By L.A. TARONE
Staff Writer

The judge who allowed anonymous plaintiffs in the case of Hazleton’s Illegal Immigration Relief Act would not allow them in another case.

In the IIRA case, Judge James M. Munley ruled 10 plaintiffs, identified only as “John Doe” and “Jane Doe,” had standing. He allowed them to file depositions rather than take the stand.

But he ordered plaintiffs in a civil suit against the Pleasant Valley School District in the Poconos, who are identified only as “Jane and John Doe” in court papers, to identify themselves.

The suit was filed over the alleged actions of history teacher Bruce H. Smith Jr. In a lesson, he was alleged to have shown gory historical photos and to have used sexually explicit language in class.

That's what Barack Obama called it.

"A victory for all Americans."

A small town in Pennsylvania votes overwhelmingly to elect a mayor on a platform of cracking down on the damage illegal aliens are inflicting on the community.

The heroic mayor, Louis J. Barletta, fulfills his promise to his constituents by enacting an ordinance last summer prohibiting renting to those in the U.S. illegally.

A group of "activists" challenge the law in court.

And U.S. District Judge James Munley, an appointee of Bill Clinton, overturns the popular measure with a stroke of the pen.

That is what Barack Obama characterizes as "a victory of all Americans."

The Issue: A federal judge strikes down Hazleton’s Illegal Immigration Relief Act as unconstitutional.

Our Opinion: Although the decision is correct, federal lawmakers need to find the political courage to deal with the problem of illegal immigration.

Judge James M. Munley was right in striking down Hazleton’s Illegal Immigration Relief Act, but Hazleton Mayor Louis J. Barletta is also right in accusing the federal government of not doing its job.

For years the federal government has been dragging its feet on illegal immigration to the frustration of many who have to deal with the consequences at the state and local levels.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: This news outlet bills itself, in part: Workers World fights for a socialist society — where the wealth is socially owned and production is planned to satisfy human need.]

By Betsey Piette
Philadelphia

A federal district judge ruled July 26 that the racist, anti-immigrant law passed earlier by the city of Hazelton, Pa., was unconstitutional and found in favor of 11 plaintiffs, including three undocumented immigrants, who had challenged the ordinance.

In the first trial decision of its kind, U.S. District Judge James Munley of Scranton, Pa., overturned the ordinance that sought to penalize businesses that hire and landlords who rent to undocumented immigrant workers.

LOCAL COMMUNITIES are taking a do-it-yourself approach, adopting laws to fill the hole Congress left when it failed to pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill. The frustration is understandable. But the result is a tangle of contradictions.

"Illegal aliens in our City create an economic burden that threatens our quality of life," Mayor Louis Barletta of Hazleton, Pa., declares on the Small Town Defenders website. "With a growing problem and a limited budget, I could not sit back any longer and allow this to happen. I needed to act! That's why I drafted the Illegal Immigration Relief Act, a measure designed to say enough is enough."

By Dan Sernoffsky
Lebanon Daily News

Not that is was particularly unexpected, given the circumstances, but a U.S. District Court Judge, one James Munley, overturned an ordinance enacted by Hazelton that had been designed to protect itself from the problems inherent with illegal immigration.

Under the ordinance, the “Illegal Immigration Relief Act,” Hazelton essentially sought to protect itself by attempting to deter property owners from renting to illegal aliens and employers from hiring them. The decision to enact the ordinance stemmed from a shooting in which two illegal immigrants killed a U.S. citizen.

Written by ACLU-PA

HAZLETON, PA – In the first trial decision of its kind, a federal court has declared unconstitutional a local ordinance that sought to punish landlords and employers for doing business with undocumented immigrants. The landmark decision in the closely-watched challenge to Hazleton’s anti-immigrant ordinance held that the ordinance cannot be enforced.

"We are grateful the court recognized that municipal laws like those in Hazleton are unconstitutional. The trial record showed that these ordinances are based on propaganda and deception," said Vic Walczak, Legal Director of the ACLU of Pennsylvania and a lead attorney in the case. "Hazleton-type laws are designed to make life miserable for millions of immigrants. They promote distrust of all foreigners, including those here legally, and fuel xenophobia and discrimination, especially against Latinos."

By Tom Fitton
Judicial Watch

Illegal immigrants and their special interest groups got a helping hand on Thursday from U.S. District Court Judge James Munley, a Clinton appointee, who ruled unconstitutional two Hazleton, Pennsylvania, laws designed to crack down on illegal immigration. The judge issued a permanent injunction preventing the City of Hazleton from enforcing the Illegal Immigration Relief Act and the Landlord Tenant Ordinance, which were intended to prevent businesses from hiring illegals and landlords from renting to them.

Judicial Watch believes Judge Munley is wrong on this issue. In March, Judicial Watch filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the City of Hazleton. Here, in a nutshell, was our argument:

By Ruben Navarrette Jr.
Special to CNN
SAN DIEGO, California -- We already knew we had broken borders. And when Congress chickened out on immigration reform and showed that it's not equipped to tackle anything more challenging than pork or pay raises, we knew we had a broken branch. Now it's clear that we have a broken dialogue.

We like to think of ourselves, and our communities, as innocent victims of sinister forces that are beyond our control. Concerned that there are too many illegal immigrants in the United States, that our culture is getting too spicy, and that the country is becoming too Hispanic, we blame Mexico or mega-corporations or what one commentator ominously labeled "socio-ethnic centric groups" such as the National Council of La Raza.

A telling irony shines through last week's ruling by a federal judge that found only Congress can set immigration law. The judge knew full well that half the plaintiffs in the case were in the US illegally. But he let them challenge a city ordinance on immigration anyway - and anonymously.

And so it's been in America for too long: Turn a blind eye to the massive lawbreaking of an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants.

Imagine if a scofflaw wanted by the FBI had sued a city for enacting a criminal law tougher than a federal law. Would that person also be given a day in court?

No way. The difference, of course, is that FBI agents are vigilant in catching suspects. But federal immigration agents? Well, they do their best whenever Congress or the White House gives them a clear green light and enough resources. After all, for politicians, those millions of illegal immigrants are potential voters for whichever party gets the credit in winning them amnesty someday.