Friday, March 29, 2024

Federal Appeals Court Upholds Ban against SB 1070


A federal appeals court has upheld a previous ban that blocked the most controversial parts of Arizona’s anti-immigrant law today.

U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton issued an injunction in the lawsuit filed by the Obama administration last summer, just days before SB 1070 went into effect.  Among the most contentious parts of the bill was the requirement that law enforcement officials question the immigration status of individuals they detain.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, a panel made up of three judges, said that Bolton did not abuse her discretion in banning parts of the law from going into effect.

The ruling was unsurprising and proponents of the law, including the bill’s sponsor, Arizona State Senator Russell Pearce vowed to battle on all the way to the Supreme Court.

“We know this will survive,” Pearce remarked after the ruling. “This is the most overturned court in the nation. We’ll win it in the Supreme Court.”

The ruling is viewed as a victory for the Obama administration but has no effect on the original lawsuit which is still being overseen by Bolton.

AZ Central

Washington Post