Judge Munley- Are You Paying Attention To These Cases

The Washington Times is reporting that a rancher who faced the possiblity of paying $32 million to illegal aliens crossing his property has, instead walked away instead with a verdict that rejected any notion he violated the trespassers' civil rights and affirmed that U.S. citizens can still detain.

What makes this case interesting is this part of the ruling. U.S. District Judge John M. Roll, for starters, dismissed the claims of 10 of the illegals because they did not testify at trial. He then tossed related conspiracy complaints against Mr. Barnett's wife, Barbara, and his brother Donald, saying illegal immigrants had no constitutionally protected right to travel in the United States.

Judge Roll said the Barnetts, who live in close proximity to the border, could reasonably assume that large groups of people they encountered hiding or trespassing on their property were doing so with the aid of smugglers.

He said entering the United States illegally was a federal felony, for which a citizen's arrest was authorized under Arizona law.

Ultimately, the jury of four men and four women decided that Mr. Barnett did not violate the civil rights of the remaining six plaintiffs and was not guilty of false imprisonment, battery and conspiracy as charged in the suit.

In the case against Hazleton Judge Munley ruled that the John and Jane Does did not have to show up to testify and that the illegal aliens were allowed to file deposition testimony rather than take the stand.

Read how Munley ruled differently when John and Jane Doe were used in a Pleasant Valley School District lawsuit.

In February, 2008 a federal judge sided with Valley Park, Missouri on its right to deny business licenses to those who employ illegal immigrants. An attorney for the city said the decision will have implications for other cities and towns around the nation faced with the same issue. It is worth noting that Kris Kobach, an attorney and law professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City who has appeared on The O'Reilly Factor and other Fox News programs helped with this case. Kris Kobach represented Hazleton during its trial before Munley.

In September, 2008 the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld an Arizona sanctions law that was authored based on the Hazleton ordinance.

A federal appeals court has upheld Arizona's employer sanctions law, which penalizes businesses that knowingly hire illegal immigrants and requires them to verify the employment status of their workers.

In October, 2008 the California Appellate Court ruled against San Francisco's Sanctuary Policy stating that the city must follow state law requiring police to report suspected aliens arrested on drug charges to the Federal authorities.