Vigilante forced to give ranch to illegals -(insane out of control border ruling come true)

Arizona Daily Sun ^ | 8/20/2005 | BETH DeFALCO

[StudentsForBush]

PHOENIX -- An Arizona ranch that once served as the headquarters for a civilian group watching for illegal immigrants has been turned over to two people caught trying to enter the United States illegally.

The ranch was conveyed to satisfy a judgment against its owner, Casey Nethercott, a member of a self-styled border-watch group that seeks to protect private property from illegal immigrants crossing the border from Mexico. Nethercott had been accused of terrorizing the immigrants when he and others caught them in Texas.

Morris Dees Jr., co-founder and chief trial counsel of the Southern Poverty Law Center, which

represented the immigrants, said he hoped the ruling would serve as a cautionary tale to landowners or civilian patrols.

"When we got into this case, ranchers all along the border were allowing these types to come on their property," Dees said. "Now, they're very leery of it, especially when they see someone losing their ranch because of it."

The ruling comes as the governors of Arizona and New Mexico declare states of emergency in their border counties, moves designed to free up money for enforcement while drawing more national attention to the problems of illegal immigration.

The transfer of the Douglas ranch outraged border-watch groups.
** FILE ** Casey Nethercott waits in a courtroom in Hebbronnville, Texas, for his trial to start, June 8, 2004. An Arizona ranch that once served as the headquarters for a civilian group watching for illegal immigrants has been turned over to two people caught trying to enter the United States illegally. The ranch was conveyed to satisfy a judgment against its owner, Casey Nethercott, a member of a self-styled border-watch group that seeks to protect private property from illegal immigrants crossing the border from Mexico. Nethercott had been accused of terrorizing the immigrants when he and others caught them in Texas. (AP Photo/The Monitor, German Garcia,

"If the federal government was doing its job, ranchers would not be living in fear," said Chris Simcox, president of Minuteman Civil Defense Corp., a group that watches for illegal immigrant crossings and reports them to the U.S. Border Patrol.

"They can't even protect their own property for fear of these frivolous lawsuits when people are trespassing on property," he said.

Ranchers "are held captive by the federal government who tells them, 'Well, we can't protect you but you can't do anything to protect yourself."'

Simcox disputed the notion, however, that the ruling would deter other landowners from welcoming civilian watch groups. He noted that the Minutemen have a policy against touching the migrants and use video to document their patrols.

Nethercott was part of another group called Ranch Rescue and had founded a group called the Arizona Militia, which he based at his 70-acre ranch in Douglas.

In March 2003, Nethercott, who had previously been convicted of assault in California, was accused of pistol-whipping an illegal immigrant as he and other people from Ranch Rescue patrolled a ranch in Hebbronville, Texas. A jury deadlocked on the charge but convicted him of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Edwin Alfredo Mancía Gonzáles, the man who accused Nethercott of hitting him, and another immigrant traveling with him from El Salvador, Fátima del Socorro Leiva Medina, filed a civil lawsuit last year saying they were harmed while being held by Ranch Rescue members.

Named in the suit were Nethercott; Jack Foote, the founder of Ranch Rescue; and the owners of the Hebbronville ranch, Joe and Betty Sutton.

The Suttons settled for $100,000, Dees said. Nethercott and Foote did not defend themselves, he said.

So in April of this year, a Texas judge issued default judgments of $850,000 against Nethercott and $500,000 against Foote.

Nethercott, serving a five-year prison term for the firearm conviction, transferred ownership of his Douglas ranch to his sister. But the sister gave up ownership of the ranch to settle the judgment when challenged by the immigrants' lawyers.

A message left for Nethercott's family in Prescott and his attorney in Texas were not immediately returned Friday.

Dees said his clients plan to eventually sell the property, which Nethercott bought for $120,000, but would allow humanitarian border groups offering aid to immigrants to use it for now.

Mancía and Leiva declined through Dees to speak to the media.

"They were terrorized. They suffered enormous post-traumatic stress," the attorney said.

Both immigrants remain in the United States and have applied for special visas available to some immigrants who are crime victims.

[Sam Cree]

For once, it is accurate to say that it's Bush's fault.

[trubluolyguy]

Beautiful!


(the woman ain't bad either!)

[Archon of the East]

Eh?

[YOUGOTIT]

SPLC and Dees are now and have always been anti-American Communist. He is scum someone should sue him and his organization as he is using our tax money to enrich himself and like the ACLU to destroy the United States.

[StudentsForBush]

Ranchers "are held captive by the federal government who tells them, 'Well, we can't protect you but you can't do anything to protect yourself."'

------- ------- ------

Government is not the solution to our problems; Government IS the problem. - President Ronald Reagan.

 

[hombre_sincero]

I like this one too!



Gotta LOVE the Second Amendment Ladies!

[Ohioan]

Dees is no idiot. What he is, as pointed out above, is one of the most loathsome foes of traditional American values, and pride in heritage, that you are likely ever to encounter.

Yes, this really is a sickening sign of very sick times--a new American equivalent to the long jail term, meted out to the British farmer who shot a burglar. Americans need to reclaim America from our native scum, and then we will be again able to defend it from invasion.

William Flax

[StudentsForBush]

Hey ! How is this Bush's fault, this is a STATE issue; not a Goernment issue. Don;t blame Bush, blame our Senator McCain, i do anyways.

[COEXERJ145]

Good grief, try using the search feature. This has been posted at least two dozen times in the last day.

[ordinaryguy]

Probably because he was in prison. It is too bad he couldn't have found some way to stand up against this outrage.

[Carbonsteel]

Has anyone heard a peep about this on Fox News??

[asp1]

How can any American politician be so blind? We are losing this country, our politicians, by their lack of courage, giving it away. Damn them.

[Who dat?]

Why didn't Nethercott appear to defend himself or even assign representation, I wonder?

Probably considers it too big a PITA to mess with anymore.

[TheForceOfOne]

So, when the illegals have come to America and murdered, raped, stole, and leached off our taxes used to provide illegal aid to them, what did we get?

[hispanarepublicana]

I've heard the theory that Nethercott was a "poison pill" sent by the open borders lobby to sabatoge the border security movement.

[brivette]

I think most Americans are ready to do whatever it takes to combat this evil.

[agitator]

Morris Dees: pervert, liar, child molester.

see here:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1466446/posts?page=30#30

among other places on that thread.

[exnavychick]

Both immigrants remain in the United States and have applied for special visas available to some immigrants who are crime victims.

I really wish this were a joke. Please, someone tell me this is a big steaming PILE! Because it sure smells like one.

[ordinaryguy]

Is that true? This is the first I've even heard of the case. It would seem like quite a sacrifice.

[Prime Choice]

Time to make a stand.

They did...and they lost their home for it.

Now what do you propose to do?