CONGRESSIONAL HISPANIC CAUCUS (CHC) APPLAUDS DECISION TO BLOCK MAJOR PARTS OF ARIZONA S.B. 1070

(Washington, DC)- The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) applauds Judge Susan Bolton’s decision to enjoin Arizona from enforcing the four most concerning provisions of the Arizona S.B. 1070.

Specifically, Judge Bolton’s ruling prohibits Arizona from: requiring police officers to ask for proof of legal status while making arrests; making it a crime for an undocumented immigrant to solicit, apply, or perform work; authorizing the warrantless arrest of a person when there is probable cause to believe that person had committed a public offense punishable by deportation; and from making the failure to apply for or carry alien registration papers, a state crime. The CHC has long maintained that these provisions are not only unconstitutional, but that they would inevitably lead to racial profiling and harassment.

“Immigration policy is a federal responsibility and with today’s ruling, Judge Susan Bolton has made it clear that state laws which violate the Constitution will not be allowed to proceed,” Said Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, Chairwoman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. “We sincerely hope that the 18 other states that have decided to follow Arizona’s misguided path, are hearing the message loud and clear: federal laws will not be preempted.”

In her ruling Judge Bolton stated that requiring all arrestees to prove their immigration status is an intrusion of police presence into the lives of US Citizens and immigrants who are lawfully present. She also wrote that that the federal government’s ability to enforce its policies and achieve its objectives will be undermined by Arizona’s enforcement of statues that interfere with federal law.

“Although S.B. 1070 sounds tough, it does nothing to solve the problem” said Congressman Luis Gutierrez, Chair of the CHC’s Immigration Task Force. “Only comprehensive immigration reform legislation, passed at the federal level, can fix our broken system. We must act now to end illegal immigration, secure our borders and provide rules that everyone can follow. Republicans must stop standing in the way of true and comprehensive reform.”