Arizona blocked

A ruling from a U.S. district court in Phoenix limits Arizona’s attempts to curb illegal immigration under a new state law, although the state will appeal.

U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton found Wednesday that Arizona went too far in requiring state law enforcement to investigate the immigration status of individuals they stop or arrest.

The judge ruled the Arizona law was “likely to burden legally present aliens” and noted a Supreme Court statement that aliens should be free from “the possibility of inquisitorial practices and police surveillance.”

The Arizona law would interfere with federal authority and burden federal personnel who must respond to state officers’ requests for immigration checks, the judge said. The increased workload would “redirect federal agencies away from the priorities they have established,” she wrote.

The ruling also stipulated that Arizona cannot detain a person until their immigration status is determined. In general, it described immigration offenses as falling under federal jurisdiction and not the state’s.

If Judge Bolton is correct, the Justice Department’s challenge to the law will succeed. Her preliminary injunction will be appealed before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and may be destined for the Supreme Court.

The Arizona law is one response to a difficult problem that federal policy has failed to address. Other states are contemplating similar laws.

This federal-state conflict is the consequence of Washington’s failure to overhaul the U.S. immigration system.