The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1961-06-16
School Case
CONTINUED from page u
request, Judge Lewis replied:
Children Hurt


request, Judge Lewis replied:
Children Hurt
Therefore this court can only
conclude, if the government be
permitted to intervene as a party
plaintiff, it would urge this court
to enter an order that could
jeopardize the education Of sew
eral hundred thousand Virginia
children who have had no re-
sponsibility whatsoever for the
closing of the public schools in
Prince Edward county"
Judge Lewis also attacked the
Justice Department suggestion
that precedent exists for inter
vention because of earlier events
in school cases at Little Rock and
New Orleans. To this he said:
The facts in these cases do
not justify such comparison. ;"
In the latter cases open defiance
of federal court orders was
obvious. In Virginia this complex
problem has been and is being
solved in a lawful and proper
manner through the courts.
There has been no known de-
fiance of this courts order either
by the state of Virginia or the
county of Prince Edward
Judge Lewis said that the pre-
else question before him was
whether state and county officials
are violating or circumventing
court orders to desegregate.
Ito find the defendants guilty
of so doing without a hearing
would be a clear violation of the
defendants constitutional rights.
This, this court will not do. The
United States has no right to in
tervene as a party plaintiff in
this case on that ground until
this court has first determined
that its orders are being in fact
violated or circumvented."
Judge Lewis also pointed out
that if the United States has a
cause of interest in the Prince
Edward case. its interest in the
long run will be established
through court litigation, and that
this cause cannot be preiudiced
simply through a denial Of right
to intervene as a plaintiff.
In a final analysis of his re-
fusal, Judge Lewis sided with
judicial restraint. After indicat-
ing that his court would have the
responsibility of instituting a
public school system in Prince
Edward if reopening was
forced by federal Intervention
:, he said:
This would make it necessary
for the court to construe and in
terpret certain sections Of the
Constitution of Virginia and the
laws adopted pursuant thereto
pertaining to the maintenance Of
a system of free public schools
in the State Of Virginia (Section
1923, Constitution of Virginia. Alb
stinence in state affairs when not
in conflict with the United States
Constitution has long been the
federal policy
Statutory Bar
Judge Lewis also pointed out
that the Justice Department has
not contended it has a statutory
(due to existing law right to
enter the case. No action by
Congress. it was shown, has yet
given the U. S. Attorney General
the right to intervene in civil
rights suits of this type as
party plaintiff.
This bar to federal Intervention
was stoutly maintained before
the Federal Court at Richmond
last week in briefs filed by Vir-
ginia Attorney General Frederick
T. Gray in rebuttal to the De-
partment of Justices request to
intervene.
Since Prince Edwards case is
already in the District Court
where implementing DEGREES are
to be made. the introduction
Of new legal questions raised
by Prince Edwards financing
for schools would mean
new. protracted litigation, with
appeals certain to be made by
both sides to the u. S. Supreme
Court.