Judge blocks part of Alabama immigration law affecting mobile home permits (AP/al.com)

[eppur_se_muova]

MONTGOMERY, Alabama — A federal judge in Montgomery has stopped state officials from using Alabama’s tough new immigration law to prevent immigrants from renewing required permits on manufactured homes.

U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson issued a temporary restraining order Wednesday evening that allows Alabama residents to renew registration of manufactured homes without requiring that they prove that they are in the country legally. The deadline for renewing the registration without being fined is Nov. 30.

Attorneys for a coalition of civil rights groups said that by refusing to renew the permits, state officials could force people to abandon their homes.

Thompson granted the order because he said plaintiffs had “a substantial” likelihood of proving their case.

Attorneys for a coalition of civil rights groups said the state refusing to renew the manufactured home permits could force some people to abandon their homes and is an example of their contention that the purpose of the new law, described by supporters and critics as the toughest in the country, was to “drive immigrants” from Alabama.
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more: http://blog.al.com/wire/2011/11/judge_blocks_part_of_alabama_i.html