Responding to today’s decision by the United States Supreme Court on Arizona’s SB 1070 immigration law, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer issued a statement heralding the decision as a “victory for the rule of law.”
Although the Court struck down three of the law’s four major provisions, the provision upheld – Section 2 (B) – was at the center of the legislation. Section 2, dubbed the “police investigation provision,” provides that, in the words of Justice Anthony Kennedy, “officers who conduct a stop, detention, or arrest must in some circumstances make efforts to verify the person’s immigration status with the Federal Government.”
Governor Brewer said that the court’s ruling permits “the heart of SB 1070 [to be] implemented in accordance with the U.S. Constitution,” seemingly confirming that Section 2 was the provision around which the law hinged.
In her statement, Brewer acknowledged that critics will continue to thwart her state’s implementation of the law, but she praised the discretion of police in abiding by the valid provisions in SB 1070, noting that the integrity of those in law enforcement will prevent any misconduct from occurring.
Should any suspicion of misconduct arise, Brewer said, “law enforcement will be held accountable should this statute be misused in a fashion that violates an individual’s civil rights.”
