L.A. May Be Barred From Fight Over Prop. 187 : Courts: State attorneys file papers saying city’s entry would open door to others. County files first charges under portion of measure still in force.

State attorneys representing Gov. Pete Wilson and Atty. Gen. Dan Lungren filed legal papers this week opposing the entry of the city of Los Angeles into the court battle against Proposition 187.

“To allow the city to intervene now would be to invite every city, every county, every special district and every school district to intervene, which would make an already complex set of consolidated (court) actions overwhelmingly cumbersome,” Deputy Atty. Gen. James F. Ahern said in a six-page legal brief.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office announced Thursday that it had filed its first two cases under the single portion of Proposition 187 that has not been temporarily blocked by a federal court restraining order--new state sanctions against the manufacture, sale or use of fraudulent citizenship papers.

Five Huntington Park-area men have been arraigned this week on charges of manufacturing fake identity cards and face sentences of five years in state prison or a $75,000 fine, prosecutors said.

The defendants--Jose Hernandez Sanchez, 24; Hugo Cezar Lopez, 18; Pablo Barrera, 20; Antonio Serrano, 21, and Gerardo Espinoza, 26--were held on bail ranging from $20,000 and $80,000 each.

Under Proposition 187, the five men face much stiffer fines than if they had been convicted in the past on forgery charges. But the potential prison sentence is about the same as they would have faced before the November state election, Deputy Dist. Atty. Patrick Sequeira said.

In the ongoing federal court challenge concerning the anti-illegal immigrant initiative, Los Angeles City Atty. James K. Hahn filed papers last month asking permission to intervene in the case. A hearing on the city’s motion is tentatively set for Dec. 12 before U.S. District Judge Mariana R. Pfaelzer, who recently extended a temporary restraining order against implementation of the ballot measure.

The Los Angeles City Council, which had initially asked Hahn to try to overturn the initiative, recently softened its stand, asking the city attorney to instead seek clarification of the measure’s potential impact on the city. The move came amid a voter backlash against government officials using tax money to challenge the initiative, which was approved by a 59%-41% margin Nov. 8.