Olens: State will appeal judge’s ruling

ATLANTA — Attorney General Sam Olens made it official Tuesday, filing a notice of appeal of a federal court ruling that struck down key provisions of a state law aimed at curbing illegal immigration in Georgia.

Olens filed the notice in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. “An appeal will be filed with the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in the coming days,” Olens’ office said in a statement.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash last month struck down two provisions of the law, including a provision that would have allowed law enforcement personnel to check the immigration stats of criminal suspects they suspect to be in the country illegally and who cannot produce a valid identification.

The ruling is the fourth time a judge has struck down such a law, according to the ACLU.