the opposition , said he will appeal the ruling . `` This fight is far from over , '' he told reporters outside the courtroom . `` Hazleton is not going to back down . ... We will take it all the way to the Supreme Court if we have to . '' Watch mayor decry `` injustice '' '' Barletta drafted the act last year after `` a high-profile murder , the discharge of a gun at a crowded city playground , and drug busts '' allegedly involving illegal immigrants , he wrote on his Web site , www.smalltowndefenders.com . `` Illegal aliens in our city create an economic burden that threatens our quality of life , '' he wrote . `` With a growing problem and a limited budget , I could not sit back any longer and allow this to happen . I needed to act ! '' Hazleton 's population was 23,000 in 2000 . Since then , it has risen to an estimated 30,000 to 33,000 , with many of the newcomers being Mexican immigrants , according to Munley . The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania was among several groups that filed the suit
ALLENTOWN , Pennsylvania -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A federal court Thursday struck down ordinances passed by Hazleton , Pennsylvania , that were intended to limit where illegal immigrants could live and work . Last year , Hazleton passed the Illegal Immigration Relief Act Ordinance , which would have fined landlords who rented to undocumented immigrants and would have penalized companies that employed them . Under another law , tenants would have had to prove they were citizens or lawful residents , register with the city and pay for a rental permit in order to receive an occupancy permit . The ordinances were copied by other cities . The court ruled that Hazleton can not enact any ordinances dealing with illegal immigration because they conflict with the supremacy clause of the U.S. constitution . `` Hazleton , in its zeal to control the presence of a group deemed undesirable , violated the rights of such people , as well as others within the community . Since the United States Constitution protects even the disfavored , the ordinances can not be enforced , '' U.S. District Judge James M. Munley wrote in the 206-page opinion . Mayor Lou Barletta , who spearheaded