DMV BEATS ALIEN SUIT
By MICHAEL GORMLEY, AP
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June 8, 2007 -- ALBANY - New York has the right to deny driver's licenses to immigrants who can't prove they are in the country legally, the state's highest court ruled yesterday.

A lawsuit brought by immigrants and their advocates claimed a state Department of Motor Vehicles policy created by Gov. George Pataki's administration "is essentially an effort to deny driver's licenses to immigrants not legally present in New York," the Court of Appeals decision stated.

"To state the obvious, undocumented aliens lack documents," wrote Judge Robert Smith in the 5-2 decision, "And the DMV's right to insist on such documents is undisputed."

At issue was a rule issued Sept. 6, 2001, just five days before terrorists attacked the World Trade Center, requiring driver's-license applicants to provide federal immigration documents to prove they were in the country legally. Some of the 9/11 hijackers had obtained driver's licenses.

The state has long required applicants who don't have Social Security numbers to submit a Social Security Administration letter stating the person wasn't eligible to work in the United States but was present in the country legally. The 2001 rule made immigrants provide more proof.

The lawsuit was launched after the state started cracking down in 2004, an effort that was expected to result in the loss of driver's licenses for 300,000 illegal immigrants.

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