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 The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
upheld a district court judge's finding that Maricopa County Sheriff
Joe Arpaio did not have grounds to sue.
Arpaio claimed his office had been injured by Obama's November 2014
orders that were designed to ease the threat of deportation for
about 4.7 million undocumented immigrants.
"We are pleased that the D.C. Circuit did not allow Sheriff Arpaio's
lawsuit to stand in the way of commonsense measures to advance
public safety and bring greater accountability to our immigration
system," Eric Schultz, a White House spokesman, said.
Arpaio's lawyer, Larry Klayman, said he would seek Supreme Court
review of the ruling. He described the decision as "intellectually
dishonest.
Klayman had argued that Arpaio would be harmed by the immigration
action because there would be more crime as a result.
But the court found Arpaio did not have legal standing. To prove
standing, plaintiffs must show they have been directly harmed by the
challenged action.
Judge Nina Pillard, writing on behalf of a three-judge panel, said
Arpaio's predictions of higher crime rates and an increase in the
jail population "rest on claims of supposition and contradict
acknowledged realities."
The Obama administration provisions would give temporary legal
status and work permits to eligible immigrants.
Arpaio, a longtime Republican firebrand on immigration, has had
several actions stymied by the courts this year.
In April, he admitted to civil contempt charges in a Phoenix court
after failing to comply with several court orders banning his police
force from racially profiling immigrants.
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In June, the Supreme Court upheld a 2014 appeals court ruling that
struck down an Arizona law that denied bail to illegal immigrants
charged with certain felonies.
Obama's executive actions are currently on ice, after a Texas judge
ruled against his administration in February.
That more substantive challenge brought by 26 states, led by
Republican bastion Texas, will be heard by the 5th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals in July and could ultimately be decided by the
Supreme Court.
Republicans have brought a swath of lawsuits against administration
officials on immigration and Obama's signature healthcare law over
the past year, aiming to curb what they view as executive overreach.
(Additional reporting by Lindsay Dunsmuir)
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