Sanctuary Cities Outlawed

Gov. Sonny Perdue has signed a bill that outlaws sanctuary cities - where officials are prohibited from reporting illegal immigrants. Supporters of the new law say that while there are no sanctuary cities in Georgia, there are some 60 across the country. They say the law is a pre-emptive strike to make sure none crop up in the state. It would withhold state funding from any local government that adopts a sanctuary policy. Critics have called the measure a solution for a problem that doesn't exist and said it sends an increasingly hostile message to the international community.

(Associated Press)

Group Blasts Immigrant Detention Center

Immigrant rights groups plan to release a report blasting the conditions at a federal immigration detention center in southwest Georgia. Georgia Detention Watch is a coalition of immigrant rights groups. The report is based on interviews conducted in December with 16 detainees at the Stewart Detention Facility in Lumpkin. The groups say conditions at the detention center are "grossly inadequate." The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center is operated by Nashville-based Corrections Corporation of America, the country's largest private prison firm.

(Associated Press)

Lawyer wants off immigrant killing trial

Attorneys for one of two men charged with murder in the killings of six Hispanic men during robberies in 2005 have asked to withdraw. The attorneys for Stacey Sims, Converse Bright and Robert Walker, said in a motion Friday that they are unable to prepare his defense because the Capital Defender Project "fails to pay counsel fees and fees for investigators, consultants and expert witnesses." The sentencing for the other man charged, Jamie Underwood, will continue Monday after testimony four days this week. Underwoods lawyers are to begin presenting their case Monday. The state is seeking the death penalty for Underwood and Sims, but not against two women charged in the crimes. Trial dates for them and for Sims have not been set.

(Associated Press)

Georgia immigrants lag in learning English

A new study says Georgia doesn’t do enough to teach immigrants English. The study is by the Migration Policy Institute in Washington, D.C. Georgia has one of the fastest-growing immigrant populations in the country. The study found that only 32,000 immigrants – legal and unlawful -- were enrolled in federally-funded English-language classes in 2005. There are hundreds of thousands of immigrants in Georgia. The study says Georgia’s immigrants would need 72-million hours of lessons to become proficient.

Cobb's new housing code concerns immigrant rights advocates

The Cobb County Commission has unanimously approved a measure to limit the number of adults who can live under one roof.

Cobb County's new rule prohibits more than two unrelated adults and their children or grandchildren from sharing a home, and defines family as parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren, brothers and sisters.

County officials say the measure is needed to curb falling property values, but immigrant rights groups say the county is violating federal law.

Elise Shore is Atlanta regional counsel for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF). She says the measure strikes at the heart of extended families.

"They have restricted family only to the fourth degree under Georgia law. And we made a Constitutional argument the Supreme Court has recognized that sanctity of the family is recognizable under substantive due process in the Constitution," she said.

The County Commission also approved a measure limiting the number of ears that can be parked in front of a home at one time. Later this summer, Cobb County officials will vote on a proposal to govern the hiring of day laborers.

MALDEF has already filed its opposition to that measure, saying it violates the freedom of speech provision of the First Amendment.

Media allowed in courtroom during immigrant slayings hearing

A Tift County judge has reversed himself and will allow the media in the courtroom during a controversial pre-trial hearing. The Superior Court judge in Tifton is presiding over the case of one of the four people accused of killing four Mexican immigrants. At first he wanted to keep media out of the pre-trial hearing of Jamie Underwood, who faces the death penalty. But the judge has ruled to allow the media in the courtroom.

Screening inmates for immigration status

The Cobb County Sheriff's Office has started screening county jail inmates to determine whether they are illegal immigrants. It becomes the first local law enforcement agency in Georgia to begin the practice and one of only a handful nationwide. Six deputies overseeing the project have been trained in immigration law, cross-cultural communication, civil rights, criminal law, document examination, alien processing and identification and enforcement. Officials say they are not trying to target any particular group and simply want to get criminals off the streets.