Judge promises swift ruling on employer-sanctions suit
Mary Jo Pitzl

With tensions rising and time running out, a federal judge on Tuesday promised to have a ruling by week’s end on whether the state’s employer-sanctions law should go into effect as scheduled Jan. 1.

But even if the law kicks in at the first of the year, don’t look for any prosecutions before Feb. 1, the attorneys who are charged with enforcing the law told U.S. District Court Judge Neil V. Wake.

That’s because it would take at least a month to check out tips, corroborate evidence and otherwise investigate any leads that might develop into a prosecution.

“It’s going to take several weeks, or months, in our view,â€