Dean Johnson Writes on SB 1070 for SCOTUSblog

Dean Kevin R. Johnson contributed an essay to an online symposium hosted by SCOTUSblog, the influential blog focused on the U.S. Supreme Court, on Arizona v. United States, the U.S. Department of Justice suit challenging Arizona's controversial immigration law, S.B. 1070. 

In the article, "S.B. 1070: Federal preemption and why the Court won't address civil rights issues," Dean Johnson discusses various precedents and how they may affect the Court's decision in Arizona.  Civil rights issues related to the Arizona law are likely to be avoided by the Court, he writes.

"For better or worse, the Supreme Court likely will not directly address the racial profiling or any of the civil rights issues raised by Arizona's S.B. 1070 (and immigration enforcement generally)," Dean Johnson suggests.  "This is in part because the Obama administration framed the primary constitutional challenge in United States v. Arizona on federal preemption grounds; the complaint of the United States tellingly fails to include an equal protection claim based on the possible racial profiling impacts of S.B. 1070.  The Supremacy Clause and federal preemption arguments are cleaner arguments, avoiding the claim that the administration is playing the proverbial ‘race card.'"

Other contributors to the symposium include professors for NYU, Vanderbilt, Pennsylvania, Arizona State, and other schools.  In addition, attorneys from the Cato Institute and the Washington Legal Foundation also participated.

Kevin R. Johnson is Dean and Mabie-Apallas Professor of Public Interest Law and Chicana/o studies at UC Davis School of Law. He is an internationally recognized scholar in the fields of immigration law and policy, refugee law, and civil rights.

"S.B. 1070: Federal preemption and why the Court won't address civil rights issues"