Alabama has enacted a new immigration law even harsher than the Arizona measure it was modeled on. The measure will require police to arrest anyone they suspect of being in the country without legal status and force public schools to determine the immigration status of enrolled students. The law also makes it a crime to knowingly harbor or transport an undocumented immigrant. Republican Governor Robert Bentley praised the law as the toughest in the country.

Gov. Robert Bentley: “It is a tough bill. It is the toughest bill in the country. But we wanted a tough bill.”

The American Civil Liberties Union says it plans to join a coalition challenging the law in court before it takes effect in September.