Federal Court Bans Alabama From Checking Kids’ Immigration Status

Submitted by Cheston Catalano

A federal appeals court says it’s unconstitutional for Alabama to check the immigration status of enrolling children or to require illegal immigrants to carry identification.

The 11 Circuit Court of Appeals did uphold provisions of the state immigration law that allow police to stop people they have a “reasonable suspicion” of being in the country unlawfully, and to ask about the immigration status of motorists without drivers’ licenses.

But the court also struck down a provision that barred residents and businesses from entering into contracts with people who are in the state illegally, the Montgomery Advertiser says. The court ruled that the intent of the provision, known as Section 27 of the state’s tough immigration law, was “forcing undocumented individuals out of Alabama.”

“To say that section 27 is extraordinary and unprecedented would be an understatement,” the court wrote in its ruling.

Regarding immigration checks for students, the court determined that such a requirement would cause “significant interference with the children’s right to education” and therefore violated the equal protection clause of the Constitution.

By: Cheston Catalano

Cheston Catalano is a Kentucky-based journalist whose work has been featured in the Chattanooga Times Free Press and the Clarksville Leaf Chronicle. He is a long-time contributor to Liberaland.