May 22, 2013
ATLANTA (AP) -- The state of Georgia is asking a full federal appeals court to reconsider a decision on the state's law targeting illegal immigration.
A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last month left in place a lower court injunction that blocks part of Georgia's law that makes it illegal for someone to knowingly harbor or transport an illegal immigrant during the commission of a crime.
The panel did rule last month that a part of the law that authorizes law enforcement to verify the immigration status of criminal suspects who fail to produce proper identification should be allowed to go into effect.
The state on Monday asked for an en banc hearing. The state says the panel's decision goes against certain 11th Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court decisions.
