More than two years after it was signed into law, the most contentious part of Arizona's landmark immigration legislation is expected to go into effect following a federal court ruling issued late Wednesday.
In the wake of the Supreme Court decision to uphold Arizona's law allowing police to check the immigration status of those they detain, an overwhelming majority of Americans say they want to see their own states enact the same kinds of laws.
When the Obama administration decided it had no interest in preventing the movement of undocumented aliens from Mexico into the southwestern United States, Arizona decided to take matters into its own hands.
The Supreme Court on Monday struck down most of Arizona's tough immigration law as an unlawful infringement on federal power, but it upheld the most important plank, which allows police to stop and question the immigration status of those they suspect are in the country illegally.
The Obama administration said Monday it is suspending existing agreements with Arizona police over enforcement of federal immigration laws, and said it has issued a directive telling federal authorities to decline many of the calls reporting illegal immigrants that the Homeland Security Department may get from Arizona police.
The Supreme Court on Monday struck down most of Arizona's tough immigration law as an unlawful infringement on federal power, but upheld what backers called the "heart" of the law, which lets police stop and question the immigration status of those they suspect are in the country illegally.
The same Arizona group that took down the state's leading immigration hard-liner is now gunning for its best-known lawman.
A second computer hacking attack in as many weeks against Arizona state police targeted the personal email accounts of some of its officers, an official confirmed Wednesday.
Arizona officers were trained by a video Thursday on how to implement the state's new immigration laws.
