Federal Appellate Judge Skeptical of Federal Suit Against Arizona's Immigration Enforcement Law
Federal appellate judge John T. Noonan Jr. interrogated federal prosecutors today in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and questioned the government's claim and the district court ruling that parts of Arizona's immigration enforcement law preempted federal law.
"I've read your brief, I've read the District Court opinion, I've heard your interchange with my two colleagues, and I don't understand your argument," judge Noonan said during today's arguments. "We are dependent as a court on counsel being responsive. . . . You keep saying the problem is that a state officer is told to do something. That's not a matter of preemption. . . . I would think the proper thing to do is to concede that this is a point where you don't have an argument."
In July, a federal district judge in Arizona suspended several key parts of Arizona's immigration enforcement law, including the section that required local police officers to check the immigration status of an individual that they have arrested and suspect are in the country illegally. The state of Arizona is appealing the district judge's ruling.
Arizona Governor Jan Brewer has vowed to take the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to ensure that all parts of the law created by the passage of SB1070 go into effect.
A three-judge panel from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will rule on Arizona's appeal. Judge Noonan's statements from today indicate that he may be leaning toward overturning the lower court's ruling, but the other two judges offered no indication of which way they are leaning.
For more information, see the Washington Post.