A Moment of Humanism

Reports of the wire today reveal that an Arizona pastor was tasered, bloodied by broken glass and sporting 11 stitches in his head. The Pastor reports his injuries resulted from a Border Patrol checkpoint located 75 miles inside the U.S. where the pastor was battered by police. His crime: Refusing to allow agents to search his vehicle.

As always, things are not always as they seem.

The incident took place earlier this week and emphasize the tension between constitutional rights, the issue of border security and a controversial Supreme Court ruling that grants an exceptional level of police authority near the Mexican border.

Pastor Steven Anderson of Faithful Word Baptist Church in Tempe states he did nothing that warranted his treatment and eventual arrest. He further insists his refusal to allow the search of his car was reasonable protection of his Fourth Amendment rights that protect him against unreasonable search without a warrant.

According to the U.S. Border Patrol, in an explanation on World Net Daily, “Anderson misunderstood his constitutional rights and that because a drug-sniffing dog alerted to Anderson's rental car, the pastor was wrong not to allow the agents to search his vehicle.”

The Supreme Court ruled and federal law permits the Border Patrol to establish checkpoints up to 100 miles inside the U.S. and that with probable cause the Fourth Amendment doesn't apply to searches of automobiles.

The ruling doesn't apply to typical law enforcement agencies, only to "immigration" checkpoints established by the Border Patrol.

The courts have typically ruled against "suspicion-less" stops and searches of vehicles at police checkpoints, such as the one that detained Anderson. As recently as 2000, the Supreme Court ruled in Indianapolis vs Edmond that police cannot establish roadblocks staffed by dogs to randomly search automobiles for drugs.

The discord comes from a 1976 case that ultimately created an exception allowing the Border Patrol the unique power to establish checkpoints for seeking illegal immigrants, with the secondary purpose of finding drugs. In short, police cannot operate a K-9, or drug-detecting dog, checkpoint without violating the Fourth Amendment but the Border Patrol can.

The Pastor was extracted from his car and arrested by Arizona Department of Public Safety officers, not the Border Patrol.

In sum, the Pastor had a moment of flesh, which we all do from time to time. Although I sympathize with the Pastor I can say that he has an obligation to our God to uphold the laws of the states.

One can only ask the very basic question: What would Jesus do? One of the hardest things for a public person of God such as we pastors to remember is our public testimony to Christians and the secular world.

I am praying for you my brother.