University of Virginia Library

Burger Refuses Request
For Registration Order

By BEVERLY DOWELL

Photo By Jay Adams

Decorations Add Spectral Touch To Alderman Library Window

Library Staff Makes A Haunting Contribution To The Spirits Of The Season

Chief Supreme Court Justice Warren
Burger refused Saturday to stay the order
of the federal panel which denied certain
Virginia college students the right to
register and vote in tomorrow's election.

Justice Burger's denial affects the
3,495 students who registered during the
one-week extension of the October 2
deadline. If Mr. Burger had allowed the
stay, it would have forced an immediate hearing
by the Supreme Court. The American Civil
Liberties Union of Virginia requested the stay
from Justice Burger in order to allow the
additional students to vote.

Before Burger's decision on Saturday, T.
Burwell Robinson, Jr., ACLU Executive
Director, issued a statement saying that
"because the issue at stake here is a Federal
Constitutional one, we feel that the proper
source of relief for the students is through the
Federal Courts."

The statement continues, "We still feel that
the Attorney General's 'factors' for registering
students are arbitrary and unnecessary and that
a class action suit is proper. We will exhaust all
avenues available in our effort to see that this
disenfranchised segment of the general
population is given the vote by November 2."

A panel of federal judges voted on October
26 to invalidate the registration of those
students who did not fulfill the requirements of
the section of the Virginia Code governing
student voter registration as interpreted by
state Attorney General Andrew Miller.

One Week Extension

US. District Judge Robert R. Merhige, one
of the three members of the panel, had allowed
a one week extension for voter registration. He
had granted the extension on the grounds that
students were unconstitutionally discriminated
against by voter registration rules.

The majority opinion of the panel on the
extension ruled that the case was not a class
action as the ACLU contended. The opinion
stated that the action did not involve a class of
citizens because circumstances covering
registration vary with individual cases.

The panel declined to rule on the
constitutional aspect of the question saying
that the plaintiffs could seek relief from the
state by seeking to re-register.

Judge Merhige added in his dissenting
opinion that it was "almost whimsical" for the
other judges to require the plaintiffs to resort to
state processes that, "for practical purposes of
the upcoming election are not available."

Stay Of Execution

After the three court panel denied the
ACLU request, the ACLU returned to Judge
Merhige asking for a stay of execution of the
panel's denial. When Judge Merhige refused and
the ACLU went to the Supreme Court Chief
Justice asking for a stay pending normal appeal.

The ACLU instituted the action for five
students asking that they be allowed to register
and vote in their college communities after the
Attorney General's opinion on eligibility was
issued July 21.

In order to register in the college
community a student had to satisfy the
registrar that he was is every sense a "resident."
The burden of proof lay with the student.

Students who live in the college community
year round, register their automobiles in the
community, work there in the summer and pay
taxes to the community, and list the
community as their legal address would be able
to register if they could convince the registrar
that all the above was true.

All other students were advised by the
Attorney General's office to register at home.