Governor Ron DeSantis is responding after a federal judge temporarily blocked a new Florida law that makes it a state crime to be here illegally.
Judge Kathleen Williams issued the order Friday that puts the law on hold for the next two weeks. So, local and state law enforcement can’t make arrests under the law with this order.
The Governor said he was fully anticipating the legal challenge, but he attacked Williams calling her an “activist judge”.
“That’s an example of a judge throwing sand in the gears, trying to prevent us from doing what’s right. We’re obviously going to fight that. We’re going to continue with our strong efforts to combat illegal immigration,” DeSantis said.
He said they plan to fight this challenge, adding the state won’t “take the pedal off the gas” in addressing illegal immigration.
The judge’s order is just days after Florida Immigrant Coalition and the Farmworkers Association of Florida filed suit against the state, claiming the law is unconstitutional.
“Both of those organizations would be exposed to state prosecution under those laws, and it includes people that, you know, have been here for decades, people that are working, people without any criminal background or history, but travel, like all of us do, in and out of Florida,” said Paul Chavez, director of Litigation and Advocacy at Americans for Immigrant Justice. Chavez was one of the lawyers who filed the suit.
In the order, Judge Williams essentially points out that the plaintiffs have plausible evidence showing immigration is the role of the federal government, not the state.
It comes down to Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
“So they basically said, look, the state cannot pass a law that would usurp, take away the national government’s ability to set policy,” said Dr. Aubrey Jewett, political science professor at the University of Central Florida.
“We don’t want 50 different states with their own immigration law trying to deal with foreign governments about how we treat their former residents or citizens when they’re traveling through the U.S,” Chavez said. “It’s clear that the United States needs to speak with one voice when it comes to immigration.”
This legal challenge is coming at the same time states like Texas have challenges on similar or near-identical laws.
DeSantis says the state is aware of challenges in other states but says state lawmakers “carefully crafted” this law.
The injunction hearing for Florida is set for April 18 where the law could be blocked for a longer period of time until this case goes to trial.
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