The Costs and Legal Hazards of an Arizona-style Immigration Law in Nebraska
Staff Attorney for the Immigrant Integration and Civic Participation Program at Nebraska Appleseed Center for Law in the Public Interest
In April 2010, the state of Arizona passed SB 1070, which would require local law enforcement officers to inquire into an individual’s immigration status during any lawful stop, detention, or arrest; forbid local law enforcement from releasing any person who is arrested until the person’s immigration status is determined; create a state crime for an immigrant’s failure to apply for and carry required documents; criminalize the solicitation and performance of work without proper immigration documents; authorize the warrantless arrest of certain immigrants; and allow private citizens to sue law enforcement agencies and officials if they believe they are not sufficiently enforcing immigration laws, among other provisions. After the law was passed, seven lawsuits were filed by civil rights organizations, individuals and the United States to block its enactment. In July 2010, U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton granted in part a preliminary injunction that has kept key sections of the law from going into effect. On November 1, a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals heard Arizona’s appeal.
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