Carpentersville trustees to discuss immigration law

Now that a federal judge has struck down a law regarding illegal immigrants in one Pennsylvania town, Carpentersville Village President Bill Sarto says he expects trustees to address a similar local proposal left lingering since the fall.

But some trustees say any attempt to discuss the proposed measure that would make it unlawful to rent to or hire illegal immigrants will face the same silence that greeted three previous tries.

This time, though, Sarto said he will take a different approach.

Instead of asking the board to discuss and vote on the Illegal Alien Immigration Relief Act, which a majority of the board refused to support three times, Sarto said he would seek discussion and direction only.

Sarto argues since the proposal did not become official village business, a vote should not have been considered.

Trustees can, however, direct Village Manager Craig Anderson to move ahead with drafting an ordinance, or drop the issue, Sarto said.

Another option, trustees say, is to leave the proposal in limbo where it has remained since October when Trustees Judy Sigwalt and Paul Humpfer introduced the measure.

At that time, four of the seven board members voted to hold off on discussing the proposal until litigation in towns such as Hazleton, Pa., and Valley Park, Mo., was resolved.

Sarto said that given the Hazleton ruling, now is an appropriate time to discuss the issue or let it die.

"My feeling is, if they refuse to discuss it then it is clear to me that this is not a viable issue here in Carpentersville," Sarto said. "I would hope four trustees vote to direct the village manager not to move forward."

However, what the village president expects and what trustees will likely do are incongruous.

Most trustees say they will not discuss the measure, which was tabled in October, because the Hazleton case is far from decided.

Although U.S. District Judge James Munley ruled that Hazleton's law is unconstitutional, proponents and attorneys have said they would appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court if necessary.

"I think there will be a motion to table it again and leave it tabled until research is completed," Carpentersville Trustee Kay Teeter said. "Trying to move forward without all of the information is ludicrous. We are still researching the Hazleton case."

In a 206-page opinion, Munley said the Hazleton measures conflicted with federal law and violated constitutional guarantees to every person "whether legal resident or not."

Despite the unfavorable decision and a potentially lengthy appeals process, supporters in Carpentersville say they remain undeterred.

"I think there are other towns and cities that have enacted some things -- or tried to," Trustee Keith Hinz said. "I would want to see the outcomes on those things also. If people think (the Hazleton decision) is the only thing driving this village, they are sadly mistaken. It is still time to take a wait and see attitude."

Trustees said they are continuing to move ahead in researching and gathering information for the Carpentersville measure.

"We are poring over the Hazleton decision and are still working with an attorney from FAIR (Federation of American Immigration Reform)," Sigwalt said. "We are not giving this up. We can't just sweep it under the carpet like they want to."