Current Legal Events: The Fifth Circuit and the Immigration Debate
Last week, the 5th Circuit agreed to rehear Villas at Parkside Partners v. Farmers Branch, a civil rights lawsuit challenging a Texas ordinance that required all adults living in rental housing within the city of Farmer’s Branch to obtain a $5 occupancy license conditioned upon the occupant’s citizenship or lawful immigration status. The ordinance requires the city’s building inspector to verify the citizenship or immigration status of people applying for the license. No court has yet allowed enforcement of any portion of the ordinance.
The ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project, one of the groups who filed the suit on behalf of residents and landlords challenging the ordinance, maintains a page about the lawsuit.
The Department of Justice filed an amicus (.pdf) in the original suit, asserting that the ordinance impermissibly intruded on the federal government’s authority over citizenship and immigration.