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State Lawmakers Should Be Wary of Subjecting Georgia Taxpayers to Exorbitant Litigation Costs Defending the Unconstitutional Legislation, Says 老澳门开奖结果

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Atlanta 鈥� The 老澳门开奖结果 of Georgia today called on state lawmakers to reject bills similar to Arizona鈥檚 notorious racial profiling law and vowed to challenge in court any such legislation if it were to go into effect. The 老澳门开奖结果 made the call after Georgia lawmakers including State Representative Matt Ramsey and State Senator Jack Murphy proposed Arizona-style legislation, House Bill 87 and Senate Bill 40.

鈥淭he proposed bills are unconstitutional and violate core American values,鈥� said Debbie Seagraves, 老澳门开奖结果 of Georgia Executive Director. 鈥淭he 老澳门开奖结果 of Georgia will challenge such racial profiling legislation if passed in Georgia,鈥� said Seagraves.

The bills order law enforcement officers throughout Georgia to use racial profiling as a tool. Despite language that superficially purports to prohibit enforcement based on race and national origin, in reality, those are the only factors the police can rely on in order to suspect undocumented status.

鈥淭he legislation will likely suffer the same fate as key provisions of Arizona鈥檚 notorious SB 1070, which were blocked by a federal court,鈥� said Azadeh Shahshahani, 老澳门开奖结果 of Georgia National Security/Immigrants鈥� Rights Project Director. 鈥淟aws that promise to turn the state into 鈥渟how me your papers鈥� territory would not withstand legal challenge,鈥� said Shahshahani.

State Representative Matt Ramsey鈥檚 proposed HB 87 would require state and local law enforcement officials to investigate the immigration status of all individuals they 鈥渞easonably suspect鈥� to be undocumented whom they come into contact with in the course of an offense, including traffic offenses. It would also require private employers to use the flawed E-Verify database and establishes civil sanctions in case of non-compliance. The bill creates criminal penalties for any individual that encourages an undocumented person to come to Georgia or transports or harbors them once they arrive. In addition, it would allow any 鈥渓egal resident鈥� to bring a lawsuit against any Georgia official or agency whom they believe not to be enforcing provisions of the bill.

SB 40, sponsored by State Senator Jack Murphy, mirrors several provisions of HB 87, such as requiring local law enforcement to investigate individuals鈥� immigration status where there is 鈥渞easonable cause鈥� to believe that they may be undocumented, and penalizing certain employers that do not use E-Verify. SB 40 also orders fines and jail time for certain non-citizens that do not carry and produce a 鈥渃ertificate of registration.鈥�

Both bills authorize state and local law enforcement to detain individuals for an unspecified period of time to determine their status and gives police to power to make warrantless arrests.

HB 87 and SB 40 significantly resemble Arizona鈥檚 SB 1070, most importantly in key provisions that were blocked by an Arizona judge the day before the bill was to go into effect last July. Arizona鈥檚 racial profiling law has faced legal opposition from the Department of Justice as well as civil liberties and immigrants鈥� rights groups. Defending the unconstitutional law has already cost Arizona taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars in litigation fees.