Judge upholds key parts of Ala. immigration law

UAB student Meagan Griffin, right, and others march during a student immigration rally protesting the HB56 Alabama immigration law near campus in Birmingham,Ala., Wednesday, September 28, 2011. / Tamika Moore,AP Photo/The Birmingham News

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The court fight will likely continue over Alabama's immigration law, now that a judge has refused to block key parts of it.

The federal judge says some parts of the law are in conflict with federal statutes, but others aren't. She's letting stand the part of the law that requires immigration status checks of public school students. She's also refusing to stop provisions that allow police to hold suspected illegal immigrants without bond, and that make it a felony for an illegal immigrant to do business with the state.

The judge's order temporarily blocks four parts of the law until she can issue a final ruling. They include a provision making it a crime to transport or harbor an illegal immigrant, and one that makes it a crime for an illegal immigrant to solicit work.

An appeal is all but certain. The state attorney general's office says it's reviewing the decision before commenting.

Opponents of the law include the Obama administration, immigrant-support groups and civil libertarians. The Justice Department said it encroaches on the federal government's duty to enforce immigration law.

Similar, less restrictive laws have been passed in four other states, and federal judges have already blocked all or parts of those.

[mightymunster]

They want a better life. So do I. I'm not a racist ... BUT ... it sucks that we have Millions of illegal immigrant and Millions of citizens unemployed. But Americans won't work for $8 an hour. Sure they will if the jobs aren't being taken by people that have no business havbing them.

I work 3 jobs. Maybe i would only have to work 2 if our economy wasn't being deflated by cheap labor.

[mikeonthebay]

Illegials have made a business decision to break our laws. They come here to loot and pillage and send their gains back home. Meanwhile they skirt our laws and cost trillions in health care and education.

[OnceALiberalNowAModerate]

Nationwide, the best thing that can happen next in the fight to have Illegals sent home is swift passage of E-Verify. All it does is make sure that whoever applies for a job here in the US is really who they say they are, and that they have a right to take the job they apply for.

Illegal is NOT a race, it's a crime.

[retm-w]

E verify doesn't stop the day labor, which is a majority of what illegals do. Contractors and individuals hire them by the day, no taxes for them to pay it's all under the table.