Thread: Judge orders Hazleton to pay $1.4 million in legal costs in immigration case

Judge orders Hazleton to pay $1.4 million in legal costs in immigration case


Lou Barletta, former Hazleton mayor and now U.S. Congressman: “What is legal today in Arizona or Fremont, Nebraska is not legal in Hazleton. That’s unfair, and the U.S. Supreme Court should step in and fix this patchwork of local laws intended to combat illegal immigration." (BILL CLARK / CQ ROLL CALL)


Kent Jackson Of The Hazleton Standard-Speaker
Hazleton's immigration law made national headlines, but it proves costly to city


HAZLETON — The city of Hazleton must pay nearly $1.4 million to civil rights attorneys who thwarted the city's immigration law in federal court, U.S. Judge James Munley ruled Tuesday.

Munley of U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania in Scranton awarded about half of the $2.84 million that the attorneys sought for the case, which began in 2006 and reached the U.S. Supreme Court.

Hazleton must pay $1.38 million in fees and $47,594 in costs, Munley said.

The cost of a court battle was one reason why the American Civil Liberties Union and Latino Justice PRLDEF warned the financially troubled city not to enact the law.

"Hazleton knew and its politicians knew all along that if they were sued and lost, there would be a bill to pay at the end," said Omar Jadwat, an ACLU attorney assigned to the case.

Hazleton's law penalized companies that hired immigrants who lacked legal status to work in the country and landlords whose tenants lacked legal residency status.

In addition to the ACLU and Latino Justice, formerly called the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, lawyers from the Philadelphia office of the Cozen O'Connor law firm and the Community Justice Project also helped challenge the law.

The 2007 trial that ed Munley to strike down the law and appeals to a circuit court and the Supreme Court received international attention. The case also gave Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta a national profile that helped him win the congressional seat he now holds.

Barletta proposed the law, modeled after one drafted but never approved in San Bernardino, Calif., in the spring of 2006. He pushed for the law after a Hazleton man was murdered in a case for which two immigrants later were deported, but not tried and 15-year-old immigrant was arrested for shooting a gun in a separate incident at a playground.

City council approved the first of several versions of the immigration law soon afterward.

Then Councilman Joseph Yannuzzi, now mayor, supported the law at the time.

"We felt we were right. We still feel we are right. Of course, they don't agree with us," Yannuzzi said.

He hopes to negotiate to spread out the repayment to lessen the strain on the city's budget. Munley's ruling makes the payment due on Jan. 15, 2016 so the two sides have until then to agreement on terms. Munley said in the ruling that a payment schedule could be worked out between both parties.

At the 2007 trial at which Munley presided, the city's attorneys presented evidence that immigrants who weren't authorized to be in the country strained the budgets of the city's government, schools and hospital.

Barletta testified to violent crimes that occurred and said the costs increased for police investigations and overtime.

Attorneys challenging the city, however, pointed out that the police force shrunk as the city's population increased. Vic Walczak of the ACLU said of the 8,571 crimes had occurred between 2001 and 2006 in Hazleton, 20 involved immigrants with questionable status. Of the 428 violent crimes that occurred in that span, immigrants committed two or three, Walczak said.

Munley struck down the provisions relating to landlords and businesses so the law never took effect.

After listening to further arguments in 2008, the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia upheld Munley's ruling in 2010.

A year later, the Supreme Court asked the Philadelphia court to reconsider, based on a ruling that upheld a law in Arizona that had similarities to Hazleton.

The Philadelphia court stuck to its original decision, however, and the case died in 2014 when the Supreme Court declined further involvement.

Barletta said Hazleton would have won its case in circuits outside of Philadelphia.

"What is legal today in Arizona or Fremont, Nebraska is not legal in Hazleton. That's unfair, and the U.S. Supreme Court should step in and fix this patchwork of local laws intended to combat illegal immigration," Barletta said.

Jadwat, however, said the Hazleton case helped create a pattern from the patchwork.

"One thing clear for a long time now, partially because of this case and also because of other cases, is that the path Hazleton chose to go down … is not a path open to cities," he said.

http://www.mcall.com/news/nationworl...007-story.html

This is so outrageous. It is so unbelievable. Our justice system is so screwed up when it comes to illegal immigration. How Congress could have sat on their hands and let this situation develop to the point where cities fighting for the rights of their citizens to life, liberty, property and the right to work are held liable for courts failing to uphold the basic fundamental rights of our citizens in favor of people in our country in violation of US immigration law.

I say this, there is no member of Congress past or present who is innocent, whether Democrat or Republican. Yes, we have some wonderful people who are now waking up, who are now fighting, who are researching, gathering information, introducing bills, and speaking up. Yes, we are so thankful to each and every one of them. But, the bills still sit idle in Congress, existing law ignored, the problem still isn't solved, the borders are still wide open, illegal aliens are still working, still collecting welfare, still receiving tax credits for tax they didn't pay on jobs they aren't supposed to have, are still driving, are still committing crimes, are still running drugs, and still manipulating all three branches of the US government and US elections.

judy
our friend 's live in this town of Hazleton Pa it a mess barletta he try like hell
our gov is not good . only trump can help now

Seems there is continuous slap down of any kind of illegal immigration enforcement. We have laws our federal government doesn't enforce and if any state or city tries some kind of enforcement the powers that be come after them hard. But if states and cities want to also ignore our immigration laws and give illegals more, they're given a wink and a nod. So upside down it all is.

Originally Posted by Jean

Seems there is continuous slap down of any kind of illegal immigration enforcement. We have laws our federal government doesn't enforce and if any state or city tries some kind of enforcement the powers that be come after them hard. But if states and cities want to also ignore our immigration laws and give illegals more, they're given a wink and a nod. So upside down it all is.

It is reported that Obama will issue some gun control by executive order. Hopefully the citizens of Roseburg convince him that is a bad idea. This story along with recent history makes it plain why the feds want to disarm us. They want to make it absolutely impossible to do what is our Constitutional right to over throw a tyrannical government.

"These are the times that try men's souls." Thomas Payne. These are the time when honest citizens should defy the corrupt judges, the political left wing fanatics in black pajamas pretending to be judges. Is anybody willing to go to jail, is anybody willing to go on a hunger strike and tell this piece of crap judge that he is a left wing hack who has no legal standing?

Obama is in violation of two contempt of court rulings by two different federal judges. Yet he ignores them and there he sits passing his own laws at will. If Obama does not have to obey the law why should anybody else? The system is so corrupt. This is why there are bloody revolutions where the rulers are seized, dragged through the streets and executed. Of course I am not saying this is what should be done, I am only warning those who arrogantly abuse power of the ugly consequences of what they do. I pray to God there is no violence, but we can see why it happens.