Oklahoma attorney general appeals immigration law injunction

Hundreds of people, most of them Latino, attend a Hispanic Cultural Day rally outside the Oklahoma State Capitol on May 15 to protest the newly enacted House Bill 4156, which creates the criminal offense of impermissible occupation. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice)

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond on Wednesday appealed a court order putting the state’s controversial immigration law on hold.

A federal judge in June put the measure on hold pending the outcome of a legal challenge.

“House Bill 4156 is a powerful tool to counter criminal activity largely being fueled by illegal immigrants coming to our state,” said Drummond, who encouraged legislative leadership to pass the law.

Drummond filed his appeal with the U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver.

House Bill 4156 creates a new crime called “impermissible occupation” for willfully entering the state without legal authorization to be in the United States.

The first offense is a misdemeanor punishable by one year in county jail and a fine of up to $500 or both.

The person would be required to leave the state within 72 hours.

A second offense is a felony with up to two years in prison, a fine of $1,000 or both.

Opponents, who have sued to block the law, allege the state is trying to regulate immigration, which is under the purview of the federal government.

“It is preempted by federal law and thus violates the Supremacy Law of the United States Constitution,” the federal government alleged in the suit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District in Oklahoma City.

A second lawsuit, filed by an individual and advocacy organization, was filed two days later.

The suits were consolidated.

In granting the injunction, the judge wrote that the state law is likely preempted by federal law.

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