Hazleton lawyers get their shot this week
Last week, opponents of Hazleton’s illegal-immigration ordinance told their side of the story.
The city will have its chance to do the same as week two of the trial begins today at 9 a.m. in the William J. Nealon Federal Building.
The attorneys representing the plaintiffs suing to have the Hazleton ordinance declared void presented most of their case last week. They anticipate finishing their list of witnesses early this week.
The city expects to call its first expert witness this morning to testify to the negative impact of illegal immigration. City attorneys said they will call more experts through the week to support city officials’ reasons for passing the ordinance, which sets penalties for employers and landlords who do business with illegal immigrants.
“The first week, you really heard the plaintiffs make their best case for how they believe the ordinance caused harm,” city attorney Kris Kobach said. “This week, you’ll really hear the defense making its case.”Last week, the plaintiffs’ attorneys called all the witnesses.
They began with testimony from several Hispanic residents of Hazleton, who shared, often through a translator, how the ordinance affected their lives.
So when Mayor Lou Barletta took the stand Wednesday, the trial was three days old, the national media rush of the first day had almost disappeared and the mayor was under cross-examination, limiting his opportunity to stump for his side of the debate.
Since the plaintiffs have already called most of the defendant’s witnesses — including Mr. Barletta and several other officials — the city’s attorneys expect to put only seven people on the stand.
Five will be experts, starting with Harvard professor George Borjas, who will testify to how illegal immigration lowers wages for authorized workers. The rest of the experts will testify to the impact of illegal immigration on taxpayers, municipal services or crime.
While those individuals will speak more generally about the effects of illegal immigration, two Hazleton police officers will testify specifically to their experiences with crime and gang activity. Detective Christopher Orozco, who heads Hazleton’s gang investigations, should back one of the city’s key arguments: Illegal immigration has fueled the rise of several gangs and violence, making the ordinance necessary.
The mayor was followed to the witness stand last week by more city officials, whom the plaintiffs’ attorneys often portrayed as unprepared to enforce the ordinance. As a result, violations of civil and constitutional rights are likely to occur, they argued, particularly to Hispanics.
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