Settlement reached in suit against Alabama’s immigration law

A settlement has been reached between the State of Alabama and civil rights groups in a federal lawsuit over Alabama’s toughest-in-the-nation immigration law.

Several key points of the settlement are as follows:

1.  Alabama will not be able to ask the immigration status of students enrolling in public school.
2.  A person will not be charged with a crime for renting to an illegal immigrant or giving an illegal immigrant a ride.
3.  Alabama law enforcement will not be able to hold someone during a traffic stop only to check their immigration status.
4.  The state must pay $350,000 in attorney fees for the civil rights groups.

A federal judge still has to approve the changes reached in the settlement, but that is most likely just a formality.

With the settlement, most of the law remains in effect according to the bill’s sponsor, House Majority Leader Micky Hammon, R-Decatur.

Hammon was quick to point out today that only seven of the law’s 41 sections were blocked.

“[The] settlement is a great victory for the law-abiding taxpayers of Alabama. It ensures that law enforcement officials have the right to identify and detain those who reside here illegally, and it prevents illegal immigrants from accessing many of the government services that our hard-working, legal Alabamians fund,” said Hammon. “As a result of this settlement, Alabama’s borders are more secure, our taxpayer dollars are more protected, and Alabamians have given strong notice to those who break our laws with their simple presence.”

Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange said today that his office will continue to enforce the law as set forth by the courts.

“The Attorney General’s Office has vigorously defended our state’s immigration law in both the federal trial and appellate courts,” Strange told Yellowhammer. “The courts have upheld most of the Act but have also made clear that some provisions are invalid. We have a duty to follow the law as set forth by the courts.”

Rep. Hammon went on to say that he believes Alabama will continue to do the work the federal government is unwilling to do when it comes to immigration enforcement.

“Alabama is once again the last line of defense against a weak-kneed president and a liberal administration who refuse to enforce the federal laws they were sworn to uphold,” Hammon said. “If federal officials would step up to the plate and do their job, laws like the one put firmly on Alabama’s books would not be needed in the first place.”