There has been a controversy at home base here in Atlanta, but it is an issue that we are seeing all around the country. This one just happens to be in my back yard. It centers around Kennesaw State University in the northern region of the Atlanta metro area. A KSU student named Jessica Colotl was pulled over by a cop on March 29th and cited for "impeding the flow of traffic." A minor offense. But when the cop asked for her license and registration .. uh oh .. Jessica no tiene los papeles. She didn't have a valid driver's license. And her passport ... from Mexico ... had expired. So Jessica then faced additional charges of driving without a license and she is turned over to the Cobb County officials. At this point, the county officials invoke their participation in a little program known officially as 287(g), but to us non-legal types: delegation of immigration authority. This program, established in 1995, allows state and local authorities to act on behalf of federal immigration agents. Wait ... isn't that what has the liberals so enraged right now about the Arizona law - allowing local authorities to enforce federal laws?? Anyway, back to Jessica. Cobb County authorities then determined that Jessica is an illegal immigrant and she was sent to Alabama to wait to be deported.

Like I said, situations similar to Jessica are not uncommon. Just yesterday I told you the story of Gladys Castro. She is a high school senior out in California and is exceptionally smart. She got into UC Berkeley. The problem is that she's an illegal alien and since she doesn't have a social security number, she can't apply for government loans to help pay the $30,000 a year in tuition.

As I pointed out yesterday, I'm a rule-of-law kinda guy. So where do we draw the line? Do we draw the line at the point where a person can understand and rationalize the intent of committing a crime and coming across the border? At what age does that happen? Is it even based on age? See how tough this is! In the case of these two ladies, there didn't seem to be any inkling of criminal intent. But in the end, they are still considered criminals under the law.