A federal appeals court on Friday blocked key components of Alabama’s law requiring schools to check the immigration status of students, temporarily halting what was considered the toughest immigration law in the nation.
The injunction, which was issued Friday from the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, comes just days after the U.S. Justice Department requested the legislation be put on hold until the larger constitutional questions can be addressed.
Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard, who championed the law, said the “most effectual parts” of the law will remain in place.
“We’ve said from the beginning that Alabama will have a strict immigration law and we will enforce it. Alabama will not be a sanctuary state for illegal aliens, and this ruling reinforces that,” he said.
Mr. Bentley, who signed the bill into law earlier this year, has championed the measure in recent weeks, saying a string of reports concerning high dropout rates reflected the success of the immigration reform law. Many frightened Hispanics have been driven away from Alabama, fearing they could be arrested or targeted by police.
Speaking Friday, Mr. Bentley said he remains confident that the immigration reform law will stand the test of a legal challenge, adding that state still has the “strongest immigration law.”
