Immigrants no criminals says Supreme Court!
Washington, July 9 (EFE).-
The US Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a bid by Florida to let it enforce a controversial new state immigration law that criminalizes the entry of undocumented immigrants.
The SB 4-C law is one of the most aggressive local laws in the country targeting immigrants as it criminalizes undocumented immigrants entering the state if they had entered the US elsewhere illegally, been previously deported or previously denied entry to the state, even if they had since gained lawful status.
The court denied Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier’s request to overturn a lower court’s barring of the law. The court didn’t give reasoning for the decision, and there was no noted dissents.
The American Civil Liberties Union, which represents the plaintiffs, said the Supreme Court’s decision extends a long and unbroken “series of defeats” that courts have inflicted on the Florida law and other related regulations in Texas, Oklahoma, Idaho, and Iowa.
“This ruling affirms what the Constitution demands — that immigration enforcement is a federal matter and that no one should be stripped of their liberty without due process,” said Bacardi Jackson, executive director of the ACLU of Florida.
Uthmeier had asked the court to intervene after Judge Kathleen Williams of the Southern District of Florida held him in contempt for disobeying her Apr. 18 order temporarily suspending enforcement of SB 4-C, sponsored by Republican state Governor Ron DeSantis.
While the court did not rule on the merits of the matter, Judge Williams initially argued that the legislation is likely unconstitutional, and granted a preliminary injunction while the legal process continues.
Following its passing in February, the Florida Immigrant Coalition, the Florida Farmworkers Association, and several affected individuals filed a lawsuit challenging the state law, which they consider unconstitutional because immigration policy falls under the jurisdiction of the federal government.
The law has become a symbol of the fight against irregular migration by Republican-governed states, as other states have sought to replicate it. Therefore, the Supreme Court’s decision on the merits will have an impact beyond Florida.
Paul Chavez, director of litigation and advocacy at Americans for Immigrant Justice, said Florida risked increased racial profiling, civil rights violations, isolation of immigrant communities and unjust deportations by attempting to adopt its own immigration enforcement regime with SB 4-C.
“When local policing is entangled with immigration enforcement, it inevitably undermines any trust the local police have built with the immigrant community, which ultimately undermines public safety for all Floridians,” he added.
One in five residents is an immigrant in Florida, home to an estimated 5 million foreign-born immigrants. However, the state has been a leader in enforcing President Donald Trump’s immigration policy, as DeSantis has passed laws requiring local authorities to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). EFE
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