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Federal Judge Denies Motion to Dismiss AZ Law Challenge, Finds Race a ‘Motivating Factor’

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No to SB 1070 - by Arasmus PhotoU.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton ruled this week not to dismiss a lawsuit that challenges the Constitutionality of the controversial Arizona SB 1070 immigration law. The motion to dismiss was brought forward by none other than Gov. Jan Brewer, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, and Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu (of “Complete the Danged Fence” fame).

From The Arizona Republic:

In her ruling, Bolton found that the plaintiffs, led by the Phoenix advocacy group Friendly House and the American Civil Liberties Union, had standing to bring the lawsuit and that the moment was “ripe” to do so.

And she found merit in their arguments that portions of the controversial law may violate the Fourth and 14th amendments of the U.S. Constitution. The Fourth Amendment prohibits unreasonable search and seizure; the 14th Amendment includes the “equal protection clause,” which forbids unequal treatment for different classes of people or racial discrimination.

Huffington Post reports:

“While Governor Brewer correctly points out that, for the most part, the organizational plaintiffs’ allegations involve threats of future harm, the threat of future harm is sufficiently imminent,” Bolton ruled, according to Courthouse News Service.

In her decision, Bolton also found that “race, alienage, or national origin discrimination was a motivating factor in the enactment of S.B. 1070…”

And here I thought we were just checking people’s shoes…