The US Department of Justice and Iowa civil rights and immigrant rights groups filed separate lawsuits Thursday to block enforcement of a new state law would let state officials arrest and deport immigrants previously denied entry to the country.
The groups intend to ask a federal court for a preliminary injunction to block the law from being enforced during the course of the litigation, and prior to it taking effect.
Set to take effect July 1, the new law makes it a state crime for someone to attempt to enter Iowa after being previously deported or barred from entering the United States. The law makes it an aggravated misdemeanor, which carries up to a two-year sentence. In some cases, including people with certain prior convictions, the state crime would become a felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Iowa and the American Immigration Council filed its lawsuit in US District Court for the Southern District of Iowa on behalf of the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice and the thousands of immigrants that the organization assists, including two anonymous immigrants .
Download: 01 Stamped Complaint.pdf
They argue the Iowa law conflicts with existing federal law and interferes with the federal government’s authority to enforce immigration law. They also allege the state law would allow Iowa immigrants with legal status to be arrested and deported, going against immigration laws set by