Based on this article:

http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/sd...a323690e4.html

Is there any insight as to what documents one needs to carry on one's person in order to visit Arizona, either from overseas or from the rest of the USA?

If I need to show a passport and visa or visa-waiver form, will I be allowed to return to my hotel to retrieve it from room/hotel-safe, or should I equip myself to carry these papers on my person at all times.

Will not having the documents on my person cause me longer detention or can I leave the papers somewhere safe?

Please do not turn this thread into a debate on the law; there's another thread in OMNI/PR for that.

I am just asking about practicalities given the new reality.

 

I always carry my bar admission ID. ^

 

If you are a US citizen, you would need either your passport or your birth certificate or your voter registration card. If you are not a US citizen, you would need whatever document says that you have permission to be in the country - a visa or visa waiver, I presume.

 

You don't get a visa waiver form anymore though do you, because of ESTA? In the old days you'd have the I94-W card, but I thought that had been phased out. Presumably your passport with the entry stamp would do.

 

If you are a US citizen, you need to show NOTHING. There is no requirement that US citizens carry proof of citizenship at all times, and no requirement that you have to prove to local cops that you are a US citizen.

 

Get real. That is true in theory. Skip the theory and be practical. For anybody who does not "seem US American" meaning their skin color, voice or other personal affectations may negatively influence the local law enforcement types one need carry proof of legal right to be where one actually is.

I would carry passport with proof of entry were I not a US citizen. As a US citizen I still would carry Drivers license, voter registration card and employer ID, if possible.

Skipping the justice or lack thereof I suspect nobody will have a problem who carries the documentation. Just be very careful driving; there are quite excitable local police in several parts of AZ.

 

Unless you are brown.

It certainly could cause you longer detention. If you are at all brown-skinned I'd certainly carry your documents.

I would carry the documentation even if I were a citizen. I know a professional Hispanic American businessman who has been strongly advised not to drive in rural Arizona without his passport.

Well, being stopped and detained and humiliated I would consider "a problem."

 

My understanding of the Arizona law is the following - if a police officer stops you and asks for proof that you are in the country legally, you are required to produce some paper evidence that you are legal or else you will be arrested. That is true even if you are a US citizen. And if you do not have proof, you are subject to at least a fine and, I believe, prison time. Even if you are a US citizen.

I think that is the core of why people are so upset about the law.

 

Well, if you want to be "practical" as you suggest, methinks a driver's license or state-issued form of ID from any state would suffice. Just like any prudent individual would carry before this new Arizona law. A DL is a state-issued form of personal identification by which one has already proven their date of birth and place of origin to authorities in (albeit) another state. Though admittedly I think there are a handful states who might be a bit fuzzy in their criteria for issuing licenses which Arizona could in theory question ( if one wants to assume the worst ). But this disparity reflects the diverse powers of a federal republic which allows States to set their own rules within the bounds of the Constitution. Foreign nationals should behave/respond as they always do in a foreign country. You have your own national/state issued driver's license and you might be well advised to keep your passport on your person in case of an emergency. Non-citizens who are visiting on a VISA etc. would want to have those relevant documents as well ( not just for Arizona, but any contingent situation they might unexpectedly encounter ).

In short, I don't see any issues for any individual, citizen, alien, or legal immigrant visiting Arizona, nor would I anticipate heightened/deliberate enforcement. It's all contingent upon other factors setting in motion what ever the vagaraties of the new law are.

Barry

 

When I got my Green Card I was reminded in my "Welcome Packet" to carry my Green Card with me at all times.

This is also stipulated on the USCIS website and has been for as long as I remember.

"A green card is issued to all permanent residents as proof that they are authorized to live and work in the United States. If you are a permanent resident age 18 or older, you are required to have a valid green card in your possession at all times. "
Link here

So I don't see what the big deal is. It's a condition of my permanent resident status that I respect- and I don't even live in Arizona

 

A DL most certainly does NOT prove citizenship, legal residency, or whether or not you are legally in this country.

 

Actually, that's exactly what the new law does require if your citizenship is challenged.

Cheers,

 

Well actually that's not entirely true. A DL in CA is issued with proof of immigration/citizenship. I know some other states that do is as well. However I see your point. At the point of inspection, in AZ, the peace officer will have no way of knowing which of the 49 states do a background check for immigration before issuing the DL. So a DL by itself may not suffice. Then there are fake IDs etc.

The issue is a little more complex - and hence the agitation. The point was that the lack of immigration documents cannot be the primary motive of being pulled over or arrest. If an individual has been arrested for lets say burglary, speeding, or any other crime/misdemeanor, then this line of questioning can kick in and the individual handed over to the immigration authorities. But, alas, that's not what happened.

So, I am brown-skinned, in the country legally - a citizen, with frequent trips to Phoenix for business and you can bet I will be carrying my passport with me all the time - sad, but this is what the law has come down to - I know I will get pulled over in Phoenix exiting the airport in a rental car in the middle of the night for being the wrong shade of skin color!

I think you meant to say "If you are a US citizen AND WHITE, you need to show NOTHING"

You are 100% correct! A "non-US Citizen legal immigrant" has to always have a proof of immigration status on their person all the time - be it a green card or a foreign passport with the valid US Visa.

I think the point is what about US citizens? Illegal immigrants and US citizens both do not carry any valid proof of citizenship on their person while traveling within the US - so how to you differentiate between them?

 

Add to that "and don't have a 'funny' accent".

 

As already noted by another poster, a DL from most US states does indeed affirm legal citizenship. This all flows from 9/11 when the federal government requires states to "tighten up" identity procedures for legal forms of identification -- but the federal government stops short of defining a specific national protocol. In NJ, this meant picture ID for all DLs ( previously discretionary by the individual ) and a somewhat rigorous, but easy to follow process of presenting a combination of documents which affirm DOB, citizenship, and residency. Unlike Europe and other places which issue national identify cards, the United States has still not taken that approach and the responsibility and requirements are still tweaked by individual states. Like I said, we are a federal republic where the States still have their say.

Bottom line is that if you are here legally whether from NJ, abroad, or from Mars, you're not gonna have a problem in AZ as law enforcement is not out on a vendetta -- just carry the personal identity documents that you should always carry when out and about.

As to the "racialist" arguments and put-downs that are floating all over in many threads and throughout the media. Time to move on and allow the imperfect people in this imperfect nation to engage more in dialoge than inuendo and insult. This is a question of dialoge, citizenship and the national interest & well-being. Of course politicians on both sides play their own game, but there is indeed a crisis on our borders and AZ's new law is an imperfect effort to draw attention to this crisis. I'm not gonna condemn AZ's action, even if it is fuzzy on the edges. Time, patience, and dialoge can work that out. But only if we all step back and behave like citizens. Then again, that's just my take on this nation of ours from a more optimistic perspective during these times of in-your-face bickering both in DC and in our own neighborhoods..

Barry