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Supreme Court reins in Arizona immigration law, but leaves key provision in place
Fox News
6/25/2012
Excerpt:
"The Supreme Court on Monday struck down much of the controversial Arizona immigration law, but upheld for now a key provision that required police officers to check the immigration status of those they suspect may be in the country illegally.
The provision on mandatory checks during routine stops will now kick back to a lower court for review, and could still be subject to challenge. The rest of the ruling, though, definitively strikes down three other provisions in the Arizona law.
Those provisions had made it a crime for immigrants to seek employment without work permits and to not carry their immigration papers, and had allowed police to arrest anyone they suspect committed a deportable offense. Without the latter provision, the requirement to conduct routine immigration checks has little enforcement power behind it.
The court was unanimous in allowing the immigration checks to go forward, but divided on the rest. The decision now throws into question how other states that had followed Arizona's lead on immigration enforcement will proceed.
Political reaction to the decision Monday spanned the gamut. Some Democrats expressed concern about the remaining provision, while others declared victory. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called the ruling "as strong a repudiation of the Arizona law as one could expect."
On the GOP side, a few lawmakers likewise described the decision as disappointing, while keeping pressure on the Obama administration to fix the country's immigration system. Others saw a silver lining.
Among them was Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, who put out an optimistic statement Monday indicating the state would move to carry out the law, even without the three other planks.
Brewer hailed the decision as a "victory for the rule of law" -- in reference to the one provision that was upheld. "After more than two years of legal challenges, the heart of SB 1070 can now be implemented in accordance with the U.S. Constitution," Brewer said.
The governor said she expects legal challenges to the law to continue. "Our critics are already preparing new litigation tactics in response to their loss at the Supreme Court, and undoubtedly will allege inequities in the implementation of the law," she said.
Brewer also cautioned her state's police officers against taking the policy too far, saying: "Law enforcement will be held accountable should this statute be misused in a fashion that violates an individual's civil rights."
The federal government had claimed the law encroached on its authority to enforce immigration law.
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote the opinion, which was released Monday, on behalf of the majority. Kennedy was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor."
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View the complete article at:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012...key-provision/
Fox News
6/25/2012
Excerpt:
"The Supreme Court on Monday struck down much of the controversial Arizona immigration law, but upheld for now a key provision that required police officers to check the immigration status of those they suspect may be in the country illegally.
The provision on mandatory checks during routine stops will now kick back to a lower court for review, and could still be subject to challenge. The rest of the ruling, though, definitively strikes down three other provisions in the Arizona law.
Those provisions had made it a crime for immigrants to seek employment without work permits and to not carry their immigration papers, and had allowed police to arrest anyone they suspect committed a deportable offense. Without the latter provision, the requirement to conduct routine immigration checks has little enforcement power behind it.
The court was unanimous in allowing the immigration checks to go forward, but divided on the rest. The decision now throws into question how other states that had followed Arizona's lead on immigration enforcement will proceed.
Political reaction to the decision Monday spanned the gamut. Some Democrats expressed concern about the remaining provision, while others declared victory. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called the ruling "as strong a repudiation of the Arizona law as one could expect."
On the GOP side, a few lawmakers likewise described the decision as disappointing, while keeping pressure on the Obama administration to fix the country's immigration system. Others saw a silver lining.
Among them was Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, who put out an optimistic statement Monday indicating the state would move to carry out the law, even without the three other planks.
Brewer hailed the decision as a "victory for the rule of law" -- in reference to the one provision that was upheld. "After more than two years of legal challenges, the heart of SB 1070 can now be implemented in accordance with the U.S. Constitution," Brewer said.
The governor said she expects legal challenges to the law to continue. "Our critics are already preparing new litigation tactics in response to their loss at the Supreme Court, and undoubtedly will allege inequities in the implementation of the law," she said.
Brewer also cautioned her state's police officers against taking the policy too far, saying: "Law enforcement will be held accountable should this statute be misused in a fashion that violates an individual's civil rights."
The federal government had claimed the law encroached on its authority to enforce immigration law.
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote the opinion, which was released Monday, on behalf of the majority. Kennedy was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor."
...............................................
View the complete article at:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012...key-provision/