Arizona Employer Sanctions Law Nets Zero Prosecutions

by Dave Bennion · 2008-12-31 08:00:00 UTC
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Greg Siskind has an update on the status of E-verify, the electronic employment verification system implemented by DHS.  According to the USCIS ombudsman:

The report finds that employers views of E-Verify largely reflect the size and sophistication of the employer. Mid-size and large employers seem satisfied with the speed and accuracy of the system. But smaller employers representing more than half of the work force complain that the system is not user-friendly.

Greg also notes that the famously punitive Arizona employer sanctions law (pdf) that came into force early in 2008 has resulted in exactly zero prosecutions.  From the Arizona Republic:

When the state's employer-sanctions law took effect nearly a year ago, it threatened to shut down businesses that hired illegal workers.

But not a single employer has been taken to court in Arizona, mainly because the landmark law is too difficult to enforce, authorities say.

In Maricopa County, where the law led to raids on a dozen businesses and the arrest of 159 workers and a manager, investigators have not been able to assemble enough evidence showing that employers actually knew the arrested workers were illegal, which the sanctions law requires.

. . .

Some defense lawyers are critical of charging illegal workers with felony identify theft, saying it is being used as a tactic to get them to testify against their former employers.

Undocumented immigrants charged with felonies are not eligible for bail, so they "stew" in jail, said defense attorney Robert McWhirter.

"They are trying to coerce them into testifying against their former employer," McWhirter said.

McWhirter said he believes authorities are reluctant to bring a complaint against an employer for political reasons.

"The bottom line is that the county attorney is not equipped to deal with these cases, so it's easier to pick on the little aliens. And at the end of the day, it's the employers who have the power to contribute to political campaigns," McWhirter said.

Everyone cited in the article has an explanation for the dearth of prosecutions thus far, but what is clear is that, on the terms the initiative was promoted to the people of Arizona-cracking down on employers-the law has failed.

Dave Bennion
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