United States v. Arizona

703 F. Supp. 2d 980, 30 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 1633, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 75558, 2010 WL 2926157
CourtDistrict Court, D. Arizona
DecidedJuly 28, 2010
DocketCV 10-1413-PHX-SRB
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 703 F. Supp. 2d 980 (United States v. Arizona) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Arizona primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Arizona, 703 F. Supp. 2d 980, 30 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 1633, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 75558, 2010 WL 2926157 (D. Ariz. 2010).

Opinion

ORDER

SUSAN R. BOLTON, District Judge.

At issue is the Motion for Preliminary Injunction filed by Plaintiff the United States (“Pl.’s Mot.”) (Doc. 27).

I. SUMMARY

Against a backdrop of rampant illegal immigration, escalating drug and human trafficking crimes, and serious public safety concerns, the Arizona Legislature enacted a set of statutes and statutory amendments in the form of Senate Bill 1070, the “Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act,” 2010 Arizona Session Laws, Chapter 113, which Governor Janice K. Brewer signed into law on April 23, 2010. Seven days later, the Governor signed into law a set of amendments to Senate Bill 1070 under House Bill 2162, 2010 Arizona Session Laws, Chapter 211. 1 Among other things, S.B. 1070 requires officers to check a person’s immigration status under certain circumstances (Section 2) and authorizes officers to make a warrantless arrest of a person where there is probable cause to believe that the person committed a public offense that makes the person removable from the United States (Section 6). S.B. 1070 also creates or amends crimes for the failure of an alien to apply for or carry registration *986 papers (Section 3), the smuggling of human beings (Section 4), the performance of work by unauthorized aliens, and the transport or harboring of unlawfully present aliens (Section 5).

On July 6, 2010, the United States filed a Complaint with this Court challenging the constitutionality of S.B. 1070, and it also filed a Motion requesting that the Court issue a preliminary injunction to enjoin Arizona from enforcing S.B. 1070 until the Court can make a final determination as to its constitutionality. The United States argues principally that the power to regulate immigration is vested exclusively in the federal government, and that the provisions of S.B. 1070 are therefore preempted by federal law.

The Court notes that S.B. 1070 is not a freestanding statute; rather, it is an enactment of the Arizona Legislature that adds some new sections to the Arizona Revised Statutes (“A.R.S.”) and amends some preexisting sections. S.B. 1070 also contains a severability clause, providing that,

[i]f a provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this act are severable.

S.B. 1070 § 12(A). Therefore, the Court cannot and will not enjoin S.B. 1:070 in its entirety, as certain parties to lawsuits challenging the enactment have requested. The Court is obligated to consider S.B. 1070 on a section by section and provision by provision basis.

Other than seeking a preliminary injunction as to “S.B. 1070,” the United States has not made any argument to preliminarily enjoin and the Court therefore does not enjoin the following provisions of S.B. 1070:

Section 1 of S.B. 1070
no A.R.S. citation: providing the intent of the legislation
Portions of Section % of S.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 11-1051(A): prohibiting Arizona officials, agencies, and political subdivisions from limiting enforcement of federal immigration laws
A.R.S. § 11-1051(C)-(F): requiring that state officials work with federal officials with regard to unlawfully present aliens
A.R.S. § 11-1051(G)-(L): allowing legal residents to sue any state official, agency, or political subdivision for adopting a policy of restricting enforcement of federal immigration laws to less than the full extent permitted by federal law
Section Ip of S.B. 1070 2
A.R.S. § 13-2319: amending the crime of human smuggling
Portion of Section 5 of S.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 13-2928(A)-(B): creating a crime for stopping a motor vehicle to pick up day laborers and for day laborers to get in a motor vehicle if it impedes the normal movement of traffic
Section 7 of S.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 23-212: amending the crime of knowing employment of unauthorized aliens
Section 8 of S.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 23-212.01: amending the crime of intentional employment of unauthorized aliens
Section 9 of S.B. 1070
*987 A.R.S. § 23-214: amending the requirements for checking employment eligibility
Section 11 ofS.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 41-1724: creating the gang and immigration intelligence team enforcement mission fund
Sections 12 & 13 ofS.B. 1070
no A.R.S. citation: administering S.B. 1070

Applying the proper legal standards based upon well-established precedent, the Court finds that the United States is not likely to succeed on the merits in showing that the following provisions of S.B. 1070 are preempted by federal law, and the Court therefore does not enjoin the enforcement of the following provisions of S.B. 1070:

Portion of Section 5 ofS.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 13-2929: creating a separate crime for a person in violation of a criminal offense to transport or harbor an unlawfully present alien or encourage or induce an unlawfully present alien to come to or live in Arizona
Section 10 ofS.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 28-3511

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Valenzuela v. Ducey
329 F. Supp. 3d 982 (D. Arizona, 2018)
Valle Del Sol v. State of Arizona
732 F.3d 1006 (Ninth Circuit, 2013)
Arizona Dream Act Coalition v. Brewer
945 F. Supp. 2d 1049 (D. Arizona, 2013)
United States v. South Carolina
906 F. Supp. 2d 463 (D. South Carolina, 2012)
Arizona v. United States
132 S. Ct. 2492 (Supreme Court, 2012)
Ortega-Melendres v. Arpaio
836 F. Supp. 2d 959 (D. Arizona, 2011)
Central Alabama Fair Housing Center v. Magee
835 F. Supp. 2d 1165 (M.D. Alabama, 2011)
United States v. Alabama
813 F. Supp. 2d 1282 (N.D. Alabama, 2011)
United States v. State
813 F. Supp. 2d 1282 (N.D. Alabama, 2011)
People v. Hughes
252 P.3d 1118 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 2011)
United States v. Arizona
641 F.3d 339 (Ninth Circuit, 2011)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
703 F. Supp. 2d 980, 30 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 1633, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 75558, 2010 WL 2926157, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-arizona-azd-2010.