Judge Blackburn's Ruling On Alabama Immigration Law

September 28, 2011 by Left in Alabama

US District Court Judge Sharon Lovelace Blackburn has ruled on the DOJ's court challenge to Alabama's Beason-Hammon Immigration Law which has been called the nation's cruelest.  As you can see from the court order, she blocked four disputed sections of the Alabama law, but allowed five others to stand.

The Judge granted the DOJ's motion with respect to Sections 11(a), 13, 16, and 17 of H.B. 56.  That is, the State of Alabama will not be permitted to execute or enforce these sections of the law, pending final judgment:

• Section 11(a) of H.B. 56 – “It is unlawful for a person who is an unauthorized alien to knowingly apply for work, solicit work in a public or private place, or perform work as an employee or independent contractor in this state”
• Section 13 – which prohibits concealing, harboring, transporting, etc., of unlawfully-present aliens
• Section 16 – which concerns the taking of a state tax deduction for wages paid to an unauthorized alien employee
• Section 17 – which creates a state “discrimination” cause of action based on the retention or hiring of an unauthorized alien – pending final judgment in this case.

She denied the motion for an injunction as to Sections 10, 12(a), 18, 27, 28, and 30, so the State of Alabama will be able to enforce these sections:

• Section 10 - which creates a criminal misdemeanor violation under Alabama law for willful failure to complete or carry an alien registration document if the person is in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1304(e) or 8 U.S.C. § 1306(a) and is unlawfully present in the United States
• Section 12(a) - which requires a law enforcement officer to make a reasonable attempt, when practicable, to determine the citizenship and immigration status of a person stopped, detained or arrested when reasonable suspicion exists that the person is an alien who is unlawfully present in the United States.
• Section 18 - which amends Ala. Code 32-6-9 to include a provision that if a person is arrested for driving without a license, and the officer is unable to determine that the person has a valid driver’s license, the person must be transported to the nearest magistrate; a reasonable effort shall be made to determine the citizenship of the driver, and if found to be unlawfully present in the United States the driver shall be detained until prosecution or until handed over to federal immigration authorities.
• Section 27 - which bars Alabama courts from enforcing a contract to which a person who is unlawfully present in the United States is a party. This section does not apply to contracts for lodging for one night, contracts for the purchase of food, contracts for medical services, or contracts for transportation for an alien to return to his or her country of origin.
• Section 28 - which requires every public elementary and secondary school in Alabama to determine if an enrolling student was born outside the jurisdiction of the United States or is the child of an unlawfully present alien and qualifies for assignment to an English as second language class or other remedial program.
• Section 30 - which makes it a felony for an alien not lawfully present in the United States to enter into a “business transaction” with the State of Alabama or any political subdivision thereof.
  

You can read the full memorandum opinion below the fold.  As a citizen, I'm very disappointed that Judge Blackburn has upheld the sections of HB56 that criminalize failure to carry documents, invite law enforcement to use profiling to determine citizenship, void contracts, and require educators to become immigration enforcers.

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