Judge blocks Iowa immigration law, state attorney general to appeal
GOV & POLITICS
Jun 17, 2024 | 7:58 pm ET
By Robin Opsahl
Description
Immigrant advocacy organizations hosted a rally on the terrace of the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines May 1, 2024 in opposition to the Iowa law making illegal immigration a state crime. (Photo by Robin Opsahl/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
A federal judge on Monday issued a preliminary injunction for Iowa’s law on illegal immigration, blocking it before enforcement was set to begin July 1.
The U.S. Department of Justice and a coalition of civil rights groups argued in court a week ago that Senate File 2340 should not be allowed to take effect.
Signed earlier this year, the measure gives law enforcement officials the power to charge undocumented immigrants with an aggravated misdemeanor for being found in Iowa after having been previously deported, denied admission or removed from the U.S., or if they have an order to leave the country.
The law was challenged by the DOJ, with officials arguing that the new state law infringes on the federal government’s authority over immigration law and enforcement, and that state enforcement of the measure would create conflicts with federal immigration laws. But Iowa deputy solicitor general Patrick Valencia argued the state law does not conflict with federal immigration statutes or enforcement, as it does not contain new rules on immigration. He said the state measure only gives Iowa law enforcement the ability to enforce existing federal law.
https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/judge-blocks-iowa-immigration-law-state-attorney-general-appeal
