Court blocks part of Ala. immigration law

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ATLANTA, March 9 (UPI) -- A U.S. appeals court has temporarily blocked Alabama from voiding contracts signed by illegal immigrants and refusing them some state services.

The three-judge panel in Atlanta, in a ruling Thursday, allowed the enforcement of some parts of Alabama's new immigration law to continue, CNN reported. That includes police detention of people who cannot prove they are in the United States legally.

Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange said he believed the court decision is wrong and pointed out that it is only a temporary injunction.

"I will continue to vigorously defend Alabama's immigration law in the courts," he said. "I am hopeful that the Supreme Court's coming decision in the Arizona case will make clear that our law is constitutional."

Andre Segura, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union, said the two provisions the state is barred from enforcing "struck at the heart of attempting to impact every aspect of an immigrant's life."