Judge Bars Prop. 187 Authors From Intervening in Court Battle

Authors of Proposition 187 have been barred by a federal judge from intervening in the court fight over the anti-illegal immigration initiative.

“We will appeal this decision,” Harold Ezell, a former immigration official who co-authored the 1994 ballot measure, said Friday. “This is not going to a stop us.”

Two weeks ago, Ezell and other members of the Alan C. Nelson Foundation of Americans for Responsible Immigration sought to intervene in the case, which is being heard in federal court in Los Angeles. But on Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Mariana Pfaelzer denied the request without comment.

State Sen. Richard Mountjoy (R-Arcadia), said at a news conference Friday he was outraged that the judge ruled without holding a hearing.

“We think this court is out of control,” Mountjoy said.

Attorneys for civil rights groups that filed the suit argued that the initiative’s sponsors had no legal grounds to intervene two years into the court battle.

Proposition 187, passed by 59% of California voters in November 1994, would deny public education and other services to illegal immigrants. Other provisions call for law enforcement officials to report people they suspect of being in the country illegally.

However, Pfaelzer issued a preliminary injunction in 1995 preventing most portions of the law from being enforced, saying immigration matters are outside the state’s authority.