laws simply create a chilling effect on Latinos and are designed to harm their civil rights,” said Cesar Perales, President of LatinoJustice PRLDEF. “These laws will lead to the persecution of people who look Hispanic.”
Local police are still vulnerable to being sued for failing to aggressively investigate the immigration status of those they encounter. Anyone in contact with undocumented immigrants has to worry about criminal charges if they do anything that could be construed as harboring or transporting them. Day laborers looking for work are still subject to the draconian restrictions on making contact with drivers seeking their services.
The judge stopped several other key parts of the law from going into effect tomorrow:
• The portion that creates a crime of failure to apply for or carry "alien-registration papers." • The portion that makes it a crime for illegal immigrants to solicit, apply for or perform work. (This does not include the section on day laborers.) • The portion that allows for a warrantless arrest of a person where there is probable cause to believe they have committed a public offense that makes them removable from the United States.
The judge’s ruling followed hearings on three of seven federal lawsuits challenging SB 1070. Plaintiffs include the U.S. Department of Justice, the American Civil Liberties Union, Phoenix and Tucson police officers, municipalities, illegal immigrants and non-profit groups.
LatinoJustice PRLDEF filed a friend of the court brief on behalf of the National Council of La Raza, the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Los Abogados Hispanic Bar Association and the Hispanic National Bar Association. The brief was filed by LatinoJustice PRLDEF and the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP.
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LatinoJustice PRLDEF, established in 1972, has won landmark civil rights cases in education, housing, voting, migrant, immigrant, employment and other civil rights. LatinoJustice PRLDEF has fought for the right of non-English speaking students to get a good education, against housing discrimination in city-owned apartments, and to open up employment opportunities for all citizens.
For more information about Arizona SB 1070, please visit the Immigration Policy Center.
For more information about the various lawsuits challenging Arizona SB 1070, please visit the American Immigration Council Legal Action Center.