Immigrants Flee Ga. Despite New Law’s Injunction

Posted on June 29, 2011 by scjustice

From Politico:

By REID J. EPSTEIN | 6/27/11 3:40 PM EDT

A federal judge in Atlanta blocked portions of Georgia’s new law that would have punished people who aid illegal immigrants and allowed local police to check the legal status of anyone not carrying identification, The Associated Press reported Monday.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash wrote that Georgia was seeking to enforce an immigration law that is the jurisdiction of the federal government.

The law, which was to take effect July 1, led to thousands of migrant workers fleeing the state or avoiding it entirely, leaving Georgia’s agriculture industry in peril as farms struggled to find enough workers to pick their crops. (more…)

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Thrash Blocks Aspects of Georgia Immigration Law

Posted on June 28, 2011 by scjustice

From The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

By KATE BRUMBACK, The Associated Press–June 27, 2011 05:31 PM EDT

ATLANTA — A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked parts of Georgia’s strict new law targeting illegal immigration from taking effect, including a provision that authorizes police to check the immigration status of suspects without proper identification and to detain illegal immigrants.

Georgia’s became the latest in a string of state laws that have been at least temporarily stopped by legal challenges. All or parts of similar laws in Arizona, Utah and Indiana also have been blocked by federal judges.

Judge Thomas Thrash also granted a request from civil liberties groups to block a part of Georgia’s law that penalizes people who knowingly and willingly transport or harbor illegal immigrants while committing another crime.

“The defendants wildly exaggerate the scope of the federal crime of harboring under (the law) when they claim that the Plaintiffs are violating federal immigration law by giving rides to their friends and neighbors who are illegal aliens,” he said.

The judge was especially critical of that provision, blasting the state’s assertion that federal immigration enforcement is “passive.” Thrash noted that federal immigration officers remove more than 900 foreign citizens from the country on an average day. (more…)

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Implementation Of Geo. Immigration Law In Question

Posted on June 24, 2011 by scjustice

From The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

By Jeremy Redmon and Craig Schneider–Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Many major Atlanta area police departments have not started training officers to enforce Georgia’s tough new anti-illegal immigration law, which is supposed to take effect July 1.

Among them are the DeKalb and Fulton county police departments and the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, as well as the state police. Cherokee County will start training Wednesday; the Atlanta Police Department refused to discuss the question.

Part of the problem is uncertainty over the fate of the law, which is being challenged in federal court. Some law enforcement agencies say they won’t train their officers until after the judge rules on whether it can take effect. Meanwhile, some local police call the law vague and various agencies are divided on the powers it would give them.

The prospect of uneven enforcement was on the judge’s mind Monday as he questioned lawyers for the state and the groups that are challenging the law. U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Thrash said local authorities might pick and choose whom to target for investigation, favoring some people and not others.

Thrash said he will rule by July 1 on whether the law should be put on hold. (more…)

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