Tuesday, March 31, 1987/The Battalion/Page 7
igh court refuses appeal
y helpers of illegal aliens
uling: Religious rights don't save members
f 'sanctuary movemenf from prosecution
■ WASHINGTON (AP) — The Su-
j> y. | pi eme Court on Monday left intact a
^^Vflrtiling that criminal prosecution
' "'■ 1 (l«>es not violate the religious rights
«l “sanctuary movement” members
who aid illegal aliens from Central
America.
I T he justices refused to hear an
ai)|)eal by two people convicted of
Rich activity in Texas.
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E th
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John B. Elder, director of a “refu-
;ee sanctuary” in San Benito, and
tacey Lynn Merkt, a volunteer at
he shelter, were convicted of con-
^■piring in 19H4 to transport illegal
I 1 ; aliens within die United States.
If •■I Elder also was convicted of con-
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Packing plant
seeks workers
in South Texas
HARLINGEN (AP) — A Mid
western meat-packing plant
locked in a labor dispute is re
cruiting workers in the Rio
Grande Valley, where the unem
ployment rate is one of the na
tion’s highest, company officials
said Monday.
Gary Mickelson, a spokesman
for IBP Inc. of Dakota City, Neb.,
said laborers were being sought
in South Texas because of the
availablity of job seekers here.
He said prospective employees
are told the company’s plant in
Dakota City is in a labor dispute
and are being offered a base wage
of $6 an hour.
“Even though there’s a labor
dispute, it’s been peaceful,” he
said. “We’ve had a pretty good
turnout of people and have hired
some.
“It’s permanent positions that
we’re offering.”
February unemployment fig
ures for the Rio Grande Valley
show McAllen, in the Upper Val
ley, with the state’s highest per
centage of jobless workers at 20
percent.
spiring to smuggle illegal aliens into
the country.
He was sentenced to 150 days im
prisonment, to be served at a half
way house. Merkt was sentenced to
179 days in jail and three years’ pro
bation.
Elder’s shelter provides assistance
and lodging to Central Americans,
principally from El Salvador, who
have fled their countries and en
tered the United States.
The shelter, founded in 1982, re
ceives financial support from the
Roman Catholic Diocese in
Brownsville, protestant churches
and other religious organizations.
Elder and Merkt were convicted
of driving live Salvadoran illegal
aliens from San Benito to McAllen,
and putting them on a bus for Hous
ton.
The live aliens, two adults and
three children, were arrested by
Border Patrol agents before reach
ing Houston.
Elder’s and Merkt’s convictions
were upheld by the 5th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals last July 17.
The appeals court rejected argu
ments that they should not have
been charged with crimes because
their activities in behalf of illegal
aliens are inspired by their religious
beliefs.
The appeals court said the sanct
uary movement case differs from
those in which the Amish have been
allowed to keep their young children
out of public schools and Seventh-
day Adventists have been protected
against being fired for refusing to
work on their Sabbath.
Devout Christian belief does not
compel participation in the sanct
uary movement, the appeals court
said.
It added that Elder and Merkt
“could have assisted beleaguered El
Salvadorans in many ways which did
not affront the border control laws;
they could have collected and dis
tributed monetary and other dona
tions, aided in preparing petitions
for legal entry and assisted El Salva
dorans legally in this country.”
“They chose confrontational, ille
gal means to practice their religious
views — the burden was voluntarily
assumed and not imposed on them
by the government,” the court said.
In seeking the Supreme Court’s
help, lawyers for Elder and Merkt
said the government should be bar
red from intruding on someone’s re
ligious beliefs unless “it has a strong
reason.”
Study: Fewer Texas teens
receive ‘hardship’ licenses
COLLEGE STATION (AP) — A
crackdown on so-called “hardship”
licenses in Texas has resulted in
nearly 71,000 fewer teen-age drivers
on the road, according to a Texas
A&M University safety education
specialist.
Under a new law, only 1,109 teen
agers have qualified for the special li
censes since 1983, Dr. Gerald Ockert
said.
“The law was successful at reduc
ing the number of kids out there
driving because it made it tougher
for them to get these hardship li
censes,” said Dr. Maurice Dennis,
coordinator for the Safety Education
Program at Texas A&M.
Teen-age drivers who received li
censes under the new law also had
slightly lower incidence of moving
violations or accidents, though the
difference was not statistically signif
icant, Ockert said.
“Even though this controlled
study did not find statistically signifi
cant differences between post-law
and pre-law groups, I believe the law
change was a good change,” Ockert
said.
The Minor’s Restricted Driver’s
License is commonly known as a
“hardship” license since applicants
must prove they have a compelling
need to drive, such as to work or to
take parents to a doctor.
Constitution & Foreign Policy:
A Question of Control
Moderator Howard K. Smith
Dr. Jeane Kirkpatrick
Former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.
Dean Rusk
Former Secretary of State under
Kennedy and Johnson
Senator Edmund S. Muskie
Member of the Tower Commission,
Former Secretary of State
I
Wednesday, April 1, 1987
Rudder Auditorium 8:00 pm
Texas A&M University
j:- ;•. f V'tl iiG Ti.;. i.;. X:|| TfiT': -T I?!? "ji/f
IrMSC Wiley
Lecture Series
/ - =• Texas A&M University
***«*,
Officially r<M ogni/ort
Qn lbe Bit emenntal of Ticket Information: Rudder Box Office and Dillards Ticketron
cons,«U„r Students: $6, $8, $10 Non-Students: $8, $10, $12
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