U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Affirms Decision Invalidating Farmers Branch Illegal "Immigration Ordinance"

DALLAS, March 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Bickel & Brewer Storefront announced today that the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has affirmed a lower court ruling striking down an illegal "immigration ordinance" adopted in Farmers Branch, Texas. The ruling maintains a prior injunction that was granted against Ordinance 2952 – the latest in a series of controversial immigration ordinances pursued by the city.

In an opinion filed on March 21, 2012, the court wrote, "We conclude that the ordinance's sole purpose is not to regulate housing but to exclude undocumented aliens, specifically Latinos, from the City of Farmers Branch and that it is an impermissible regulation of immigration."

Ordinance 2952 requires renters in Farmers Branch to register their presence with the city and obtain an occupancy license. This is the city's third attempt at such an ordinance – in what has become one of the most high-profile and controversial efforts to regulate immigration in the United States.  

"This decision sends an important message not only to the City of Farmers Branch, but to any other municipality that would consider adopting such a pernicious ordinance," said William A. Brewer III, partner at Bickel & Brewer Storefront and counsel for the plaintiffs, the Villas at Parkside, Lakeview at Parkside, Chateau de Ville and Farmers Branch resident Mary Smith. "This is a defining moment for those who appreciate that immigration is the province of the federal government."

As the community service affiliate of the national law firm Bickel & Brewer, the Bickel & Brewer Storefront has successfully challenged multiple versions of the immigration ordinance in state and federal court since 2006.

In March 2010, U.S. District Judge Jane Boyle ruled that Ordinance 2952 was unconstitutional and issued a permanent injunction barring the enforcement of the ordinance. The City of Farmers Branch appealed that decision, and oral argument was held before the Fifth Circuit on October 4, 2011, that involved the Storefront and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), which represents other plaintiffs in this action.

Ordinance 2952 follows its predecessor, Ordinance 2903, which was previously ruled unconstitutional by U.S. District Court Judge Sam Lindsay. The courts have ultimately agreed with the Storefront's central argument that the ordinances are preempted by federal law and unconstitutional because they regulate immigration, which can only be performed by the federal government.

Yesterday's legal decision offered revealing insight into the motives of the Farmers Branch City Council.

The court wrote, "The history of Ordinance 2952 began several years prior to its enactment when the City Council of Farmers Branch began considering a need to address perceived harms posed by illegal aliens, particularly Latinos, residing in the City."

The court continued, "Around the time of that ordinance's adoption, the City also created a task force to assess redevelopment opportunities in the City, which issued several reports identifying the City's 'lower income, minority population' and its increasing and ethnic population as concerns and obstacles for redevelopment. We conclude...that the Ordinance is designed to burden aliens, both documented and undocumented, in Farmers Branch."

Brewer said, "The opinion of the court confirms we what we have believed all along – that this ordinance was a blatant attempt to discriminate against Hispanics."

The federal actions are among several lawsuits filed by the Storefront against the City of Farmers Branch.  The Storefront has filed three state court actions alleging that the city violated the Texas Open Meetings Act (TOMA) in conjunction with Ordinance 2952, Ordinance 2903 and their predecessor, Ordinance 2892. The TOMA case is scheduled for trial on August 6, 2012. Working closely with key community stakeholders, the Storefront has also helped engineer a grassroots coalition that opposes the ordinances on account of them being unconstitutional, costly and unenforceable.

Joining Brewer in representing the plaintiffs were Bickel & Brewer partners James S. Renard and C. Dunham Biles, and associate Jack Ternan.

About Bickel & Brewer Storefront:
The Bickel & Brewer Storefront is the community-service affiliate of the national litigation firm of Bickel & Brewer, with offices in Dallas and New York. Founded in 1995, the Bickel & Brewer Storefront tackles local and national issues, providing legal assistance to a wide range of individuals, businesses and community entities in need. Visit Bickel & Brewer and the Storefront at www.bickelbrewer.com.

SOURCE Bickel & Brewer Storefront