Judge halts Iowa attempt to take action against illegal immigrants

A federal judge in Iowa halted the state's effort to enforce its own immigration laws on Monday.

The Iowa law would have allowed the state to file criminal charges against illegal immigrants who have outstanding deportation orders or who previously had been denied entry to the U.S.

U.S. District Court Judge Stephen Locher's block on enforcement is only temporary as the Iowa legislation is further litigated. Locher said he nevertheless believes the law will fail because federal immigration law supersedes that of states.