Judge: Ga. seeks ‘climate of hostility, fear, mistrust, insecurity’
U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash has blocked enforcement of the most aggressive law enforcement provisions of Georgia’s new illegal immigration law, ruling that they interfere with federal responsibilities to enforce immigration law.
“The [state’s} claim that the new criminal statutes will prevent exploitation of illegal aliens is gross hypocrisy,” Thrash concluded. “The apparent legislative intent is to create such a climate of hostility, fear, mistrust and insecurity that all illegal aliens will leave Georgia.”
That’s pretty much on the nose. And while the judge didn’t offer a conclusion about whether such a goal was good or bad, he did rule that such steps, if they are taken, must be taken by the federal government, not by the states. As a result, “state and local law enforcement officers and officials have no authorization to arrest, detain or prosecute anyone based upon Sections 7 and 8 of HB 87 while this injunction remains in effect.”
However, 21 other sections of the law will go into effect July 1.
In a footnote in his ruling, Thrash pointed out an affidavit filed by Lewis Smith, a 23-year veteran of law enforcement in Georgia and the police chief of the small town of Uvalda. According to Thrash, Smith’s statement “outlines the problems that rural, small town Georgia law enforcement officers will have in trying to enforce Section 8.”
Smith’s statement does that, and a lot more.
“This is going to be devastating to my community and to many other areas of rural Georgia,” the chief’s affidavit reads. “I believe this law will open the door to racial profiling if it is implemented. There are a lot of good police officers, but there are some bad ones out there too, and if the bad ones don’t like Hispanics, for whatever reason, they will have the ability to try to verify that person’s immigration status. I believe that officers in many small towns will rely on physical appearance or way of talking (accent) to determine whether to stop someone and attempt to verify the person’s immigration status.”
Smith also explained the burden that enforcing HB 87 would place on him and other law enforcement officers. After talking with fellow officers, he said, he has come to the conclusion that “police officers in many towns will feel compelled to always exercise their authority to ask about immigration status, making many communities less safe and stretching already thin police forces to their limit.”
In Smith’s case, he is the lone officer in Uvalda, a town of 600 in southeast Georgia. The closest jail is 40 miles away in Soperton, which means that transporting a suspected illegal immigrant to jail, booking the person and returning home would pull Smith off patrol for at least two hours and 15 minutes.
“Because Uvalda is such a small town, everyone in town knows when I’ve left town, and the criminal element often takes advantage of this time to commit crimes,” he told the court.
And about that criminal element?
“The criminal element in Uvalda does not include the population HB 87 targets. In Uvalda, even though we are a small town, we have a big prescription drug problem resulting in break-ins, burglaries and even suicides.” The Hispanics in his town, on the other hand, “are law-abiding people. They have family and kids.”
“In small towns like Uvalda,” Smith told the court, “life is more personal. As chief, I get to know people for who they are, rather than just a statistic or a word such as ‘illegal.’ The immigrants in my community have children, and they just need a chance, just like everyone else does.”
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421 comments Add your comment
Recon (2nd.and 3rd.)
June 27th, 2011
5:36 pm
“The apparent legislative intent is to create such a climate of hostility, fear, mistrust and insecurity that all illegal aliens will leave Georgia.”
And if that’s the only way to gain control, what’s wrong with it?
Real Scooter
June 27th, 2011
5:36 pm
First? no way
Left wing management
June 27th, 2011
5:36 pm
It’s all the liberals fault
Real Scooter
June 27th, 2011
5:37 pm
Didn’t think so!
Real Scooter
June 27th, 2011
5:38 pm
It’s all the liberals fault
AMEN! LWM
Recon (2nd.and 3rd.)
June 27th, 2011
5:43 pm
I guess it really doesn’t matter this is all headed to the SCOTUS anyway and the judge did leave most of it intact.
1811/1801 - 0311/0317
June 27th, 2011
5:46 pm
“The apparent legislative intent is to create such a climate of hostility, fear, mistrust and insecurity that all illegal aliens will leave Georgia”
Notice he did NOT say “all illegal AND legal aliens”.
So, what’s the problem?
We want ONLY the illegals to leave.
But alas, the SCOTUS will have the last say on all of this and we will either regain control of our borders or cease over time to be a sovereign nation.
Our grandchildren and great-grandchildren will be the ones to pay the price.
Real Scooter
June 27th, 2011
5:48 pm
JOSEF-AMVET!!!!!!!!
Shake hands with each other. Please!
1811/1801 - 0311/0317
June 27th, 2011
5:50 pm
“This is just the kind of judge that if green Martians had landed and were eating people alive, he would determine they had “extra-terrestrial galactic” Constitutional rights and police couldn’t stop and interrogate anyone just because they were green.
When anyone in this country (anyone) can pick and choose which laws to obey, we are in more trouble than we realize.
Real Scooter
June 27th, 2011
5:51 pm
Ok,now I feel better.I will stfu and just read.
1811/1801 - 0311/0317
June 27th, 2011
5:51 pm
Off to the dog park to look for illegal dogs.
Moderate Line
June 27th, 2011
5:53 pm
“The apparent legislative intent is to create such a climate of hostility, fear, mistrust and insecurity that all illegal aliens will leave Georgia.”
That’s pretty much on the nose. And while the judge didn’t offer a conclusion about whether such a goal was good or bad, he did rule that such steps, if they are taken, must be taken by the federal government, not by the states
++++
Only the federal government can create “climate of hostility, fear, mistrust and insecurity that all illegal aliens will leave Georgia.”
Seriously.
josef
June 27th, 2011
5:54 pm
Scooter
I will as soon as he puts the carpetbag down?
Moderate Line
June 27th, 2011
5:54 pm
Because Uvalda is such a small town, everyone in town knows when I’ve left town, and the criminal element often takes advantage of this time to commit crimes,” he told the court.
++++++
What happens when this guy goes to sleep? Seriously.
I really can’t take this seriously.
Moderate Line
June 27th, 2011
5:58 pm
In Smith’s case, he is the lone officer in Uvalda, a town of 600 in southeast Georgia. The closest jail is 40 miles away in Soperton, which means that transporting a suspected illegal immigrant to jail, booking the person and returning home would pull Smith off patrol for at least two hours and 15 minutes.
+++++
How often would this happen in a town that is 1.9 square miles. lol
Thanks for the laugh.
Whaheema
June 27th, 2011
5:59 pm
Let’s imagine that we were talking about thieves instead of people who have broken immigration law. Would it be ok to create a climate in which by due process thieves felt uncomfortable and left? I hope so.
Now that Mr. Obama has clearly said that it is his responsibility to enforce the law and to secure the border, let’s consider how he is doing?
Why s a Ga. Law needed if he were doing his job?
Brosephus
June 27th, 2011
6:00 pm
Scout from downstairs…
The case you make is already taken care of by the 287(g) program. When someone’s arrested and found to be in the country without legal status, ICE puts a detainer on them and begins deportation proceedings once their criminal case is adjudicated. We don’t need any additional laws to accomplish that. All that’s needed is to train more officers and adequately fund that program.
As an aside, I’m guessing your mental midgetry causes you to use the “Brosepuss” when responding to something I’ve said. If I can show your respect and not call you out of your name, even though I have good knowledge on what your real name is, you can at least be a grownup and show me the same courtesy. However, if the infant in you can’t be contained, then I’ll chalk up your actions as the immaturity of my elders.
Recon
From downstairs. I don’t really care much for that provision of Medicaid myself. Under the grounds of inadmissibility in the INA, there’s a charge for being a public charge, or being like a ward of the state. It’s quite hard for us to charge someone with that particular charge, even when we have proof they’ve applied for Medicaid. I understand the health implications of denying health services to those in need of care, but there’s gotta be something the suits can do to cut back on the use of Medicaid by those who are not paying for it.
Logical Dude
June 27th, 2011
6:01 pm
deja vu!
21 parts of the law are okay. It’s just those 2 that overstep the constitution.
Recon: And if that’s the only way to gain control, what’s wrong with it?
If you have to ask. . . you have already lost your liberty.
Soothsayer
June 27th, 2011
6:01 pm
Fla. woman says 95-year-old mother patted down at airport (AJC)
A woman says Transportation Security Administration officials detained and searched her 95-year-old cancer-stricken mother — even making her remove her disposable diaper — at an airport in northwest Florida.
You just cain’t never tell what them terrists might be a’hidin’ in them diapers — let alone in them brassieres! It shore pays to be on the safe side!
Jay
June 27th, 2011
6:03 pm
Whaheema, as the judge notes, “mere presence in this country without authorization is not a federal crime.”
So there goes your comparison.
Left wing management
June 27th, 2011
6:03 pm
I wonder how common meth addiction is among youth and/or adults in the Uvalda area, and the casualty rate of area natives in foreign wars in the past decade.
Soothsayer
June 27th, 2011
6:05 pm
Hey, Jay, here’s an article you may find interesting.
http://www.truthdig.com/report/print/gone_with_the_papers_20110627
DH-ATL
June 27th, 2011
6:05 pm
Thank you Judge Thrash for banning this horrid (and racist) law–
Its all about demographics and (non-republican) voter supression for those republican lawmakers that cynically support this bill…
Jay
June 27th, 2011
6:08 pm
Judging from Chief Lewis’ affidavit, Left Wing, the problem is more likely Oxycontin.
And Sooth, I don’t need to read it, I live it.
WOODSTOCK MIKE
June 27th, 2011
6:11 pm
Jay, why no thread on Blagojevich??
Brosephus
June 27th, 2011
6:11 pm
You just cain’t never tell what them terrists might be a’hidin’ in them diapers — let alone in them brassieres! It shore pays to be on the safe side!
You really never know….
BAGHDAD — A suicide bomber in a wheelchair blew himself up at the entrance to a police station north of the city yesterday, killing three people and wounding 18, officials said.
Two police officers were killed and 10 injured in Tarmiyah, about 30 miles north of Baghdad, authorities said.
The head of the Tarmiyah city council, Qassim Khalifa, said it was not clear whether the bomber was really disabled or using the wheelchair as a way to deflect attention from security.
The bomber went to the police station saying he needed a letter from the police certifying he had been maimed in a terror attack, Khalifa said. Iraqis who have been disabled from a bombing or shooting can receive compensation from the government if their injuries are documented. “Police inspected him but not very carefully as he was handicapped or pretending to be handicapped, so they let him go inside the police reception area where the blast occurred,’’ he said.
I’m not saying that I’m in 100% agreement with current screening protocols, but there are concerns, as outlandish as they appear, that are more serious than people think. A terrorist only has to be successful once to be considered a success. A security officer only has to fail once to be considered a failure.
Jay
June 27th, 2011
6:15 pm
Woodstock, cuz we knew he was crooked three years ago and posted about it at the time.
Doncha think this is old news by now? I mean, what more is there to say?
WOODSTOCK MIKE
June 27th, 2011
6:15 pm
ROD BLAGOJEVICH:
The epitome of a corrupt politician… And yes, he is a Democrat, can you believe it?
josef
June 27th, 2011
6:17 pm
The world of the illegals “out there” and those in the urban areas are different worlds. The personal distance “out there” goes a long, long way toward mitigating that sense of isolation and, yes, fear. In my hometown when I was growing up there were no “Hispanics.” The story of how the first ones came in is rather interesting to me and there is a personal element here.
Here’s how it goes for those interested. A fellow was passing through and had a wreck in front of Mama’s house. It was pretty serious. She went down and held his hand comforting him as best she could until help arrived. He was in the hospital several weeks. Everybody in town wanted to know how he was doing since he might as well have been a Martian, he was that exotic, Mama was there the whole time with him. When he was released, he decided to stay where the people had been so good to him, Mama being his “saint.” He went to work, doing odd jobs and soon enough got a job with “the city” working in maintenance. He brought some of his family up. Soon enough there were more and more relatives coming in, each and every one screened by Tomas. He soon opened a couple of businesses. Their kids went to school, did well, and two of them became teachers. Another became a nurse. Most, though, in the first generation worked in the local furniture factory and/or did farm labor. Any problem and Tomas is called in. He was elected to the city council (he was able to get his citizenship papers without a lot of hassle, having himself come legally and having followed the rules and regs.) It came time to start up a Catholic congregation and Mama donated a plot of ground for it, and gave the Bishop hell until he took care of business himself. Tomas pretty much runs his own INS…mess up and get sent home. Period. How many are legal and how many are not? Who knows. Those anchor babies though speak fluent English with a North Mississippi twang you could cut with a hatchet, Spanish with a Monterrey accent just as native, have married amongst the locals.
A success story? Unusual? Perhaps, but I’m inclined to think not. As the Uvalda policeman says, given a chance…
Moderate Line
June 27th, 2011
6:24 pm
It’s hard to believe you could find a police officer in the Vidalia area that would be opposed to farmers in the area getting cheap labor through illegal immigration. I’m shocked!Shocked!
poison pen
June 27th, 2011
6:25 pm
Jay
” Woodstock, cuz we knew he was crooked three years ago and posted about it at the time.”
Doncha think this is old news by now? I mean, what more is there to say?
Jay, I thought you libs were the last to condem a person before their trial. You knew 3 years ago, AMAZING!
midtownguy
June 27th, 2011
6:26 pm
It’s a complex issue. I worked for many years with refugees and I can tell you one of the groups most ardently opposed to illegal entry are those who waited and came legally. That said, it appears that state governments are taking action only because the federal government is doing absolutely nothing. We should be demanding leadership on this issue from our Senators and Representatives rather than passing state laws.
poison pen
June 27th, 2011
6:27 pm
This cop, and I use the term loosly, is afraid of racial discrimination, well if he is the only cop in town then it shouldn’t be a problem, right!
Jay
June 27th, 2011
6:28 pm
Yeah, Poison, it just takes you guys a little longer to catch up with the rest of us.
poison pen
June 27th, 2011
6:30 pm
Jay, that is true, we don’t condem someone until they have their day in court, thanks for making that clear and I hope we never catch up to you guys.
Jimmy62
June 27th, 2011
6:30 pm
The mistrust was created by people who flout our laws, and the politicians and journalists who cover for them.
midtownguy
June 27th, 2011
6:30 pm
Woodstock: Corruption knows no “D” or “R” (I personally thought Bill Campbell and Linda Schrenko should have been forced to share a jail cell).
Jay
June 27th, 2011
6:30 pm
Jay, that is true, we don’t condem someone until they have their day in court,
Right Poison.
Go sell that to John Edwards.
AmVet
June 27th, 2011
6:33 pm
“This cop, and I use the term loosly (sic)…”
Why?
Joe Mama
June 27th, 2011
6:37 pm
Mike — “The epitome of a corrupt politician… And yes, he is a Democrat, can you believe it?”
I want ALL corrupt pols found out, tried and punished. I don’t care what party they belong to.
Brosephus
June 27th, 2011
6:37 pm
Right Poison.
Go sell that to John Edwards.
Or Anthony Weiner…
josef
June 27th, 2011
6:38 pm
BTW
Illegal from the illegal’s perspective…an interesting read in yesterday’s NYT magazine section…worth a read, imho…
Doggone/GA
June 27th, 2011
6:38 pm
“Go sell that to John Edwards”
Or Anthony Weiner
Doggone/GA
June 27th, 2011
6:39 pm
Brosephus! GMTA!
saywhat?
June 27th, 2011
6:41 pm
Jay-”Right Poison.
Go sell that to John Edwards.”
or Bill Clinton, or Barack Obama, or Anthony Weiner, or…. the list is endless.
saywhat?
June 27th, 2011
6:42 pm
THIRD!
Brosephus
June 27th, 2011
6:42 pm
Doggone
I had to read Jay’s comment a few times. I was seeing John Edwards, but my mind was registering Weiner.
Moderate Line
June 27th, 2011
6:42 pm
MARTIN: Now, and again I wanted to ask you a question I asked Jeanne Bonner earlier which is there are federal visa programs that do allow farmers to bring migrant workers legally there are specific visa programs for this. Is it that farmers weren’t taking advantage of them, or these workers weren’t coming here under those programs? I mean…
BRIDGES: Well, this is – there’s a two-pronged issue with that. One is many farmers tell me that that program doesn’t work because several of the farmers have small acreages of produce to be harvested and that program is extremely cumbersome to complete. Now, some of the larger onion farmers who have acres and acres have been able to successfully use that program, but the majority of the smaller farms just – it’s just a cumbersome program to use. And the other part of this is that we have people who have been here for several years.
http://www.npr.org/2011/06/23/137369275/ga-s-new-immigration-law-sparks-farmers-fears
Bridges is the Mayor of Uvalda.
Brosephus
June 27th, 2011
6:43 pm
josef
Was that article about the journalist that came out, or the group of young protesters?
Dropped you a buzz at SE!!
josef
June 27th, 2011
6:45 pm
BROSEPHUS
Gotcha!