Arizona wins major legal victory in fight over federal immigration policies
Published October 3, 2022 at 9:22 AM MST
By Howard Fischer
Capitol Media Services
PHOENIX -- Arizona has won a significant legal victory in its battle over federal immigration policies.
U.S. District Court Judge Michael Liburdi has given state Attorney General Mark Brnovich permission to pursue his claims that the Biden administration acted illegally when it enacted policies that have allowed hundreds of thousands of undocumented individuals to be released in this country. Those policies, Brnovich contends, have abdicated the federal government's responsibility.
Liburdi, in his 27-page ruling, rejected efforts by the administration to dismiss the case as beyond the purview of the court. He said judges have the ability to determine whether policies comport with federal law.
The ruling does not guarantee that the state will win the lawsuit seeking to void the policies. That will come after a trial where Brnovich will need to prove his legal claims.
But the attorney general, who has waged war with the administration on multiple fronts, already has cleared a significant legal hurdle.
Liburdi said that, despite claims to the contrary by federal lawyers, Brnovich has standing to challenge the policies. That's because there is reason to believe the state has been financially damaged by presence of all the people that the attorney general contends should have been either detained or deported as he alleges the law requires.
Central to the court fight are laws dealing with what is supposed to happen to anyone who arrives in the United States or is present but "has not been admitted.''
https://www.kawc.org/news/2022-10-03/arizona-wins-major-legal-victory-in-fight-over-federal-immigration-policies
