SB1070 Update: Why is this in the bill? Part 2

by David Safier

Yesterday I posted about a sentence in SB1070 which says, in essence, the law has nothing to do with establishing a National ID card. The sentence sounds like an "Oh, by the way," rather than something integral to the bill.

My conclusion: the people who wrote the legislation know it creates a situation where some U.S. citizens will have to carry ID papers of one kind of another, and to make sure the right doesn't get upset, the sentence was thrown in. The implication is, "The ID thing is only for brown people. White people don't need to worry about carrying around ID to prove they're here legally, because if you're white, everyone knows you're all right."

There's another sentence in the bill that also seems to be thrown in, which I think tells a whole lot about the intent of the bill. It says child protective service workers and emergency medical people don't have to worry about getting in trouble for transporting illegal aliens. The law doesn't apply to them.

The sentence is in the section about transporting illegal aliens (13-2929). It says, basically, if you transport people you know are illegal aliens and you're stopped, not only will they be arrested, but your car can be impounded, and you're subject to a fine of at least $1,000. The fine goes up to $1,000 per person if more than 10 people are involved.

The question is, does this apply to drivers taking people they know are here illegally to church on Sunday or driving a neighbor — or a spouse, child or other relative — to the store?

Maybe so, maybe no.

The section has some murky language implying the person driving the car is only in trouble if he/she "is in violation of a criminal offense." Does that mean you have to be something like a human trafficker or drug runner to have your car impounded and a fine imposed? Does your purpose for transporting the person have to be concealment?

For me, the question is answered in the sentence saying the section doesn't apply to child protective service workers and emergency medical people — ambulance drivers, etc.

When a child protective service worker is driving a child from one place to another, he/she isn't transporting the child to hide him/her from the police. And an ambulance driver isn't taking a sick or injured illegal immigrant to the hospital for the purpose of hiding that person. The sentence is redundant and unnecessary — unless the section applies to people transporting illegal aliens simply to take them somewhere, like church or the store.

Take out the exclusionary sentence, and it could be argued a trip to church with illegal aliens in the car won't get the driver in trouble. Add that sentence, and the clear implication is, transporting an illegal alien for anything other than official business can put your car and your bank account in jeopardy.

You can read Section 13-2929 after the jump.

13-2929. Unlawful transporting, moving, concealing, harboring
44 or shielding of unlawful aliens; vehicle
45 impoundment; exception; classification

A. IT IS UNLAWFUL FOR A PERSON WHO IS IN VIOLATION OF A CRIMINAL
2 OFFENSE TO:
3 1. TRANSPORT OR MOVE OR ATTEMPT TO TRANSPORT OR MOVE AN ALIEN IN
4 THIS STATE, IN FURTHERANCE OF THE ILLEGAL PRESENCE OF THE ALIEN IN THE
5 UNITED STATES, IN A MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION IF THE PERSON KNOWS OR
6 RECKLESSLY DISREGARDS THE FACT THAT THE ALIEN HAS COME TO, HAS ENTERED OR
7 REMAINS IN THE UNITED STATES IN VIOLATION OF LAW.
8 2. CONCEAL, HARBOR OR SHIELD OR ATTEMPT TO CONCEAL, HARBOR OR
9 SHIELD AN ALIEN FROM DETECTION IN ANY PLACE IN THIS STATE, INCLUDING ANY
10 BUILDING OR ANY MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION, IF THE PERSON KNOWS OR RECKLESSLY
11 DISREGARDS THE FACT THAT THE ALIEN HAS COME TO, HAS ENTERED OR REMAINS IN
12 THE UNITED STATES IN VIOLATION OF LAW.
13 3. ENCOURAGE OR INDUCE AN ALIEN TO COME TO OR RESIDE IN THIS STATE
14 IF THE PERSON KNOWS OR RECKLESSLY DISREGARDS THE FACT THAT SUCH COMING TO,
15 ENTERING OR RESIDING IN THIS STATE IS OR WILL BE IN VIOLATION OF LAW.
16 B. A MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION THAT IS USED IN THE COMMISSION OF A
17 VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION IS SUBJECT TO MANDATORY VEHICLE IMMOBILIZATION
18 OR IMPOUNDMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 28-3511.
19 C. A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL OR AGENCY OF THIS STATE OR A COUNTY,
20 CITY, TOWN OR OTHER POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OF THIS STATE MAY NOT CONSIDER
21 RACE, COLOR OR NATIONAL ORIGIN IN THE ENFORCEMENT OF THIS SECTION EXCEPT
22 TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY THE UNITED STATES OR ARIZONA CONSTITUTION.
23 D. IN THE ENFORCEMENT OF THIS SECTION, AN ALIEN'S IMMIGRATION
24 STATUS MAY BE DETERMINED BY:
25 1. A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER WHO IS AUTHORIZED BY THE FEDERAL
26 GOVERNMENT TO VERIFY OR ASCERTAIN AN ALIEN'S IMMIGRATION STATUS.
27 2. THE UNITED STATES IMMIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT OR THE
28 UNITED STATES CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION PURSUANT TO 8 UNITED STATES
29 CODE SECTION 1373(c).
30 C. E. THIS SECTION DOES NOT APPLY TO A CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES
31 WORKER ACTING IN THE WORKER'S OFFICIAL CAPACITY OR A PERSON WHO IS ACTING
32 IN THE CAPACITY OF A FIRST RESPONDER, AN AMBULANCE ATTENDANT OR AN
33 EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIAN AND WHO IS TRANSPORTING OR MOVING AN ALIEN IN
34 THIS STATE PURSUANT TO TITLE 36, CHAPTER 21.1.
35 D. F. A PERSON WHO VIOLATES THIS SECTION IS GUILTY OF A CLASS 1
36 MISDEMEANOR AND IS SUBJECT TO A FINE OF AT LEAST ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS,
37 EXCEPT THAT A VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION THAT INVOLVES TEN OR MORE ILLEGAL
38 ALIENS IS A CLASS 6 FELONY AND THE PERSON IS SUBJECT TO A FINE OF AT LEAST
39 ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR EACH ALIEN WHO IS INVOLVED.