Thread: Cave Creek weighs appeal of day - laborer ruling

Cave Creek weighs appeal of day-laborer ruling
Jun. 3, 2008 12:39 PM
The Arizona Republic
CAVE CREEK - Cave Creek will decide by June 16 whether or not to fight a ruling that prohibits the town from enforcing an anti-solicitation law aimed at day laborers.

The Cave Creek Town Council will go into a closed session soon to discuss appealing, rescinding or re-crafting the ordinance, Mayor Vincent Francia said Tuesday.

A federal judge on Monday issued a temporary order preventing enforcement of the law, passed by the town in September, saying it violated the First Amendment.

The order was in response to a lawsuit filed in March by immigrant rights groups on behalf of day laborers.

Touted as a safety measure, the law was expected to trigger more arrests of the day workers - many of them undocumented immigrants - who gathered along streets or sidewalks in search of employment.

Francia said the law was never actually enforced.

Hector Lopez, one of threeday laborers to file the lawsuit, called the ruling a "small victory" for the local Hispanic population.

Lopez, a long-time Cave Creek resident, has been arrested three times by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, which provides law enforcement services for Cave Creek.

"It still very tough for Hispanic people," Lopez said. "The sheriff profiles people."

A day-labor center at a local church closed down last year after the sheriff issued several crackdowns in the area.

Rev. Glenn Jenks of Good Shepherd of the Hills Episcopal Church said the ruling should not restore activities at the church center, which for seven years provided a place for laborers and employers to safely hook up.





http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/ ... 04-ON.html

"It still very tough for Hispanic people," Lopez said. "The sheriff profiles people."


You're right, he profiles illegal aliens.