Suit against colleges in Virginia dismissed

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A federal judge has dismissed charges by a group of illegal aliens who claimed that state-sponsored colleges in Virginia were violating the Constitution by refusing to enroll them.

U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III, who has not yet issued his final opinion, ruled earlier this month that the illegal aliens who sued the colleges lacked legal standing, and that only a legal applicant could raise a claim. The lawsuit, filed last fall in federal court in Alexandria, challenged seven Virginia universities.

In February, Judge Ellis said colleges are within their rights to deny admission to illegal aliens. The judge said denying such "incentives" as college admission for illegal immigration should help to curb it.

The judge's most recent ruling, issued July 2, dismisses the suit entirely. His formal opinion is expected later this month.

In the lawsuit, five of the students identified themselves only as John or Jane Does. Earlier this year, Judge Ellis threw out their portion of the case because of the anonymity. One woman had said she would reveal her name, so the case moved forward.

Tisha Tallman, an attorney with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund's Atlanta office who represented the plaintiffs, said the group would offer a complete comment once the judge issues his opinion.

Miss Tallman said that since the lawsuit was filed, two of the seven universities -- George Mason University and Virginia Tech -- have said they will not deny students based on their immigration status. The other colleges named as defendants in the case were University of Virginia, Northern Virginia Community College, the College of William and Mary, Virginia Commonwealth University and James Madison University.

"These are great victories for our plaintiffs, for Virginia students and for the Commonwealth as a whole," Miss Tallman said. "We need to be committed to educating all our children so the children can realize their dreams."

Virginia officials, however, don't believe illegal aliens should be able to attend college.

The illegal immigrants filed the lawsuit in September, a year after state Attorney General Jerry W. Kilgore, a Republican, issued a memo advising Virginia colleges and universities that as a matter of policy they should not admit illegal aliens.