Florida 'Sanctuary Cities' case tossed out
TALLAHASSEE - After an appeals-court ruling last month, a federal district judge has dismissed a challenge to a 2019 state immigration law that banned so-called sanctuary cities in Florida.
U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom issued an order dismissing the case, which was filed in 2019 by several groups such as the Florida Immigrant Coalition and the Farmworker Association of Florida.
Bloom in September 2021 ruled that two major parts of the law violated constitutional equal-protection rights and issued a permanent injunction against them. One of those parts banned state and local agencies from having sanctuary policies that would prevent law-enforcement officials from cooperating with federal immigration-enforcement efforts. The other part required law-enforcement agencies to use "best efforts" to support enforcement of federal immigration laws.
The state appealed to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, where a three-judge panel last month overturned Bloom's ruling. The appeals court also ordered dismissal of the lawsuit because it said plaintiffs did not have legal standing to challenge the law.
The Republican-controlled Legislature passed the law in May 2019 along nearly straight party lines after heavy debate.