Susan Bolton has left an indelible mark on the laws drafted by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer.Dozens marched and were arrested this morning in Phoenix to protest the SB1070 Arizona immigration laws in front of U.S. District Court last Thursday, July 22. Today, U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton is holding multiple hearings on whether the new Arizona immigration law will take a today.Despite a judge's ruling that delayed enforcement of most the law and the arrests of dozens after peacefully confronting officers in riot gear, opponents of Arizona's immigration crackdown went ahead with protests Thursday.Gov. Jan Brewer called U.S. District Judge Susan Boltons Wednesday's decision halting the law "a bump in the road," and her spokesman said they'd appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco later Thursday.Outside the state Capitol, hundreds of protesters began marching at dawn, gathering in front of the federal courthouse where Bolton issued her ruling on Wednesday. At least eight protesters approached a police line and allowed themselves to be arrested. The police also arrested a group of about two dozen protesters then sat down in the middle of the street or refused to leave.Earlier that day, three people were detained at the courthouse after apparently entering a closed-off area. Former state Sen. Alfredo Gutierrez, who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2002, was among them.Marchers chanted "Sheriff Joe, we are here, we will not live in fear," and among the crowd was a drummer wearing a paper-mch Sheriff Joe head and dressed in prison garb.Arizona BordersArizona is the nation's epicenter of illegal immigration, with more than 400,000 undocumented residents. The state's border with Mexico is awash with smugglers and drugs that funnel narcotics and immigrants throughout the U.S. The ruling was anxiously awaited in the U.S. and beyond. About 100 protesters in Mexico City who had gathered at the U.S. Embassy broke into applause when they learned of the ruling via a laptop computer. In New York City, about 300 immigrant advocates gathered Thursday near the federal courthouse in lower Manhattan. New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams, a first-generation Caribbean-American, told the crowd: "We won a slight battle in Arizona, we've got to continue with the war."In Los Angeles, about 200 protesters invaded a busy intersection west of downtown Los Angeles. Police shut down the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and Highland Avenue and diverted traffic away after demonstrators moved into the street and sat down at about 10 a.m. Thursday.U.S. District Judge Susan BoltonBolton indicated the government has a good chance at succeeding in its argument that federal immigration law trumps state law. But the key sponsor of Arizona's law, Republican Rep. Russell Pearce, said the judge was wrong and predicted the state would ultimately win the case.In her temporary injunction, Bolton delayed the most contentious provisions of the law, including a section that required officers to check a persons immigration status while enforcing other laws. She also barred enforcement of parts requiring immigrants to carry their papers and banned illegal immigrants from soliciting employment in public places. The judge also blocked officers from making warrantless arrests of suspected illegal immigrants. "Requiring Arizona law enforcement officials and agencies to determine the immigration status of every person who is arrested burdens lawfully present aliens because their liberty will be restricted while their status is checked," said Bolton, a Clinton administration appointee who was assigned the seven lawsuits filed against Arizona over the law. Other provisions that were less contentious were allowed to take effect Thursday, including a section that bars cities in Arizona from disregarding federal immigration laws.
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