Judge receives threats after immigration ruling

Jul 30, 2010, 21:31 GMT

Phoenix, Arizona - The judge who slapped an injunction on Arizona's controversial immigration law has been threatened via phone calls and emails, while a bullet has been found in the office of a key lawmaker who opposed the measure, law enforcement officials said Friday.

US Marshal David Gonzales told a press conference that Judge Susan Bolton had received thousands of messages - many of which opposed her ruling and some of which 'crossed the line' by threatening her or her family.

'We understand that some people are just expressing their First Amendment rights, even as perverted and strange as some of these were,' Gonzales said.

Authorities were also investigating a smashed window and bullet that were found in the office of Arizona Congressman Raul Grijalva, a Democrat who was an outspoken opponent of the law.

'A shattered window and bullet inside the office were found earlier today. Police are investigating the incident and have not released details about a potential motive,' Grijalva's office said in a statement. 'Representative Grijalva intends to open the office again as soon as possible.'

Arizona on Thursday appealed Bolton's decision to slap an injunction on the key provisions of the law, which would have required immigrants to carry their documents with them at all time. The law would also have required police to check the immigration status of anyone they arrested whom they suspected of being in the country illegally.

Lawyers for the state asked for an expedited ruling from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. But the Justice Department in a response said the court should stick to its regular schedule, which would allow briefings to the court to be completed by October with a decision coming after that at the court's convenience.

Despite the injunction, which was issued Wednesday, other parts of the law came into effect Thursday, sparking widespread protests in Phoenix that led to the arrest of 50 people.

Most of the protests were directed at Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who strongly supported the law. Arpaio pledged to crackdown on undocumented immigrants despite the injunction, and ordered dozens of officers onto the streets to target traffic offenders and then ascertain their immigration status.

Such sweeps have netted over 1,000 people since Arpaio began them in 2008. On Thursday he used over 200 deputies and trained volunteers in the crackdown, which led to the arrest of 13 suspects.