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Legal fight continues with appeals over proposed immigration initiative for Arizona Nov. 5 ballot

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Legal fight continues with appeals over proposed immigration initiative for Arizona Nov. 5 ballot


PHOENIX — The fight to keep a proposed border initiative off Arizona’s Nov. 5 ballot is not over yet.

Immigrant advocates kept the issue alive this week by filing notice to the state Supreme Court that they will appeal the judge’s ruling.

A Maricopa County Superior Court judge on July 12 rejected an effort by the advocates to keep the proposed initiative off the ballot. The advocates argue that the measure breaks the rules because it deals with more than a single subject.

Attorney Andy Gaona, who represents some of the groups, said Friday he was working on legal briefs in the cased that were due later in the day. The Legislature will have until July 26 to respond, he said.

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“We do think that single subject provision was violated,” Gaona said. “We hope that the court agrees.”

Supporters of the initiative argue that it deals with a single subject: the border.

The GOP-controlled Legislative in early June voted to allow to proposal to be placed on the ballot, asking voters if local law enforcement should be allowed to arrest migrants who cross illegally from Mexico into Arizona between ports of entry. The measure would also give state judges the power to order people convicted of the offense to return to their countries of origin.

A vehicle drives along the U.S. side of the US-Mexico border wall in Nogales, Ariz. on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. Immigrant advocacy groups this week appealed a judge’s ruling to allow the proposal to allow local law enforcement to arrest migrants who cross illegally from Mexico into Arizona between ports of entry to stay on the state’s Nov. 5 ballot. Credit: AP/Jae C. Hong

It is similar to a Texas law that has been put on hold by a federal appeals court while it is being challenged.

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Unlike the Texas law, Arizona’s proposal would also make it a felony punishable by 10 years of imprisonment for selling fentanyl that leads to a person’s death. Also included is a requirement that some government agencies use a federal database to verify a noncitizen’s eligibility for benefits.

The Republican-backed proposal bypasses Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, who had vetoed a similar measure in early March and has denounced the effort to bring the issue to voters.

Supporters of the bill said it was necessary to ensure security along the state’s southern border, and that Arizona voters should be given the opportunity to decide the issue themselves. Opponents say the legislation would lead to racial profiling and create several millions of dollars in additional policing costs that Arizona cities, counties and the state can ill afford.

A group of migrants walk to a van as hundreds...

A group of migrants walk to a van as hundreds of migrants gather along the border Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, in Lukeville, Ariz. Immigrant advocacy groups this week appealed a judge’s ruling to allow the proposal to allow local law enforcement to arrest migrants who cross illegally from Mexico into Arizona between ports of entry to stay on the state’s Nov. 5 ballot. Credit: AP/Ross D. Franklin

The measure would go before voters in a state expected to play a crucial role in determining which party controls the White House and the U.S. Senate — likely razor-close races in Arizona. Republicans hope it will focus attention on the border, which they accuse Biden of mishandling, and dilute the political benefits Democrats seek from an abortion-rights initiative.

Disorder on the border is a top motivator for many Republican voters who former President Donald Trump hopes will vote in big numbers.

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President Joe Biden in early June unveiled plans to restrict the number of migrants seeking asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border.

This isn’t the first time Republican lawmakers in Arizona have tried to criminalize migration.

When passing a much-debated 2010 immigration bill, the Arizona Legislature considered expanding the state’s trespassing law to criminalize the presence of immigrants and impose criminal penalties. But the trespassing language was removed and replaced with a requirement that officers, while enforcing other laws, question people’s immigration status if they were believed to be in the country illegally.

The questioning requirement was ultimately upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court despite the racial profiling concerns of critics. But courts barred enforcement of other sections of the law.



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Arizona

Report of shots fired at Phoenix Sky Harbor prompts heavy police presence

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Report of shots fired at Phoenix Sky Harbor prompts heavy police presence


PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Gunshots reportedly rang out at Terminal 4 of Phoenix Sky Harbor on Christmas night.

Airport officials tell Arizona’s Family that police responded to reports of gunfire around 9:40 p.m. on Wednesday.

One security checkpoint and the PHX Sky Train was temporarily closed as part of the investigation, however the areas have since reopened.

At this time, police have not confirmed if anyone is injured or if anyone has been taken into custody in connection with the shooting.

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Arizona’s Family has a crew on scene. Check back for updates

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Harkins Theatres invites Sun Devil fans to watch Peach Bowl

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Harkins Theatres invites Sun Devil fans to watch Peach Bowl


Can’t make the trip to Atlanta for Arizona State football’s Peach Bowl matchup versus Texas? Harkins Theatres has you covered.

The Valley-owned theatre is inviting Sun Devil fans to watch the Peach Bowl live on the big screen at two locations: Harkins Tempe Marketplace and Camelview at Scottsdale Fashion Square.

Fans can show off their Sun Devil pride and experience the “ultimate gameday setting” with tickets for $22 that include a complimentary small popcorn.

Kickoff is at 11 a.m. on Jan. 1. A win over Texas would propel Arizona State into the College Football semifinals, where it’ll play the winner of Oregon-Ohio State.

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Fans can get their tickets on Harkins’ website or in person at the Camelview at Scottsdale Fashion Square or Tempe Marketplace box offices.

Sun Devils grateful for support

Arizona State getting into the College Football Playoff, or even winning the Big 12 alone, was unprecedented.

The Sun Devils are the talk of the Valley right now, and whether it’s from those traveling across the country to watch in person or cheering from home in the Valley, the team is thankful for all the support they’re getting.

“I’m grateful and blessed to be in the corner that (Sun Devil fans) want to be supporting,” Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo said. “I know what it costs and what it takes to get there. It’s nice to have those people that try their hardest to get there and could be spending every dollar in their bank account to get there.”

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‘We are united’: how Arizona’s attorney general plans to manage border chaos

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‘We are united’: how Arizona’s attorney general plans to manage border chaos


Kris Mayes, the attorney general of Arizona, has vowed to fight the incoming Trump administration over key aspects of its immigration policy, including any attempt to set up deportation camps on Arizonan soil or remove thousands of migrant “dreamers” who came to the US as children.

In an interview with the Guardian, Mayes said that any move by Donald Trump in his second presidential term to unpick the rights of dreamers to remain and work in the US would be a “bright red line for me. I will not stand for an attempt to deport them, or undermine them.”

Arizona, a critical border state that will be on the frontline of the struggle over Trump’s plans for mass deportations, has more than 30,000 dreamers, undocumented migrants who entered the US unlawfully as children but who were afforded rights under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca). The program was introduced by Barack Obama in 2012 but has been under relentless attack by Republicans ever since.

“I definitely will be fighting on behalf of dreamers,” Mayes said. “These folks are firefighters, police officers, teachers – they are part of the very fabric of our state and we will protect them.”

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Trump tried to scrap Daca protections during his first presidency and was only stopped by a narrow ruling from the US supreme court. He recently softened his position, telling NBC News that he wanted to find a way to allow dreamers to stay in the country, though his apparent U-turn has left many skeptical of his intentions.

The Daca program is already being challenged by Republican states in a lawsuit that is currently before the ultra-conservative fifth circuit court of appeals. The case is almost certain to reach the supreme court, which has a six-to-three supermajority of rightwing justices.

Despite the hurdles facing dreamers, Mayes said she remains optimistic.

“I think the supreme court will ultimately see the merits of protecting them. We want to give the courts the opportunity to make the right decision here, and we’ll be making very strong arguments on that proposition,” she said.

Arizona’s attorney general also had strong words about any attempt by Trump to construct detention camps in her state as part of his plans to mass-deport millions of undocumented immigrants. She said her army of lawyers were also primed to push back on any move to renew family separation, the policy under which thousands of children were taken away from their parents at the Mexican border as part of a “zero tolerance” strategy.

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“If Trump tries to engage in family separation, or build mass deportation camps, I will do everything I can legally to fight that. That is not happening in Arizona, not on our soil,” she said.

Mayes added that family separation – which has left up to 1,000 families still rent apart six years later – was “fundamentally anathema to who Arizonans are”.

Mayes and her team have been preparing for months for the anticipated whirlwind of activity as soon as Trump re-enters the White House on 20 January. They have “scoured”, as she put it, Project 2025, the rightwing playbook for a Trump second term compiled by the Heritage Foundation.

She has also been working closely with other Democratic state attorneys general, noting that between them they filed more than 100 lawsuits during Trump’s first presidency, winning 80% of them.

“One of our strengths is that we are doing this very much together, we are united and we are organized,” Mayes said.

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The importance of cross-state cooperation is likely to be all the more critical over border issues.

Mayes said that she was working with her Democratic counterparts Rob Bonta of California and Raúl Torrez of New Mexico – with only the Republican attorney general of Texas, Ken Paxton, taking a very different, anti-immigrant approach.

“Three of the four border states have attorneys general in Democratic hands and we are going to fight for due process and for individual rights,” she explained.

A complicating factor is Proposition 314, the ballot measure passed in Arizona in November with a resounding 63% of the vote. It allows state police to arrest any undocumented person who crosses into the US other than at legal ports of entry.

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Mayes said that the decision would not deter her from resisting Trump’s unconstitutional moves.

“Proposition 314 tells us that Arizonans are fed up with a dysfunctional border,” she said.

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“We are facing a serious fentanyl crisis in our state, and there’s no doubt that Arizonans want our border addressed. But when Arizonans voted for Donald Trump they did not vote to shred the Arizona and US constitution – I strongly believe that.”

What was needed at the border was more federal resources to increase border patrol boots on the ground, boost the interception of fentanyl, and enhance prosecution of drug cartels. What was not needed, Mayes insisted, was Trump’s threatened plan to send in the national guard and even the US military to act as a souped-up deportation force.

“There’s nothing more unAmerican than using the military against Americans,” she said. “It’s clearly unconstitutional, and it’s not something Arizonans want to see.”

Since being elected to the position of Arizona’s top law enforcement officer in 2022, Mayes has established herself as a rising star in the Democratic party capable of negotiating the at times fraught politics of a border state. Her most high-profile act came in April when she indicted 18 people including Trump’s former lawyer Rudy Giuliani and former chief of staff Mark Meadows for participating in the 2020 “fake electors” conspiracy.

A similar prosecution of fake electors in Georgia was recently upended after an appeals court disqualified the Atlanta prosecutor in charge of the case, Fani Willis.

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Mayes told the Guardian that despite Trump’s victory in November, she had no intention of dropping the fake electors case. “These indictments were handed down by a state grand jury, and you don’t do justice by popular vote. The case is in the courts now, and that’s where it’s going to stay until it’s over.”

Such a prominent prosecution could place her in the crosshairs of Kash Patel, Trump’s pick for director of the FBI. Should Patel be confirmed for the job by the US Senate, he has made it clear he will pursue revenge investigations against those deemed to be Trump’s enemies.

Mayes didn’t want to discuss Patel’s nomination. But she did say: “I’m not afraid of anyone. I’m going to do my job, uphold the law and protect Arizonans. I’m going to do it no matter who is at the helm of the FBI.”



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