Utah to Feds: Stop Enforcing Our Laws

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SALT LAKE CITY — Fed­er­al offi­cers and rangers have no right to enforce dri­ving and oth­er com­mon laws on nation­al for­est, fed­er­al range lands and nation­al parks, the Utah Attor­ney Gen­er­al’s Office asserts.

The state is defend­ing an effort to lim­it the police pow­ers of fed­er­al offi­cers in the lat­est flash­point between Utah and U.S. gov­ern­ment offi­cials. The debate has often cen­tered on con­trol or devel­op­ment of fed­er­al lands, but it is now extend­ing to police activ­i­ties by fed­er­al officers.

The Utah Leg­is­la­ture approved a law ear­li­er this year that pro­hibits fed­er­al offi­cers — at risk of arrest and pros­e­cu­tion — from try­ing to enforce state or local laws any­where in Utah. Gov. Gary Her­bert signed the law.

The fed­er­al gov­ern­ment sued, how­ev­er, and a judge slapped an injunc­tion on the law the day it was to take effect, May 13.

State lawyers filed papers June 4 to defend the new law and ask the judge to lift the injunction.

Con­tin­ue arti­cle here:  http://deseretnews.com/article/765631779/Utah-to-feds-Stop-enforcing-our-laws.html