Your morning jolt: Lawsuit to argue that new immigration law will criminalize acts of kindness
The legal war over Georgia’s new illegal immigration law begins today.
The lawsuit by the ACLU and other civil rights groups will be released this afternoon, but a few details are already leaking out:
– Much of the draft is the work of Keegan Federal, the former DeKalb County Superior Court judge;
– One of the main components is the allegation that the law will result in racial profiling, which should surprise no one. The filing will include this line: “All Georgians, and particularly those of color, will be compelled to carry additional paperwork on them prescribed by the State of Georgia at all times.”
– The lawsuit alleges that, even though the new law doesn’t go into effect until July 1, individuals are already being stopped by law enforcement officials, based on their appearance and ability to speak English.
– The suit will also focus on the new law’s ban on transporting or harboring illegal immigrants, arguing that the statute will expose legal residents of Georgia to criminal prosecution for acts of kindness.
In addition to the civil rights organizations, parties to the suit will include aTeamster official who says he regularly transports undocumented students, offers rides to undocumented day laborers to and from work sites, and drives undocumented individuals to church in his union-issued, 12-passenger van.
Then there’s the retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, now the leader of a multi-denominational group that serves 100 families, including illegal immigrants, offering English language classes, food coupons and direct aid.
Meanwhile, Georgia Public Broadcasting has this:
With a month to go before Georgia’s new immigration law goes into effect, training is underway for police officers, sheriff’s deputies, and others on its details.
An annual workshop on law enforcement issues brought together more than 70 people Wednesday on the campus of Columbus State University.
***
It doesn’t look like a heart attack will keep state Rep. David Lucas, D-Macon, out of a race to replace state Sen. Robert Brown. He was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday, according to Macon Telegraph:
[Lucas] went to the hospital Sunday evening after suffering symptoms of heat exhaustion at the Soul Jam Fest at Henderson Stadium.
Doctors discovered he was having a heart attack when they examined him.
[His wife] Elaine Lucas said doctors performed surgery, removing two blockages and putting in two stents during the procedure.
She said Lucas has been told by doctors to rest.
He’s also been told to get more exercise and change his eating habits, she said….Elaine Lucas said her husband plans on returning to the campaign trail next week.
***
Many Republicans have speculated that President Barack Obama’s call for Israel to accept its 1967 borders as a rough starting point for peace negotiations with Palestinians will send Jewish voters in the U.S. rushing into the arms of the GOP.
This morning, Larry Sabato of the University of Virginia offers a concise refutation. From his Crystal Ball:
First, similar concerns voiced by political opponents about Obama’s support for Israel had little impact on Jewish voters in 2008; second, Jewish loyalty to the Democratic Party appears to be based primarily on the liberal views of most Jewish voters on domestic policy issues, especially on social issues; and third, the influence of religious conservatives and Tea Party supporters on the Republican Party remains a major obstacle to the GOP in attracting support from Jewish voters.
- By Jim Galloway, Political Insider
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187 comments Add your comment
Jerry
June 2nd, 2011
11:44 am
There will always be these heart rending exceptions, like the Catholic nun, the Cuban refugee, etc etc that are surfaced to make the case that laws shouldn’t be enforced. It’s wrong to give someone a speeding ticket because they were just hurrying to get to their kid’s soccer game. It’s wrong to arrest the bank robber because he just needed some money to buy food. If it feels good, do it.
If left to the ACLU types it would be “anything goes”, and civilized society would eventually just come apart.
Justin
June 2nd, 2011
11:45 am
@Obama
TRUE!!
harold
June 2nd, 2011
11:46 am
Sleeping safely at night (or not) has nothing to do with any police. All the police do is write reports for insurance companies and detectives AFTER something happened.
Tommy T.
June 2nd, 2011
11:46 am
“..– One of the main components is the allegation that the law will result in racial profiling..” Say What??
That’s like saying: ‘I guess my wife having a baby will lead to child molestation’ ! Or driving my car will lead to a flat tire..
These bozos sit around and make these stupid scenarios so a liberal judge will agree!
truth
June 2nd, 2011
11:46 am
I Luv Legal Produce ,
Did your check come in the mail??
Kelly VaHi
June 2nd, 2011
11:52 am
@ Justin
You have terrible grammar and therefore your point is invalid. Clearly nobody thought to give you an education.
MyPatootie
June 2nd, 2011
11:53 am
This article reminded me of what I just read last night in the Moultie Observer, a South GA newspaper. For those who don’t know it, that county (Colquitt) is loaded with illegal immigrants due to the agricultural jobs. Last I saw the Hispanic population there was about 17%, which was second only to Dalton (Whitfield Co. ) in Georgia. Guess what is happening there now? Looks like what is going on in Mexico is spilling over into GA (Moultrie) and it’s not even a border state. Read yesterday’s Observer and you will see where a Hispanic man was found dead (stabbed) in his truck over the weekend and several houses were shot up. A couple of Mexicans have been arrested for at least one of the shootings. It will take over that area soon, and the citizens who are not rising up, will just say, “what happened”? By the way, that’s Saxby Chambliss’ hometown. Go figure !!!!
harold
June 2nd, 2011
11:53 am
The law will NOT result in racial profiling if it is applied to absolutely everyone whom the police encounter. Profiling of some sort will be applied otherwise. They will call it “language based profiling” so it isn’t racial. So there, it’s not racial. It’s that you sound funny.
IRS
June 2nd, 2011
11:53 am
“Did your check come in the mail??”
No, I understand it went to some illegal alien named “truth” and his large anchor family
Tom (Independent)
June 2nd, 2011
11:53 am
DTA@10:27 – What is an UNAUTHORIZED immigrant that you mentioned about the tax issue?? That’s a new term to me. Always thought it was either Legal or Illegal immigrants?
Kelly VaHi
June 2nd, 2011
11:54 am
@ Jerry
Very well said.
Realist
June 2nd, 2011
11:54 am
I’m sick to death of talk-radio types blaming the lack of serious immigration reform in this country on liberals. Look who steps up every time to knock down any serious legislation – the agra industry, the hospitality industry, the construction industry, the ever reactionary and extremely rightwing U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Even the south Florida Republican Cuban community weighs-in against reform. These are very well financed, well organized, politically connected (right wing) groups.
Yeah, the ACLU and other liberal groups take a stand too but compared to these other groups the liberal groups have no power or effectiveness.
Rightwingers, if you want effective immigration reform in this country then clean-up your own house.
truth
June 2nd, 2011
11:56 am
Where is the uproar with all the AID the US gives to other countries??
Heck we spent billions in Iraq/Afghanistan. We give millions to African countries.
At least illegals contribute back into the economy.
The other countries will never give one dime back.
Wow
June 2nd, 2011
11:56 am
So the illegals are the ones destroying society? That is an unreal statement. We Americans always want to blame something/somebody for our shortcomings when we fail and for some reason most of you are pointing the finger at these people who came to help this country and help themselves. Also, most of you act like all Americans pay their bills on time and never default on loans, or cheat on their taxes. That seems very naive. Illegals do pay taxes, illegals do work we dont want to do, illegals provide culture and they spend a lot of money in this economy. Marta is having trouble now, what happens when a lot of illegals move out…it will go under. Who will we blame then? Can you imagine how much $$ these people spend in our stores today? With laws like this all of their spending will be shifted to somewhere else, outside GA. This has terrible economic backlash associated with it. A lot of you make generalizations based off opinions and word of mouth, I highly doubt any of you have any actual figures/facts to back up your rhetoric. The underlying factor here has nothing to do with the illegal immigrants. It has to do with the melting pot that Atlanta is. We house people from around the world who came here legally to work and have a better life, now with this new law, they will be harrassed and possibly taken to jail if they are not carrying the proper i.d. on them at all times. I for one will only carry my liscence on me and will not abide by this law. I will sue this state if I am pulled over and taken to jail and then laugh at you ignorant followers as I rip the states money and move to a state that welcomes everyone. A lot of you are missing the point here. We are exposing ourselves (State of GA) to bad press and multiple lawsuits that will be won by the persons suing.
Obama
June 2nd, 2011
11:57 am
@Kelly VaHi
Who you think you are to judge Justin because of his grammar. Justin has the right to express his opinion regardless of the way he express it. There is something call freedom of speech..
Contractor
June 2nd, 2011
11:59 am
Obama,
When they have kids enrolled in our public education it cost us atleast $10,000 a year. When they have kids in our hospitals it cost over $12,000 to give birth in a hospital. Are they paying that much in taxes, cause the pennies in taxes they are paying for goods doesn’t add up to crap in the scheme of things. Most illegals are scared to come out as well, and they shop at their Mexican grocery stores to conserve money they send back to Mexico. You can continue to throw out your little statements that monetarily add up to pennies based on the total amounts they are consuming in this country. I love your comment about California, seeing as they are bankrupt and one of the most worthless states in this country at the moment. They are being sucked dry by the illegals. Look at their penitentiaries, their debt, and that should pretty much tell the story on your amazing statistic about California.
Justin,
The number of illegals supposedly paying taxes adds up to nothing when you look at the number that are in this country and leaching off of our society. They get into car wrecks without insurance and 100% of the cost is on the other driver, they get food stamps, free medical, no taxes, education, and a ton of other things that they are costing American citizens. We are helping kids overseas to help educate them and pull them out of the poverty stricken state their country is in. It’s another thing when a family comes here illegally and breaks our laws and slides in under the radar costing Americans more money in taxes when they don’t offer up anything. It’s the principle of the fact, laws are broken, and they DO NOT want to make it right, they want to skate by on a free ride.
Margo
June 2nd, 2011
11:59 am
I recently got in a car accident with an illegal immigrant. Spoke no English and of course had no insurance. So in addition to paying for her four children’s education, healthcare and mostly likely their food, I now have to pay to fix my own car. Yes my insurance will pay for it but I will still have to pay the deductible. It took me 3 years to save up to buy this car.
And worse, all she got was a ticket for having no insurance, not having a registered vehicle, driving without a license and following too close. What are the chances any of these tickets will actually get paid?
Dave
June 2nd, 2011
12:01 pm
PLEASE stop with the “undocumented” CRAP the are here ILLEGALLY therefore they are ILLEGAL ALIENS!
joe
June 2nd, 2011
12:03 pm
What a crock…illegal is illegal is illegal. Stop the madness…
Justin
June 2nd, 2011
12:04 pm
theres Americans with not insuransce out there hello theres homeless not paying taxs its everybody not just mexicans.. thanks
Thank u @Obama
T in S> Atl
June 2nd, 2011
12:05 pm
No, all Americans are NOT destroying the USA. It is the ones disproportionately representing welfare and prison populations. You know the ones you typically see in the news robbing and murdering? Those are the legal Americans destroying this country and the liberals that continue to fund and make excuses for their stupidity, greed and laziness.
Many illegal immigrants do work hard and value education and work. However, they are still here illegally as in illegal or against the law.
joe
June 2nd, 2011
12:07 pm
@ Obama re:11:42 post–If Cali made $30 million off illegal’s taxes on goods and services, that is a drop in the bucket compared to the BILLIONS spent on their healthcare, housing, education, food stamps, etc that LEGAL Cali tax payers provided. Your figures are greatly inaccurate.
T in S> Atl
June 2nd, 2011
12:08 pm
@ Justin and to all
If you can’t spell or to not have spell check then please just stop posting…whether someone agrees or disagrees with your (not you’re) comments, you just sound like a complete idiot.
harold
June 2nd, 2011
12:09 pm
Georgia’s legislators who passed this law are COUNTING on the ACLU to have it vacated. Duh. This way the politicians get to act like they did something and keep their base happy all the while knowing they are doing nothing. The ACLU is the unwitting foil of Nathan Deal and Saxby and friends.
lllegal immigration is solved by securing borders, not by hassling people on the street. So why do Nathan and Saxby and Dr Rice and that guy with the hair and their friends not secure Georgia’s borders?
If these guys were at all serious about it, every road at the state line would be an inspection point! But no, they are just bluffing until the storm blows over (which will be when an R is in the Oval Office again and outrage stops being manufactured)
“Well, we tried, but that dang ACLU messed it all up for us. Vote for us again!!! It was the ACLU!”
Obama
June 2nd, 2011
12:09 pm
@Contractor
The situation that the state of California is currently in is due a corruption in power. The statement was based in 2000 data. I feel bad the state of California being in the situation they are, but do you really think that by kicking everybody out will solve the situation. Also, your statistics do not make any sence according to the reports of US Census bureau. Check your facts before you get in a coversation that you obviously think is wise.
Justin
June 2nd, 2011
12:11 pm
OHH IM SORRY I DONT CARE WHAT YOU SAY IM FREE AND I CAN SAY WHATEVER I WANT TO SAY!!
ITS AMERICA
Living by Example
June 2nd, 2011
12:12 pm
@Living by the Laws of the US
Just how am I being hypocritical? I’d really like to hear how you’ll substantiate this. Go ahead, I’ll give you time to check the dictionary first…
By the way, it’s pretty revealing that you’d assume I am a man. Thank God I chose not to have children. Maybe I saved them from people like you. I’m assuming you have a great relationship with your own kids?
DIT
June 2nd, 2011
12:14 pm
IT’S ALL ABOUT BEING HERE LEGALLY!!
Bottom line. Go through the proper procedures to live in the country and no one has any issues. When ILLEGALS jump our boarders and get FREE Health & Medical, take jobs because they will accept less, form Americans, then that’s where I have a problem.
My wife & I adopted 3 children from overseas in the former Soviet Union. We did everything we had to do before entering that country and living there for 8 weeks. Then, we went through all the proper procedures to bring back all 3 of our children so they are here LEGALLY!!!
It’s a slap in my families face along with others that went through the same process when we see these ILLEGALS not having a care in the world to jump the boarders, and then on top of that complain about America.
Ship all 12 million plus of them out of here and make them come here LEGALLY! Again, come here legally and there is no issue. This is a no brainer. The people defending the ILLEGALS just don’t get it OR they need to be paying their taxes to the ILLEGALS themselves. I for one am tired of it!
T in S> Atl
June 2nd, 2011
12:15 pm
And Obama – It is sense not sence. It is pretty telling that those liberals on here are the ones that cannot spell….hmmmm.
La Loba
June 2nd, 2011
12:15 pm
I can’t wait to get pulled over for being Hispanic, bring it on Cobb County!
Chris
June 2nd, 2011
12:18 pm
If you are here illegally, you are committing a crime. Hence the term “ILLEGAL”. I have no problem with anyone who came into this country in a legal manner. However, the government will have a hard time with illegal immigrants who have children that were born in this country. Is it their fault that their parents came here illegaly?
Either way, something has to be done about this mess. Those that are illegal immigrants and have committed crimes while in this country should be deported immediately.
jconservative
June 2nd, 2011
12:19 pm
“Jewish American != Israeli. Republicans have been dreaming for decades of capturing the Jewish vote in the US by sucking up to Israel and it hasn’t worked.”
Correct. And there is a reason. The Jewish vote is a minority vote. And since the Goldwater campaign the Republican Party has not been pro-minority, any minority. Before Goldwater the most solid voting block in the country was the black vote for Republicans, the party of Lincoln. No more!
Bush 43 made an attempt to pick up the Latino vote during his first term but received no help from the congressional side of his party. So the Latino vote is still Democratic.
This may not be logical or make sense but it is the way the country votes.
harold
June 2nd, 2011
12:19 pm
I did not legally immigrate to the USA. I just so happened to fall out my mama in downtown Atlanta over on Boulevard. So why am I in a better position legally than others who did not legally immigrate? Legality was arbitrarily bestowed upon me by latitude and longitude when I fell out. That makes all kinds of sense.
Rob Woodall has always had government healthcare - That's how it works when you've never held a job in the private sector
June 2nd, 2011
12:19 pm
The 1967 borders have always been proposed as a rough starting point for peace negotiations. Nothing new there.
td
June 2nd, 2011
12:22 pm
La Loba
June 2nd, 2011
12:15 pm
I can’t wait to get pulled over for being Hispanic, bring it on Cobb County!
And I hope if you are an A$$ about it then the nice officer will take out his stick and beat you over the head. You should be proud of being here legally or being a citizen. You did things the right way. My wife is came here the right way from Asia and said she will be more than happy to prove her citizenship every time she gets pulled over. She said it is the price you have to pay to live in a great country.
INN (Illegal News Network)
June 2nd, 2011
12:24 pm
The illegal alien lobby frequently touts the statistic that illegal alien workers contribute $7 billion each year to Social Security. They fail to note that for every $1 illegal aliens contribute to Social Security, they withdraw $10 in other government benefits.
The New York Times wrote in a 2005 article, “The estimated seven million or so illegal immigrant workers in the United States are now providing the system with a subsidy of as much as $7 billion a year.” The Heritage Foundation addressed this contention in its 2007 report, The Fiscal Cost of Low-Skill Immigrants to the U.S. Taxpayer:
It is true that low-skill immigrant households pay, on average, around $2,900 per year in Social Security (FICA) taxes; however, the average Social Security and Medicare benefits they receive actually exceed the FICA taxes paid. Of course, low-skill immigrant households receive many other government benefits as well, receiving ten dollars in total government benefits for each dollar they pay in Social Security taxes.
Eighty percent of illegal aliens are low-skilled.1 For every $1 they contribute to Social Security, low-skilled illegal aliens withdraw $10 in total government benefits. Just looking at one federal benefits program, Social Security, is sure to lead a person to a wrong answer because there are more than 60 different federal benefit programs. Illegal aliens are not eligible for many of these programs, but their U.S. born children are, or one person in the household is legal and can get benefits that help everybody in the household, or the individuals use fraudulent documents to obtain benefits.
It is easy to grasp how it is impossible for illegal aliens to cover the costs they impose on society by their modest contribution to social security. The New York Times article profiled Angel Martinez, an illegal alien from Mexico. He worked up to 70 hours a week for wages varying between $8.50 to $12.75 per hour. The article said he paid $2,000 per year in Social Security.
But for every Angel Martinez, there is the Gonzalez family of illegal aliens. The Gonzalez family was appealing enough to be featured on the reality television show “30 Days” in the episode titled “Immigration.” (The producers left off the word, “Illegal.”) This family of 2 adults and 5 children resided in Los Angeles, and had one wage earner who earned less than $15,000 per year. Simple common sense says that $15,000 does not go very far in supporting 7 people in Los Angeles. The rest of the cost falls upon the taxpayers and charitable assistance. In Los Angeles, the per pupil, per year expenditure on public education in 2001-2002 was $13,074. If each of the five children goes to school for 13 years (K-12), the cost to educate the children is $850,000, all of it paid for by California taxpayers.
This one family needs 425 Angel Martinez’s contributing to social security to make up for the educational cost imposed on the United States by their children. The Heritage Foundation study also notes that illegal alien children becoming rocket scientists or internet tycoons is extremely rare. Unless the Gonzalez children attain an upper middle class salary, it is unlikely that during their entire working lives they will pay enough in taxes to repay the United States for the cost of their upbringing, and the Gonzalez children will in turn have children of their own, who will probably go into the public schools.
Bobby
June 2nd, 2011
12:27 pm
Illegals don’t pay property taxes, income tax, social security tax, school tax, federal or state tax, health care payments…etc
But U.S. citizens pay these taxes, plus their taxes.
jconservative
June 2nd, 2011
12:27 pm
Immigration.
I still maintain the solution to the illegal immigration is Reagan’s Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986.
I am not a big Reagan fan as most of you know, but this is one of the things he got right.
td
June 2nd, 2011
12:30 pm
BTW: My Asian born citizen wife and all of her citizen family wants all illegals (of any race) forcibly removed so that it will open up more slots for their relatives to come here legally.
Katy Watts
June 2nd, 2011
12:30 pm
I just don’t get it. They are here ILLEGALLY!!!! What happened to abiding by the law? Oh but its o.k. when an illegal driving drunk kills somebody. I have several friends who are here from another country legally. They are extremely resentful of those individuals who have decided to break the law to be in this country. The ACLA needs to find a better use of its time.
Vote for Pedro
June 2nd, 2011
12:31 pm
llegals don’t pay property taxes, income tax, social security tax, school tax, federal or state tax, health care payments.. Neither do the unemployed housewives in the Religious Right. Let’s get rid of them!!!! All THEY do is baby sitting, cleaning, cooking, gardening.. USELESS!
jconservative
June 2nd, 2011
12:32 pm
“Illegals don’t pay property taxes, income tax, social security tax, school tax, federal or state tax…”
This is factually incorrect. The Social Security administration has a big pile of money sitting in the kitty that was collected and sent in on forged, stolen and duplicate Social Security numbers. Congress has attempted to resolve the ownership of those funds but no bill ever gets out of committee.
So the money sits there and helps hold the deficit down.
papason
June 2nd, 2011
12:34 pm
I love it how people keep yelling how they will be profiled.. Do you actually understand how criminal procedure works? Cop cant just pull you over just cause he feels like without probale casue such as tag expired or something then from there they can use ARS to go from there.. If you arent illegal you have nothing to worry about..
td
June 2nd, 2011
12:35 pm
jconservative
June 2nd, 2011
12:27 pm
Giving amnesty without verification that the border was secure first was the worst thing Reagan did in office. I will never go along with any policy that hint of anymore amnesty. All illegals must go back to their own country and get in line and wait if they still want to come here.
James B.
June 2nd, 2011
12:35 pm
What about my civil rights? I can’t afford to pay for the undocumented workers any more. I don’t understand why some people on here think I should have to spend my own money to support them. Just one example of what they cost me every month can be seen in my insurance premium. I use to pay a $5 co pay, now I pay $40, I didn’t have a deductible, but now its $1000 and at the same time my monthly premium has tripled. Why? The cost of my health care has gone up so much to cover the illegal undocumented immigrants. But according to some on this site I’m a racist if I don’t want to keep paying more to cover their health cost. I would love to see the originating country of these workers cover their tab, but we will never see that. However, I have a different solution for the problem; don’t punish the illegal worker, punish the businesses who hire them. Who knows, maybe then you could have open borders, without all this drama and problems.
papason
June 2nd, 2011
12:38 pm
And im a Black male and only once in my 30 years have I ever been profiled
DIT
June 2nd, 2011
12:38 pm
@jconservative
In my line of work I know that subcontractors are paying these ILLEGALS “under the table” so they get paid stright cash. Majority of the Illegals are laborers and get paid cash! Therefore, they are not paying any kind of taxes or social security. That’s just a fact. Some might be, but most of the 12 million plus ILLEGALS are not!
elroy
June 2nd, 2011
12:38 pm
Right on Bobby! & sure the latinos have to worry about profiling, but it’s because the estimated count of illegals (mostly latino) in georgia is near half million. latinos are already using the race card. illegal means not allowed or not permitted.
Katy Watts
June 2nd, 2011
12:38 pm
HEY HAROLD, YOU’RE AN IDIOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!
DIT
June 2nd, 2011
12:40 pm
Sorry that’s straight, not stright