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After a federal judge Tuesday issued a preliminary injunction to block a new Florida immigration law, the state wants the ruling put on hold while it pursues an appeal. Attorney General James Uthmeier’s office Wednesday filed a motion seeking a stay of the preliminary injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams. The law, passed during a February special legislative session, created state crimes for undocumented immigrants who enter or re-enter Florida. In issuing the preliminary injunction, Williams said it likely is preempted by federal immigration laws. Uthmeier’s office late Tuesday filed a notice of appealing the injunction to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. It followed Wednesday with the motion asking Williams to issue a stay. “That law does nothing more than exercise Florida’s inherent sovereign authority to protect its citizens by aiding the enforcement of federal immigration law,” the motion said. The plaintiffs in the case — the Florida Immigrant Coalition, the Farmworker Association of Florida and two individual plaintiffs — will have until May 14 to respond to the motion, according to a court docket. In issuing the preliminary injunction, Williams pointed to issues such as the law (SB 4-C) requiring that violators go to jail. “First, it gives state officials authority to prosecute illegal entry or reentry in cases where federal actors may choose not to,” the judge wrote. “Even if federal and state officials choose to commence parallel dual prosecutions under both laws, SB 4-C’s mandatory detention provision limits federal law enforcement discretion to recommend pre-trial release and obstructs federal courts’ ability to conduct proceedings requiring defendants’ presence. Relatedly, state officials are free to prosecute a charge under SB 4-C even while a federal immigration proceeding is underway, which may determine that the defendant may remain lawfully present under federal law.”
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