The Rev. Rick Roberts, pastor of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Donelson, and the Rev. Matt Steinhauer, interim pastor of St. Andrews Lutheran Church in Franklin, discussed the bill during a spring session for Tennessee lawmakers to debate the bill to deny education to some immigrant children. The bill was ultimately unable to pass. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)

The federal lawsuit seeks to override a new Tennessee law that makes “ports” immigrants felony without legal status.

The law, set to take effect on July 1, is unconstitutional, and is vague enough to rob a church, a church that acts as a “safe zone” for school children in a time of weather emergency, tenants, who illegally live in the United States and families living in mixed immigration positions.

The lawsuit, filed Friday in the Central District of Tennessee, seeks an immediate injunction to prevent the law from coming into effect while the law is in court. They also seek future class action status.

The lawsuit was brought on behalf of the Southeast Conference of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Its Tennessee-based church offers shelter, sanctuary, English instruction and other services to immigrants regardless of their status.

Legislation targeting non-immigrant nonprofit organizations

Other plaintiffs include landlords whose tenants took their roommates without legal status, and fathers with family members who have legal immigration status but are not at home.

“The law forces religious organizations to choose whether to pursue their values ​​or line up. It forces them to land behind bars for fear of living under the same roof as family members, spouses, siblings, and even loved ones who have no legal status.”

“This is not just the unintended consequences of bad policies. It uses laws to impart cruelty and control,” Miller’s statement said.

The law introduced by Senator Brent Taylor of Memphis and Rep. Chris Todd of Madison County creates new felony charges on individuals who “intentionally hide, harbor or embrace or shield” anyone known to illegally reside in the United States for commercial advantage or private financial interests. We define attacks as “human smuggling.”

The felony will be punished by a prison between one to six years and a fine of up to $3,000.

At the time the bill was introduced, Taylor said it was designed to hold non-governmental agencies or NGOs for its role in providing services that maintain non-legal immigrants in Tennessee communities.

Taylor included the church and noted that “even heaven has immigration policies.”

“There are very specific ways you can come to heaven so that you become a resident of heaven,” Taylor said in a February interview with Lookout after the bill was introduced. “They have a very strict immigration policy, so I don’t think it’s unreasonable for Americans to have an immigration policy that people follow.”

The law elicited a boost from clergy and immigrant advocates who were hurt through the legislative process.

As written, the law defines the term “providing shelter,” but not a shelter.

Tennessee bill criminalizes immigrants without legal status

These activities include parents who provide housing for undocumented children to help pay for the bill, charities that accept contributions to providing shelter to immigrants without legal status, or churches that rely on donations to give language guidance as English.

Todd, a co-star in the measure, said he would be surprised Monday if the law ultimately determined to be unconstitutional.

“I don’t know how unconstitutional it is to punish a crime,” Todd said. “I literally mean smuggling people, a lot of them are smuggling into human trafficking, which gives law enforcement and our DAS another tool to ensure that innocent people don’t fall into a trafficking situation, more than anything.”

Todd also objected that the law could be applied to churches, clergy, or individuals living with families without legal status, providing shelter.

“I don’t know many charities that make money from hiding people and hugging people,” he said. “So I don’t think that’s what it is. ”

The lawsuit also argues that Tennessee law is a violation of the First Amendment Rights of Lutheran Congressional Churches, pastors, staff and congregations that provide immigrants with shelter and other services, regardless of their status as an “expression of faith.”

The Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELCA) in 2015 adopted a commitment to “attach today and future immigrant families,” the lawsuit said. The ELCA declared that “walking with immigrants and refugees is a matter of faith” and “a key expression of baptism’s identity.”

The lawsuit has problems with the definition of illegal immigration law, so that law enforcement, law enforcement, alone, does not determine the individual’s immigration status itself, based on immigration and customs enforcement decisions. It also claims that the state is illegally robbing the sole accused federal government of immigration enforcement.

The lawyers filing the suit are at the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Conservation at the American Immigration Council, the Tennessee Union of Immigration & Refugee Rights, and Georgetown University Law Center.

The law was one of the slates introduced by Tennessee Republican leaders who supported President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration at the Tennessee General Assembly’s latest legislative meeting.

Republican lawmakers also approved Gov. Bill Lee’s proposal, coordinated with the Trump administration on immigration enforcement, and established a centralized immigration enforcement unit to encourage local authorities to partner with the federal government in immigration enforcement. The bill that would have allowed public school districts to refuse hospitalization for children who could not provide evidence of legal immigration status was not passed after widespread voice protests at the Capitol.

Sam Stockard contributed to this report.

Southeast Conference of Lutheran Church