WASHINGTON, D.C. – Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced today that the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) granted cert in United States v. Hansen. In September, General Brnovich led a group of 22 attorneys general in an amicus brief, asking SCOTUS to uphold an important federal statute used to enforce immigration laws.
“We are a nation of laws, and that is the reason most people want to come here,” said Attorney General Mark Brnovich. “Failing to uphold our federal statutes created the border crisis in the first place and continues to make it worse every day.”
In 2017, a grand jury charged California resident Helaman Hansen with multiple crimes for scamming hundreds of noncitizens out of more than $1 million by deceptively promising them a path to citizenship that did not exist. He was charged under a federal statute for encouraging migrants to come to the U.S. illegally for purposes of commercial advantage or private financial gain. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals then struck down the statute on the grounds that the law's words “encourage” and “induce” are too broad.
General Brnovich argues that the Ninth Circuit’s decision jeopardizes the constitutionality of similarly-worded criminal laws in all 50 states and emphasizes that the flawed decision could invite state and federal courts to invalidate longstanding criminal laws.
Attorney General Brnovich Border Actions
Attorney General Mark Brnovich is a national leader when it comes to challenging disastrous and illegal policies that are fueling the border crisis. Since last year, he has filed numerous lawsuits to hold the Biden administration accountable, including:
- Arizona et al. v. Garland, et al. (Challenging DHS Fast-Track Asylum System)
- Arizona et al. v. CDC (Challenging revocation of Title 42)
- Arizona et al. v. Biden (Challenging DHS Final Guidance)
- Arizona v. San Francisco (Defending Public Charge Rule)
- Arizona v. Mayorkas, et al. (Challenging Biden administration’s illegal violation relating to cancellation of border wall construction and the Remain in Mexico program)
- Arizona, et al. v. USDHS, et al. (Challenging Interim Guidance)
Read about additional AGO actions here.