BLOCKED
On Wednesday Arizona’s controversial law had major provisions blocked in Judge Susan Bolton’s preliminary ruling. Under Bolton’s decision local authorities will not be required to asses the immigration status of anyone the stop or arrest. The ruling also indicates that the failure of carrying immigration papers will not be a state crime.
While the major and most controversial sections will not be enforced anytime soon, the ruling was not a complete loss for Governor Jan Brewer. Bolton’s decision will allow the state to impose stricter punishments on human smugglers and employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.
In an interview with FOX News Judge Andrew Napolitano explained the significance of the ruling. According to Napolitano the Judge’s ruling is a preliminary determination and the law will still go to trial and has a chance to have those provisions reinstated or more provisions may be blocked.
Following Judge Bolton’s decision the Arizona governor is set to file an appeal of the ruling. “I have consulted with my legal counsel about our next steps,” she said. “We will take a close look at every single element Judge Bolton removed from the law, and we will soon file an expedited appeal at the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.”
On Monday, Governor Jan Brewer’s lawyers argued to have the case dropped because it will not harm the Federal government’s power and the suit based on hypothetical situations. According to the New York Daily News, The White House disputed that Federal law trumps state law and that SB1070 has hurt the nation’s relationship with Mexico.
The Federal Government’s case is one of seven against the controversial law. One of the law’s opponents, Phoenix Police Officer David Salgado, has requested to have his lawsuit consolidated with the Justice Department’s. Salgado argues that lawsuits are almost identical. The Justice department refuted this claim and says that they are “challenging more sections of the law than Salgado and that its contention that the law is trumped by federal law differs from the officer’s arguments.”
Jan Brewer, the next Chuck Norris?
All it took was a Dos Equis beer commercial and Tea Party Activist Robert Mayer to create the Norris-esque website devoted to the Arizona Governer. At www.JanBrewerFacts.com members can create and vote on “Jan Brewer Facts” ranging from the patriotic “Jan Brewer was born on July 4, 1776” to the absurd “Jan Brewer can pop a wheelie on a unicycle.”
“It’s kind of a hive mentality, people really getting into it, I don’t really have to do anything to it anymore,” Mayer told Arizona’s ABC 15 News. “I’ve had some people write some disparaging remarks from both sides of the aisle and I just take them down because there’s no place for that.”
Listed below are some additional excerpts taken from “Jan Brewer Facts”
“It isn’t a coincidence that Jan Brewer and Jack Bauer have the same initials.”
“Jan Brewer is what Willis was talkin’ about.”
“Jan Brewer isn’t afraid of the dark. The dark is afraid of Jan Brewer.”
“You don’t decide whether or not to boycott Arizona. Jan Brewer decides whether or not to let you in.”
Tools of the Trade
Drug cartels are adopting several military style technologies to stay ahead of the game. According to the Washington Post cartels have adopted the use of Cold War-era grenades. The explosives were sent by the US to help fight the revolutionaries in Central America years ago. Now they are being sold to Cartels and used against authorities. In the last year alone Mexico has seen 72 grenade attacks on targets ranging from brothels to convoys.
The attacks are getting closer to the US, so close in fact, that citizens in Laredo, TX called 911 to report the blasts, fearing they were over the US border.
Adding to their list of artillery are the sophisticated C4 car bombs. Two weeks ago police and paramedics responded to a downed officer in a Ciudad Juarez street. Using a cellular device, cartels detonated the lethal car bomb next to the responders. Four men were killed in the attack, including one paramedic and two police officers.
The attack is the first instance a car bomb was used against Mexican police, and according to the El Paso Times, it may not be the last. Shortly after the explosion an unsigned message was left for the FBI and DEA. The anonymous message reads “To FBI and DEA, go ahead to investigate who are backing up Sinaloa’s Cartel. If within 15 days there are no corrupt (Mexican) federal agents arrested, we are going to set up bombing cars with 100 kilos of C-4 each.” The Juarez cartel left their own graffiti message shortly after Thursday’s attack claiming there will be more car bombs targeted for any officials associated with the Sinola cartel leader Joaquín “Chapo” Guzmán.
The Senate gets stingy
Thursday night the Senate voted no on emergency border funding proposed and passed by congress. 
The House passed the plan three weeks ago in response to Obama’s immigration speech three weeks ago calling for 1,200 troops to the border. Accommodating the President’s request, Congress tacked on $701 million for border security to a $59 billion war-funding request.
The spending was intended to increase personnel and addsurveillance technology to the border. According to Arizona’s Pro8 News, the Senate’s decision will have no affect the National Guard deployment to the border on Aug 1.
Jailhouse shock
It’s a plot straight out of Hollywood. For months, Mexican prison guards have been releasing inmates for the night and provided them with guns and vehicles to carry out numerous murders of rival gangs.
Last week, two of the inmates raided a private party, blocked the building’s exits, and proceeded to kill 17 partygoers. The attack was swift and left officials puzzled as to the motive and the assailants’ identities. Since the discovery of the prison’s “release program” two earlier shootings have been linked to the inmates.
Authorities have arrested two chiefs of security at the prison and the assistant director. Their arrests follow the apprehensions of 43 Mexican officials charged for working with drug cartels.
A guard was stabbed and killed by one of the inmates during a “prison demonstration” calling for the director’s reinstatement.
Body language
Several weeks ago a grisly discovery was made when someone found a mass grave by a Nuevo Laredo trash site. This week forensic workers have successfully recovered a total of 51 bodies from the site. While most are unidentified, Mexican officials suspect that most were involved in organized crime.
According to the Los Angeles Times, a number of the corpses were adorned with tattoos that may help identify any connections with specific drug cartels.
Approximately 25,000 people have been killed by cartels since President Felipe Calderon began an official war on drugs.