Gov. Jan Brewer and Attorney General Tom Horne announced at a press conference a few minutes ago that they intend to appeal an injunction on SB 1070 to the U.S. Supreme Court.
It’s an example of what a bad AG Horne is going to be.
The SCOTUS rarely hears injunction cases. If they take a case, they want to rule on the whole enchilada, not a piece of it. U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton did not rule SB 1070 unconstitutional, she enjoined the state from enforcing parts of it until the federal government’s challenge of the law is tried in her court.
However, case law usually requires that a judge before issuing an injunction determine if the litigant seeking the injunction has a reasonable chance of success. She wrote that she does think the feds could prevail.
That case is progressing and a ruling by Bolton is expected later this year.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals also did not rule SB 1070 unconstitutional, it said Bolton was right to enjoin the state from enforcing it because the three-judge panel also agreed that the feds would prevail, though part of the ruling was split with one judge writing a dissent that the state might prevail on parts.
The better move by the state was to ask for an “en banc” ruling by the 9th Circuit in which a larger group of appellate justices hear the appeal, usually 11.
There’s a chance that SCOTUS will take up the issue because other states have passed similar laws and other states are contemplating passing them, but it’s unlikely.