Federal judge rules on Arizona's immigration law

PHOENIX - Reaction is pouring from around the world after a judge Wednesday blocked the most controversial sections of Arizona's new immigration law from taking effect.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton shifts the immigration debate to the courts and sets up a lengthy legal battle that may not be decided until the Supreme Court weighs in.

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer said the state will likely appeal the ruling and seek to get the judge's order overturned.

The law will still take effect Thursday, but without many of the provisions that angered opponents -- including sections that required officers to check a person's immigration status while enforcing other laws.

According to CNN, President Obama was briefed about the SB1070 ruling while on Air Force One, and is not expected to comment on it Wednesday.

He has only one scheduled public appearance this afternoon. He's taping a segment for "The View" which airs Thursday at 10am on ABC15.

We'll all see if he reacts to the ruling when "The View" airs.

Governor Brewer spoke out about the ruling in Tucson late Wednesday morning, calling it "a little bump in the road."

She also said, "We knew regardless one side or the other would appeal…absolutely the federal government got relief from the courts to not do their jobs. They need to step up and do the job that they have the responsibility to do for the people of America and for the people of Arizona.""

In a Twitter post just after the ruling was posted, Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard wrote, "Brewer played politics with immigration - and she lost."

Brewer responded to Goddard's tweet, saying, "Terry Goddard needs to do his job."

Protesters reacting to the news at the Arizona Capitol said planned marches and vigils will still take place tomorrow as planned.

Judge Bolton also put on hold a part of the law that required immigrants to carry their papers at all times, and made it illegal for undocumented workers to solicit employment in public places.

Read reaction from officials about SB1070

Sections of S.B. 1070 that Bolton says are preempted by federal law include:

Portion of Section 2 of S.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 11-1051(B): requiring that an officer make a reasonable attempt to  determine the immigration status of a person stopped, detained or arrested if there is a reasonable suspicion that the person is unlawfully present in the United States, and requiring verification of the immigration status of any person arrested prior to releasing that person

Section 3 of S.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 13-1509: creating a crime for the failure to apply for or carry alien registration papers

Portion of Section 5 of S.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 13-2928(C): creating a crime for an unauthorized alien to solicit, apply for, or perform work

Section 6 of S.B. 1070
A.R.S. § 13-3883(A)(5): authorizing the warrantless arrest of a person where there is probable cause to believe the person has committed a public offense that makes the person removable from the United States.

Read the full ruling from Judge Bolton

In the ruling, Bolton wrote, "The Court...finds that the United States is likely to suffer irreparable harm if the Court does not preliminarily enjoin enforcement of these Sections of S.B. 1070 and that the balance of equities tips in the United States’ favor considering the public interest. The Court therefore issues a preliminary injunction."

She also wrote, "There is a substantial likelihood that officers will wrongfully arrest legal resident aliens under the new (law). By enforcing this statute, Arizona would impose a 'distinct, unusual and extraordinary' burden on legal resident aliens that only the federal government has the authority to impose."

The ruling came just as police were making last-minute preparations to begin enforcement of the law at 12:01 a.m. Thursday and protesters were planning a large demonstrations to speak out against the measure.

At least one group planned to block access to federal offices, daring officers to ask them their immigration status.

The volume of the protests will be likely be turned down a few notches because of the ruling by Bolton, a Clinton appointee who suddenly became a crucial figure in the immigration debate when she was assigned the seven lawsuits filed against the Arizona law.

Bolton presided over two federal hearings last Thursday, including a request from the U.S. Justice Department for a preliminary injunction blocking key sections of the law from taking effect.

The federal government says the state law is trumped by federal law and that it has hurt U.S. relations with Mexico.

Lawyers for Governor Jan Brewer contend illegal immigration and a lack of comprehensive enforcement by the federal government has caused "crushing personal, environmental, criminal, and financial burdens" on Arizona.