Press Releases

Border Sheriffs Project Files Amicus Brief on Behalf of Dever

You can read the brief below or by clicking here to download it. (Adobe PDF).

A hearing is set for April 25 before the Supreme Court.

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BORDER SHERIFFS DENOUNCE NINTH CIRCUIT RULING AS ‘JUDICIALLY-IMPOSED AMNESTY’

Upholds Gutting of Law Enforcement Provisions in Arizona SB 1070

April 11, 2011

Phoenix, AZ – Today, Sheriff Larry Dever of Cochise County, honorary co-chair of www.BorderSheriffs.com, criticized the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals for upholding the gutting of SB 1070, Arizona’s law enforcement and immigration law.

“This ruling makes it that much harder for us to protect the citizenry from illegal immigration and the crime that goes with it,” said Sheriff Dever. “While the federal government spends resources on fighting us rather than illegal immigration, it demands that we foot the bill for their failure to secure the border in the form of health care, social services, and law enforcement costs. Unfortunately, the judges have given the Administration yet another assist today in their efforts to undermine us, the rule of law, and SB 1070.

“It’s disturbing that some of the nation’s top judges continue to misunderstand the Constitution. The Constitution makes federal law supreme to state laws.  It does not make the Administration’s policy of ignoring federal laws against illegal immigration supreme to our laws.  We agree with the dissenting judge that much of the majority’s opinion is Alice in Wonderland, results-oriented legal mush.

“Now, local law enforcement needs approval from the Obama Administration to detain individuals for violating civil laws against being in the United States illegally. This activist court ruling amounts to a judicially-imposed amnesty.”

Passed last year by the Arizona Legislature, SB 1070 has largely been put on hold by the Courts, which have accepted speculative and vague claims that it would lead to racial profiling.  The Courts have also accepted the federal government’s policy of largely ignoring the law and not enforcing laws against illegal immigration as a reason to stop SB 1070. This is the latest ruling in a lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice against the state of Arizona and another filed by the ACLU and other groups directly against Arizona sheriffs, including Sheriff Larry Dever. The sheriffs have set up a legal defense fund in order to continue to fight against the lawsuit at www.BorderSheriffs.com.

BorderSheriffs.com is a project of the Legacy Foundation to help provide Arizona sheriffs such as Sheriff Dever a sufficient legal defense to take on the Obama Administration, the ACLU and others opposing a secure border and enforcement of SB1070.  The Foundation is 501(c)(3) organization based in Des Moines, Iowa focused on state level policy matters, including constitutional and civil rights.

For further information, please contact Jameson Cunningham with Shirley & Banister Public Affairs at (703) 739-5920 or (800) 536-5920.

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