Judge Affirms Sections of the Arizona Immigration Law and enjoins others

Judge Bolton enjoined implementation of those sections of the law which required Arizona Police Officers to check the immigration status while enforcing other laws, required immigrants to carry their papers on them at all times and made it illegal for undocumented immigrants to seek employment. 

P>PHOENIX, AZ (Catholic Online) -  All but guaranteeing an appeal and a probable path to the US Supreme Court, United States Federal District Court Judge Susan Bolton issued her long awaited ruling on the Motion for Preliminary Injunction  concerning the implementation of the controversial Arizona law set to take effect on Thursday, July 29, 2010.

The technically written ruling is still being parsed by legal analysts. It will provide fodder for the pundits and talking heads well into the early morning hours after the law, absent the enjoined provisions, is implemented.

The Ruling is certain to spark continued controversy surrounding the law well into the November election cycle. The decision considered the constitutionality of AZ state law S.B. 1070. Proponents maintain it does nothing more than the Federal Law, is constitutional and was necessitated by the failure of the Federal Government to enforce their own immigration laws. Opponents say it is unconstitutional both because it violates basic human rights and usurps the rightful role of the Federal Government which is charged with enforcement of immigration laws.

Clearly both sides of the highly charged issue are disappointed in the ruling by Judge Bolton. They immediately took to the airwaves and blogosphere to spin the decision. 

Here is what is clear. Judge Bolton enjoined implementation of those sections of the law which required Arizona Police Officers to determine the immigration status of people while enforcing other laws. She enjoined the section which required immigrants to carry their papers on them at all times. She enjoined the section which made it illegal for undocumented immigrants to seek employment. 

In her treatment of the section requiring Arizona officers to make determinations as to the immigration status of people whom they stop incident to other possible legal infractions, Judge Bolton wrote: "Requiring Arizona law enforcement officials and agencies to determine the immigration status of every person who is arrested burdens lawfully-present aliens because their liberty will be restricted while their status is checked."

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