When a Fulton County judge held recently that certain illegal immigrant students were eligible for in-state tuition at Georgia state universities, she reopened a debate that many assumed had been settled by the Legislature: Whether those in the country unlawfully, even if they grew up here, had to pay more expensive, out-of-state tuition.
Superior Court Judge Gail Tusan said the students who brought the suit “are Georgia taxpayers, workers, and graduates of Georgia public high schools pursuing an affordable option for higher education.”
The 10 plaintiffs are recognized under the Obama administration’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA program, which grants work permits and temporary deportation deferrals to illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children.
A 2008 state law says noncitizens cannot pay in-state rates unless they are “legally in the state,” and the university Board of Regents’ tuition policy reflects that law. But the plaintiffs contended that under DACA, they are, indeed, legally in the state.
State Sen. Josh McKoon, R-Columbus, has said he would introduce legislation in the General Assembly to clarify the law to say only those with “legal status” in the U.S. could qualify for in-state tuition.
“If a person from Chattanooga, Tenn., or Auburn, Ala., or Tallahassee, Fla., has to pay out-of-state tuition, then certainly I think someone who has got no legal status to be in the country should have to pay out-of-state tuition,” McKoon told the AJC in December.
The Board of Regents has appealed Tusan’s decision, asking the judge to keep her ruling on hold while the Georgia Court of Appeals considers the case.
Immigration attorney Charles Kuck said, “By denying these students the right to pay what the courts say they are legally entitled to, the Board of Regents has created remarkable hardship on students who only want to learn and achieve for our state.”
Should DACA young people in Georgia qualify for in-state tuition? Tell us what you think. Send comments by email to communitynews@ajc.com
After community uproar over a rash of car thefts and break-ins in a concentrated area of Fulton County, commissioners agreed recently to require gas stations and convenience stores where crimes take place to improve their security and hire guards or risk losing their license to sell alcohol.
We asked readers if these measures will help reduce crime and is putting the responsibility on the business owners the right move. Here's what some had to say:
Requiring business owners to hire guards and train employees on robbery deterence or lose their liqour licenses penalizes them for uninvited crimes on their property. Per a previous article, the perpetrators are repeat offenders, with little to no repercussions, which makes no sense. The second time they are involved in a crime, they should be fined and assigned community service or jail time, depending on the severity of the crime. Parents should also be held accountable, particularly if they are enabling their kids. Fines and penalties should be increased with each crime. Perhaps community service will help put these kids on a better path. — Ruth Heim
In my view, the current 'fix' firmly places the blame on the business, not the criminals. This is another backward solution that, at best, will cause the criminals to simply change the venue for their crimes, such as moving to grocery store parking lots. The true blame for these crimes rests on the young criminals. They should have to pay through serving time. From earlier stories it seems that the criminals are well known to the police. They have been frequently arrested, but the revolving door legal system returns them to the street with minimal cost to the criminal. Actual punishment would be much closer the attacking the root cause of the problem. — Rex Pulford
Lock your doors/ take your keys/ problem fixed/ no cost. — Bruce Kasch
I don't think pushing the total responsibility for crime prevention onto the gas stations is a reasonable stance for Fulton County to take. The new law is onerous on small business people. Additional police patrols should be a top priority. But, more important is the revolving door in our court system. A known group of 22 juveniles has committed 70 percent of the crimes. The police arrest these thugs, take them to court, and they are released to their parents. Then, they go back out and commit the same crimes over and over with the same result. The real solution is to get these young criminals off the street. — Ed Parkinson
Fulton County's solution to "slider" crimes at gas stations/convenience stores is no solution at all. It is a perfect example of government "doing something" to address a situation over which neither it nor the store has control. These crimes are caused by negligence of the drivers involved. Punishing the store is a typical pass-the-buck move. There is little a government body can do about crimes like these, as the "victim" is at fault. A better approach, but one that would not be perfect due to human nature, would be to post a prominent, permanent sign on each pump warning drivers to lock their car before pumping fuel. Some would comply. Others would not. Such is human nature. — Edward Watkins
There is nothing wrong in requiring better security at places that are sites of numerous robberies. However, I think the patrons should share some of the burden. If someone gets out of their car and leaves it unlocked, I don't have too much sympathy for them. They are enabling a crime of opportunity. Get out of your car and immediately lock the car doors. Why make it easy for a crime to happen? — Carroll Myers
Hey, lay off the station owners. Negligent car owners are entirely to blame for the slider problem. We've all had it drummed into our heads to turn off the ignition and lock the door wherever we go. A ticket, a fine, and points on their licenses will get car owners attention. Problem solved. — Louise Franklin
In one year, sliding increased from every third day to every day. Did the convenience store owner cause the problem? If not, why punish a person or business if they didn't cause a problem/crime. Business owners don't want to be victims but in this situation they are. Victims of criminals, victims of a lack of police patrols and now victims of the local government. Adding a security guard to the convenience store won't stop crime. It may move it to another parking lot, another business or even our homes, but it won't stop it. The local community must get to the root of the problem before a solution will be successful. What punishment do these criminals really face? A real solution will either provide a punishment for the crime or stop it before it ever starts. — Angela Holland
Blaming the gas station owners for south Fulton crime is the height of absurdity . How did those politicians ever get into office ? What's wrong with locking up the 22 budding thugs and keeping them in JAIL ? Apparently the council members think that giving a criminal a criminal record will mean that they are criminals . Red Hat Squad ? What will they do that the APD isn't already doing ? It's the clowns in the courts that are the jokers . Make them all wear red hats, clown hats! — John Snipes
The problem with all of the crime at the gas stations in south Fulton County is not the gas stations. The problem is jail and juvenile detention space. In a county with 1 million people, the jail only holds 1,850. It was too small when it was built in 1985. Fulton County has to rent the Alpharetta and Union City jails, and also jail space in south Georgia to house it's criminals. I know that nearly all of the perps that are committing these crimes have been arrested before, and for the exact same crimes, adults and juveniles. The problem lies with jail space. Judges have to grant signature or ridiculously low bonds to violent criminals in Fulton County because the Fulton County Commission will NOT build a big enough jail to house those perps that will never stop committing crimes. In the next 100 years (say year 2120), you will never see four votes on the commission to build a significantly larger jail (say 10,000 beds) to handle the violent crime problem that will NOT go away in this county. Also, the Fulton County DA does not advocate for long enough sentences, and most of the Superior Court Judges are not interested in serious jail time. And the county's solution is to make an obviously economically depressed area's residents pay more at a gas station for coffee, coke, candy, and a pack of crackers at a south Fulton station. The gas won't cost more. Gas does not make a station it's largest profit margin, inside sales do. The owners will pass the cost of "SECURITY" on to the consumer by higher prices for coffee. OR, close the station due to profitability and leave the area with no gas stations. Just sad! — Charles Wallace
Among the recommendation was that the gas stations install more cameras, but what is the use of that if the police already know who is committing a large number of the crimes, but the suspects are still unrestrained?
— Paul Carpenter
There are three entities responsible for the “sliding” crimes at southwest Atlanta convenience stores:
• The teen age thugs who perpetrate the hijackings.
• The victims, who leave their cars unattended and unlocked.
• The juvenile court system which prevents judges from keeping these criminals in jail.
Notice that I have not included the store owners, who work long hours to provide for their families.
The Fulton County Commissioners, who never fail to astound me with their inept decisions, have opted to require the store owners to install expensive security equipment and incur the ongoing cost of hired guards to protect the public from misdeeds over which they have no control. In other words, the stores are the cause of the problem, because if they weren't there, there would be no crimes committed. Isn't protection from such terrorism (that's what it is) the responsibility of the County and the State? What's really incredible is that the police have identified some fifteen offenders who are responsible for the crimes, but seem unable to get them off the streets for any significant amount of time. I'm hoping that rational minds will appear, and that rational solutions will be presented. —Bob Perfetti
Being a gas station owner for over 27 years provides a different view of crime and gas stations. I do agree that making a station have security cameras and better lightning, employee training on theft prevention are all good starts. This includes being able to see inside stores and maybe panic alarms for stations that are in high crime areas. Most well-run stations should already be following these rules. The cost of hiring security guards is way over the top for a small businessman. The money would be better spent on security cages that could not be accessed by the criminals in anyway. Most crimes at stations are because people who have no business hanging around the business are allowed to hang around. My experience with the city of Atlanta police was the fact that they have very slow response times and do not really put an effort in preventing these crimes. The only reason this is getting attention is because of a couple of issues with high profile individuals. Crime is a criminal issue, not a individual business owners issue. Both businesses and the community with the help of law enforcement need to come together to better combat crimes on the southside. — Scott McCurley
