ladyred2007's Blog

Deputy Arrested, Accused of Forcing Women to Strip Last Edited: Thursday, 21 Aug 2008, 6:06 AM EDT Created: Thursday, 21 Aug 2008, 5:47 AM EDT Christopher McLaurin SideBar
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FORSYTH COUNTY, N.C. (WGHP) -- A Forsyth County Sheriff's Deputy was arrested on Tuesday after being accused of making two men strip by threatening them with arrest, according to the Winston-Salem Journal.

The incident happened August 6th in Old Town Park around 9:30 p.m. According to the paper, 31-year-old Christopher McLaurin is accused of demanding the women remove articles of clothing.

The paper says one of the victims is 20-years-old and the other is 23-years-old.

The charges are not clearly described in the arrest warrants and it is not clear how much clothing was removed.

McLaurin is out of jail on bond and has a court date next month. The officers are too busy doing these things...instead of arresting those little thugs running the streets and robbing people. How crazy of me to think they weren't doing something productive.... DUH!!!

I think this is the form that computer tech's use when you call them for support!! So funny...so true!

Computer Problem Report Form

1. Describe your problem:
______________________________________________________

2. Now, describe the problem accurately:
______________________________________________________

3. Speculate wildly about the cause of the problem:
______________________________________________________

4. Problem severity:
Minor ___
Minor ___
Minor ___
Trivial ___

5. Nature of the problem:
Locked Up ___
Frozen ___
Hung __
Strange Smell __

6. Is your computer plugged in? Yes __ No __

7. Is it turned on? Yes __ No __

8. Have you tried to fix it yourself? Yes __ No __

9. Have you made it worse? Yes __

10. Have you had a friend who "knows all about computers " try to fix it for you ? Yes__ No__

11. Did they make it even worse? Yes __

12. Have you read the manual? Yes__ No__

13. Are you sure you've read the manual? Maybe __ No__

14. Are you absolutely certain you've read the manual? No__

15. If you read the manual, do you think you understood it? Yes__ No__

16. If 'Yes' then explain why you can't fix the problem yourself:
______________________________________________________

17. What were you doing with your computer when the problem occurred?
______________________________________________________

18. If you answered 'nothing' then explain why you were logged in:
______________________________________________________

19. Are you sure that you aren't imagining the problem? Yes__ No__

20. Does the clock on your VCR blink 12:00? Yes__ What's a VCR__

21. Do you have a copy of 'PCs for Dummies'? Yes__ No__

22. Do you have any independent witnesses to the problem? Yes__ No__

23. Do you have any electronic products that DO work? Yes __ No__

24. Is there anyone else that you could blame this problem on? Yes__ No__

25. Have you given the machine a good whack on the top? Yes__ No__

26. Is the machine on fire? Yes__ Not Yet __

27 Can you do something else instead of bothering me? Yes__

Is it any wonder that Team USA kicked some butt? We have the best players in the NBA representing our country, including Chris Paul..Winston Salem's own!! I love some basketball, but watching all the NBA greats is truly an experience of a lifetime. I guess as a Demon Deacon fan...I will even give Coach K credit. He does pretty good.

101-70 Woot!! Woot!! 

A sad and preventable death happened in the last few days. A baby was killed in the parking lot of the hispanic apartments that are down the road from my house(where the murders occurred recently). I have complained to neighborhood representatives with the city and the police department about babies and toddlers running around that complex without an adult around, for the last year. Little girls in nothing but diapers, four and five toddlers playing near the street with no adult in sight. Five and six year old little boys climbing through the windows of a church that was closed. No parents in sight.

Over and over and time and time again, I call, complain to try to bring attention to the fact that something tragic would happen if Social Services, city police or SOMEONE didn't step in and start bringing charges against these parents who sit on the balconies drinking alcohol, while the multiple kids they gave birth to are running around the neighborhood unsupervised. I wonder how many little girls are suffering through molestations, abuse and no telling what else, when their mothers seem to have no concern about their safety. These little girls have on nothing more than diapers, around the neighborhood at 8 and 9 at night. Drunken men standing everywhere. Scary for a mother to watch, when I have no control over how other mothers raise their children. Some may say it is their culture (like an idiot tried to say to justify these babies with no supervision) If being a neglectful parent is "Culture" then I have a new reason to debate hispanic population in my country.

Now, a little girl is dead. Killed in front of all the adults sitting on their balconies...not paying any attention to the dozens of children running wild through the complex, unsupervised. She is dead because of her neglectful parents. Illegal hispanic parents are spitting out children to gain some financial footings in this country...but at the expense of their poor children. These kids didn't ask to become a pawn in the cat and mouse game of illegal hispanics vs. America. They are born in America...true. But they are doomed to the parenting skills of the illegal hispanics in hiding. Illegal hispanics having babies for the montetary value of those babies, not for the love of those babies. In the end, the babies are the ones who suffer the consequences of having a price on their heads.

All the more reason America should NOT allow all children born in this country to be automatic citizens. If the laws weren't there...these heartless illegal immigrants wouldn't be spitting out children for monetary gain.

If you have raised kids (or been one), and gone through the pet syndrome, including toilet flush burials for dead goldfish, the story below will have you
laughing out loud!

Overview: I had to take my
son's lizard to the vet. Here's what happened:
Just after dinner one night, my son came up to tell me there was "something wrong" with one of the
two lizards he holds prisoner in his room.
"He's just lying there looking sick," he told me. "I'm serious, Dad. Can you help?"
I put my best lizard-healer expression on my face and followed him into his bedroom. One of the little lizards was indeed lying on his back, looking stressed. I
immediately knew what to do. "Honey," I called, "come look at the lizard!" "Oh, my gosh!" my wife exclaimed. "She's having babies."  "What?" my son demanded. "But their names a re Bert and Ernie,
Mom!" I was equally outraged. "Hey, how can that be? I thought we said we didn't want them to reproduce,"
I said accusingly to my wife. "Well, what do you want me to do, post a sign in their cage?" she inquired
(I think she actually said this sarcastically!).
"No, but you were supposed to get two boys!" I reminded her, (in my most loving, calm, sweet voice, while gritting my teeth). "Yeah, Bert and Ernie!" my son agreed. "Well, it's just a little hard to tell on some guys, you know," she informed me (Again with the sarcasm!).

By now the rest of the family had gathered to see what was going on. I shrugged, deciding to make
the best of it. "Kids, this is going to be a wonderous experience," I announced. "We're about to witness the miracle of birth." "Oh, gross!" they shrieked.
"Well, isn't THAT just great? What are we going to do with a litter of tiny little lizard babies?" my wife wanted to know. We peered at the patient. After much struggling, what looked like a tiny foot would appear briefly, vanishing a scant second later. "We don't appear to be making much progress," I noted. "It's breech," my wife whispered, horrified. "Do something, Dad!" my son urged. "Okay, okay."
Squeamishly, I reached in and grabbed the foot when it next appeared, giving it a gentle tug. It disappeared. I tried several more times with the same results.
"Should I call 911?" my eldest daughter wanted to know. "Maybe they could talk us through the birth." (You see a pattern here with the females in my
house?)
"Let's get Ernie to the vet," I said grimly. We
drove to the vet with my son holding the cage in his lap. "Breathe, Ernie, breathe," he urged. "I don't think lizards do Lamaze," his mother noted to him. (Women can be so cruel to their own young. I mean what she does to me is one thing, but this boy is of her womb, for God's sake.).
The vet took Ernie back to the examining room and peered at the little animal through a magnifying glass.
"What do you think, Doc, a C-section?" I suggested
scientifically. "Oh, very interesting," he murmured. "Mr. and Mrs. Cameron, may I speak to you privately for a moment?" I gulped, nodding for my son to step outside. "Is Ernie going to be okay?" my wife asked.
"Oh, perfectly," the vet assured us. "This lizard is not in labor. In fact, that isn't EVER going to happen . . . Ernie is a boy. You see, Ernie is a young male. And occasionally, as they come into maturity, like most
male species, they um . . . um . . . masturbate. Just the way he did, lying on his back." He blushed, glancing at my wife. We were silent, absorbing this. "So, Ernie's just . . . just . . . excited," my wife offered. "Exactly," the vet replied, relieved that we understood.
More silence. Then my vicious, cruel wife started to giggle. And giggle. And then even laugh loudly.
"What's so funny?" I demanded, knowing, but not believing that the woman I married would commit the upcoming affront to my flawless manliness. Tears were now running down her face. "It's just . . that . . . I'm picturing you pulling on its . . . its . . .teeny little . . ." She gasped for more air to bellow in laughter once
more. "That's enough," I warned. We thanked the vet and hurriedly bundled the lizard and our son back into the car. He was glad everything was going to be
okay.
"I know Ernie's really thankful for what you did, Dad," he told me. "Oh, you have NO idea," my wife agreed, collapsing with laughter.

Two lizards: $140.
One cage: $50.
Trip to the vet: $30.
Memory of your husband pulling on a lizard's winkie:
Priceless!
Moral of the story: Pay attention in biology class. Lizards lay eggs.

Sorry for the R-rated story, but I figured everyone would get a great laugh out of this, like I did. Sorry for those that may be offended. It was not intentional.

Okay, after the days and days of blogs about the illegal library employee and her hard working family...a question continues to run through my mind and I would love to see someone at Fox do an invesitgative report on this subject. Where does the money go???

If every illegal alien that "claims" to pay taxes, even if under someone else's SS#, then that means they are also paying Social Security and Medicare taxes. Where is this money going? Are these people actually getting tax refunds for the money paid into a "bogus" account? Where is the Social Security money going? Are they able to draw from that account when they turn 66?

It appears the government, federal and state, are not even attempting to check information from these thieves. Funny to me that they can send my son a letter in the mail because the electronic signature that we signed when filing taxes in 2006 never went through, so they sent a letter for him to physically sign for that tax year...but they can't figure out that a dead person is working and filing taxes and claiming dependants??? They can't figure out a social security number suddenly "appears" with no prior history of taxes, birth or employment? Our state government issues the numbers...can't anybody figure out that the "mystery" numbers are not in sequence with newly issued numbers? It isn't brain surgery...it is common sense.

There is something drastically wrong with this picture and our state and federal governments are the ones responsible for catching these obvious mistakes. Employers have a responsibility to check as much of the information as possible...this is true. But they can only check as far as the US and state government information allows. If the information is inaccurate, what portion of responsibility does employers hold? Should they be the ones to blame for our economic woes? With the amounts of money our government agencies make off of us...wouldn't you think they should be providing us, their tax paying citizens, the basic securities? Of course, if it was any other agency we were paying to provide a service for us, we would be raising ten kinds of hell with them to give us what we are paying for. Our government agencies are much more anxious to provide assistance and security for every other country in crisis, but fail to provide their own citizens with the same basic respect and concern. As another blogger stated in the "Illegal" blogs, even our most wealthy, well-known citizens are more interested in saving people who aren't in this country than they are those who made them wealthy and well-known.

A lot of people say that America would fall to the ground without the illegal hispanics in this country. If you use the ever popular "selective reasoning" you may think that is true. But, if you think about all of the free money, housing, food, material items and medical care they are stealing from our communities, then think about the 50 cents they may be saving us in labor costs per hour, the comparisons are non existent.

I haven't even brought the price of criminal acts that they cost our cities and states into the equations. The crime in my neighborhood was non-existent until hispanics invaded apartments a few blocks away. Now I deal with gang grafetti, broken windows, robberies, murders and the rising level of fear for everyone living in this nice, quiet neighborhood full of retired folks. Our cars are broken into, houses are robbed while we are at work. Schools are robbed by teenage hispanics. The "new generation" of hispanics are nothing like their parents and grandparents who were originally here to work their butts off for a nice way of life...oh no they are much different now. They have no supervision. They run the streets at night, have no restrictions to go to school, and think that Americans owe them something. They look at us like we are the enemy, instead of realizing the fact that they and their parents have gotten away with fraud for years, at the expense of Americans. They don't care what America thinks, what their neighbors think, or what their parents think. They will do what they want and dare anyone to try to stop them.

The (latest) murder in the apartments a few weeks ago( No..this wasn't the first murder there) told the true story of illegal hispanics in our country. One of their own people was murdered in broad daylight. Gunshots at 6am. Nobody called the police. When someone found him dead, they finally called 3 hours later. When the police were trying to solve this crime...nobody heard anything, nobody knew anything and to prevent being caught for being illegal, the parking lot was empty by the time the police were even called. If they don't care anymore than that about their own people, how can we even think for one second they would ever care about America?

Sympathizers have been the downfall of many countries in history and unfortunately America seems to be next in line. It isn't just about our country today...it is about the future of the America we know and love. It is about how our children will suffer, our grandchildren will suffer. How can you be willing to turn your head to the people who are draining this country of its values and crumbling our foundation of the legal system? It is a wonder that those who fight to afford us this right don't question whether we support their efforts.

If people still insist on denying what is right in front of their eyes...and they don't hear those who are stealing from this country admit it and foolishly defend it by saying they want what is best for their family (at the expense of your family success)...then I have to question what your motives are. Don't hide behind God. Only cowards hide behind God when they can think of no other defense or reason.

Okay...I am trying to plan a trip to Myrtle Beach from Winston Salem. With all the new by-passes and extensions that have been added over the last couple of years, can someone please tell me the fastest way to get there? I used to travel 311 to 220 to 9 and 1 and then 501 but I am confident there is a quicker way there nowadays. I hear there is a new highway that by-passes Ellerbe and other local towns, making it a breeze to get there. Yeah..it has been almost 4 years since I have gone.

Can someone give me accurate information about the new highways? I went to DOT and that was like pulling teeth. I don't think the site is even updated.

Thanks for your help!

When I bought my house three years ago, I bought it from friends of mine who were being transferred to another city by their jobs. I was excited to get the house, because I loved the way it looked and the room it gave me. What they failed to tell me was how high the utility bills were in this house. A 1560 sq ft. house upstairs and a 650 sq ft finished portion of the basement, with the remainder being laundry/garage area. The first utility bill I got in the house was a whopping $265!!! OMG...how in the world was it so high, when the heat system was propane!

I began to take a stand. I went to Duke Power's website and took their energy audit. Man..did I fail! Running a computer 24/7 costs about $300 a year...and I had 3 that stayed on most of the time...because we were too impatient for a reboot everytime we wanted to jump online for something. Light bulbs, windows, roof, insulation...whew!

I began by buying roll insulation and covered all of my exposed floors from the unfinished part of the basement. I got the blow in insulation and put another 7 inches in the attic. I changed every bulb in my house to florescent. I put two small lamps ..one in the kitchen and one in the main bath, using appliance 15 watt bulbs and I leave them on 24/7 so we do not have to use the overhead lights to get a drink or use the restroom. I replaced the windows on the whole house with duel pane. I replaced the roof. I turn the computers off every night.

I still have at least one TV running all the time, keep the heat on 65, and there is usually at least one of us home at all times...using some form of electricity while home. I have a 65 gallon aquarium that runs 2 filters, two air hoses, a heat, light and a UV sterilizer.

 I got my utility bill for December, after running lights outside and 2 xmas trees and me having 2 weeks off of work on vacation...and it was a whopping $90! I was afraid that the power company had made a mistake and I was prepared to pay the savings back the next month.

I got my most recent utility bill for January...it was another whopping $118! I am so excited! I am saving over 1/2 of the cost that I had when I frist moved into this house! The things that people tell you to save money on heating and cooling and on a basic electric bill works!!! It truely works! Try it and please let me know if you see the same amazing results that I see!

I just read the article about "Meatloaf", the cat that was shipped across the country because he climbed into a truck. I love to see it when pets make it back to their owners. I know of several cases where animals actually made it hundreds, if not thousands, of miles back home. It is amazing how enduring our pets are.

When I was a teen, we had a lab that was so smart. His name was Maynard. We had to move to another house, which was not quipped with a lot of room for him to run and play, so we decided to give him to my grandmother. She loved the dog and we thought it would give him someone to be home with him all the time and she had a lot of room for him to run free and do what Labs love to do. She lived 70 miles from us.

Three days after we gave Maynard to grandma, she called crying, stating how he had not come home that afternoon for lunch. She was so worried that he had been either stolen or someone had possibly hurt him. It was three weeks with no sign of Maynard.

One night it was pouring rain and storming loudly. I was awakened by a loud pounding on the front door. Not a knock, but as if someone was kicking the door. I went to the door and opened it. Standing there on the porch was a soaked and dirty Maynard! He was whinning and shivering. I opened the door and he made a b-line straight for my parent's room. He jumped on the bed...mud and all! He was licking and rolling and barking! My parents freaked out, but once they realized he had come all the way home to be with us..everything was alright. Determined and smart. That was Maynard. How in the world did he find his way? Incredible!

My mother had a cat that they basically adopted because it showed up at their doorstep. She brought it inside to feed and love on it, but it was insistent on being outside when she was working in the yard. One day, Mom couldn't find the cat. It had been let out that morning, but she had not seen it since. She was worried that it may have been hurt by another cat or dog.

Days went by with no cat. 2 weeks went by with nothing new. Then one day Mom was outside watering her flowers and she could hear a faint meow. She follwed where the sound was coming from and it led her to the trunk of a spare car my parents have. She realized it was coming from the trunk of the car, so she ran in and got the keys. She opened the trunk and there was the cat! Mom had gotten a fishing pole out of the trunk the morning the cat went missing, and apparently it had jumped into the trunk when she wasn't looking.

The cat was skinny and its eyes were dialated from being in the dark for over 14 days. Other than that, it was fine! It wouldn't leave the house for months at a time, being so glad to be saved from death. It ate like a pig...slept for days...would not leave my mother's side. It was a miracle. It made my mother and father more insightful about where he was after that.

Our pets are so strong and can endure amazing odds. We should love them and cherish them for being there when we have had a bad day. They don't judge us. they don't yell or scream at us when we are wrong. They love us unconditionally. It was obvious that unconditional love was present in the video of the man who was beating the pit bull. That poor dog was wagging his tail when the man actually bent down to pet him on the head, before he picked him up by the collar to beat him. That was unconditional love. That man will never know that kind of love from a human in his life. I can just imagine how he treats them.

Last night was one of the best games I think I have ever seen played in LJVM coliseum. Never would I have imagined that a new team like Wake Forest could have the capability to hold it together long enough to take a team like Duke down..boy was I wrong! I am used to seeing Wake start out well, but buckle toward the end of the game...allowing all that hard work to go down the drain in the last few minutes. Not this time!

Congrats Wake! You showed that you can do wonderful things when you work as a team. I am beginning to see similarities to the team that included Chris Paul, Justin Gray and Big E. They were not only teammates but great friends as well. It makes a difference on the court...and I see that beginning to happen with this team.

We have great talent and it flourishes most when players are not stingy with the ball...when they don't care if they have all the glory...it is about what you can do together. Working together and knowing all you can about your teammates is the key to a successful season. Continue on Deacs! Show us what you are made of!

It is about time that the city of Winston Salem cracks down on contracts with companies that employ illegal immigrants. Unfortunately it does not make it retroactive for companies that already have contracts with the city. When the contracts are up for renewal, then they will have to be in compliance with the new rules of not having illegal immigrants employed with the contractors.

Although we all know that most companies who have day workers do not claim any kind of taxes, etc... it will at least reduce some of the defiance that employers are showing by hiring people who are not here legally. Contractors can make excuses...but if one shows up on my doorstep to do any type of work for me, they better be able to produce some documentation for the mexicans that are in their crews. It is tempting to use companies that employ illegals..afterall, the price reflects the way the employer pays their employees and the benefits they give them. But to know that there are americans being denied a job because of the cheap contractor, then I would rather pay the price and know that I am contributing to the demise of illegal immigrants being in my country.

I just watched the video of the man abusing his dog over months of time. I couldn't help but cry. I am so glad I will never meet that man in person...I would be the one facing charges. Why in the world do you even have a dog if the only time you ever go around them is to beat them? Why would you ever expect a dog to trust you after the only attention he ever got was being beat?

I have had outside dogs that were kept on chains before. But in defense of that, they had a lead to run the length of an acre yard, they had nice hand built homes with insulation. They were brought into the house during cold nights, given a lot of love every day from us. We loved the dogs, but due to our schedules of being gone for extended hours during the day, we would never expect them to go all day without using the bathroom. Our dogs loved being outside, but loved the fact that we spent quality time with them playing or walking or bringing them in the house for a warm bath and a good night's sleep in the floor at the foot of our bed.

I hope when they find that man, they give him a long time in jail and make him perform some community service that involves dogs/pets. He needs to see what kind of damage he has done to this dog and show him what agony pets go through when people treat them as a disposable commodity.

It makes me wonder...what did he treat his children like if that is the way he treats the families pets?

Well...it has happened again. The price of a stamp is going up. It seems that since the government has given the Postal Service a little bit of rope, they are going to start hanging us!

Unlike other agencies who continue to raise our prices every time we turn around...the Post office was something we could count on to keep prices the same at least for a few years. The cable company and their "fees". The cell phone companies and their "fees". Duke Power and their "fees". Now stamps and mailing a package has become the new "fee" imposed on us by the good 'ol US government.

Of course 1 penny will not make or break us. But now that they know they don't have to follow regulations like they did before, it won't be long before it will cost you a dollar to mail a payment to Duke Power. No wonder more and more people stopped using letters to communicate and use email instead. I don't think I ever mail any bill payments anymore. Online is the way to go!

I appreciate my postman. The job is not easy. But I surely don't like Uncle Sam hiding behind my postman to dip into my purse again! IWhere I come from...they would "stick it to him"! **stamps her feet!**

Well, I tell you now...I love these blogs! Where else in the world can I express my pet peeves and have people who will validate them? Ha!

Handicapped placards are reproducing like rabbits! Nowadays, it seems everyone who walks into a doctor's office with a headache is given a placard. I wonder if I can get one for my ingrown toenail? (that sucker hurts!) Doctor's need to take notice that they should not be handing out these authorizations so freely. One day they will need a placard themselves and they won't find a handicapped space available in any parking lot because all of the bogus placards they authorized will be occupying the spaces.

Also, the people who use placards that don't belong to them. I have found 18 year old students using placards that belonged to their parents and grandparents, stating that they had a hurt leg and thought they could use it too. The worst was when a basketball coach was written a ticket for using his dead grandmother's placard and the officer took them to court for unauthorized use. Can you imagine? How dare they think they should have any right at all to use that placard, when they were supposedly an athletic person who was acting in the capacity of "mentor" to students on campus?

Does Winston Salem or NC have a way for citizens to enforce handicapped spaces? If so, please let me know because I would be glad to search for offenders and help enforce those spaces for people who need it.

Also..why the hell do you think you have to park in the front of the grocery store in the fire lane...just because you can? Please start towing those fools who think it is okay to park in a fire lane!!! They are putting people at risk by being so lazy. Get a grip people! The world does not evolve around you... I wonder what someone would do if they came out to their car and found it gone...all because they didn't want to walk an extra 15 feet to a parking space?

TOW THE LAZY ONES AND THE HANDICAPPED VIOLATORS!!!! 

Oklahoma law blamed for Hispanic exodus:Baby death underscores fear of measure from illegal immigrants, critics say updated 10:14 p.m. ET, Fri., Jan. 25, 2008

TULSA, Oklahoma - Edgar Castorena had diarrhea for 10 days and counting, and the illegal immigrant parents of the 2-month-old did not know what to do about it.

They were afraid they would be deported under a new Oklahoma law if they took him to a major hospital. By the time they took him to a clinic, it was too late.

A ruptured intestine that might have been treatable instead killed the U.S.-born infant, making him a poster child for opponents of a bill months before it was enacted as the Oklahoma Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act of 2007.

The law, billed by its backers as the toughest U.S. legislation against illegal immigration, took effect Nov. 1. It bars illegal immigrants from obtaining jobs or state assistance and makes it a felony to harbor or transport illegal immigrants.

"The sad part of it was the child didn't have to die if House Bill 1804 didn't ever come around," said Laurie Paul, who runs the clinic where Edgar was finally taken. "It was a total tragedy because the bill was there to create the myths and untruths and the fear."

A final portion of the law goes into effect July 1, requiring private companies to verify the employment eligibility of all new hires.

While it is difficult to characterize which U.S. state has the toughest immigration-related law, Oklahoma's goes beyond most because it includes the clause about harboring and transporting illegal immigrants, said Ann Morse, program director for the National Conference of State Legislatures' Immigrant Policy Project.

"What I think these laws may have are unintended consequences on the general public," Morse said recently. "How does the law get implemented? Who is the target?"

The crackdown and its consequences
The crackdown has caused Hispanics to leave for neighboring states, with as many as 25,000 leaving northeastern Oklahoma alone, according to the Greater Tulsa Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

The law's fallout also can be seen in struggling businesses, worker shortages and widespread fear among immigrants who say they are afraid to drive to church or the market because police might pick them up.

"I feel like I'm in some kind of Nazi country where if they see your color, you'll be stopped," said Maria Sanchez, a 22-year-old student who is looking to leave Oklahoma rather than risk waiting the seven years it will take to get her papers. "I can't work, I can't study, I can't go out, there's no point of me staying here."

Civil rights leaders call the law xenophobic and redundant, and they say other states will wrongly look to Oklahoma to push their own anti-illegal immigrant legislation. Business and church leaders also have been vocal opponents.

"Oklahoma was settled by immigrants ... which means that diverse is normal in Oklahoma," said the Rev. Miguel Rivera, president of the National Coalition of Latino Clergy and Christian Leaders. "It's difficult for us to understand a state which is so Christian, that to have all this animosity toward immigrants is completely outrageous."

Defending Oklahoma's act
Supporters — described by Dan Howard, the founder of an anti-illegal immigration Web site, as "good, American, God-fearing people of the heartland that bleed red, white and blue" — say the law is necessary because of Washington's bungled immigration policy. They also believe the law has helped deter crime and punishes the companies that make money on the backs of illegal labor.

The bill's Republican author, state Rep. Randy Terrill, said similar versions have been introduced or are under consideration in more than a dozen states. Last year, more than 1,500 pieces of immigration-related legislation were introduced across the country, with 244 becoming law in 46 states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

"More than half the nation will soon be modeling Oklahoma's bill," said Terrill, who plans to introduce a companion piece this year that would make English the state's official language, order schools to report how many illegal children are enrolled and require people or businesses who transport, hire or rent to illegal immigrants to forfeit property.

Terrill said there is no correlation between his bill and Edgar's death, noting that the child died in July, months before the law took effect, and that the law provides an exception for emergency medical care.

"To the extent that these illegal alien parents deprived their own child needed and necessary medical care because of their ignorance of the law, then they should be in prison, frankly," Terrill said.

'It's always the same thing'
Edgar's parents are believed to have gone underground following the boy's death, returning either to Mexico or going to stay with family in Arkansas, according to interviews with people in Tulsa's Latino community.

Far from the halls of the state Capitol, fear leads illegal immigrants to develop elaborate emergency plans for their children in case the youngsters should find their parents missing.

Irene Maldonado, 24, has been designated as the one to call in case her sister-in-law gets deported. Meanwhile, she worries if her husband, Jose, will come home on weekends from the construction jobs he works throughout the state.

She has legal residency, he does not.

"I don't know if he has less fear, or he's trying to be the macho guy," she said.

Illegal immigrant Maria Saldivar, 44, searches for what little factory work she can find to support her three children. Past employers now ask for papers.

"Every time I look for a job, it's always the same thing," Saldivar said in Spanish through a translator. "There was more work for me to do before."

Leaving Oklahoma all together
Even workers with proper paperwork are leaving for jobs in neighboring states rather than split up their families.

"My guy who runs my framing crew, he had 70 workers, and as of Nov. 1, he lost 35 of them," said Caleb McCaleb, who runs a homebuilding company in Edmond. "My painter has lost 30 percent of his work force, my landscaper has lost 25 percent of his work force."

Some in Terrill's own party doubt the wisdom of his legislation.

"We've removed not only those here illegally and working, but those who are here legally," said state Sen. Harry Coates, a Republican who voted against 1804 and wants to repeal portions of the bill. "I'm not the smartest person in the world, but I understand economics."

Vicente Ruiz, a 47-year-old legal immigrant who runs his own electrical contracting business, put it more bluntly: "It's all about making money, and if everybody moves away, the whole state is going to suffer."

Hurray for Oklahoma! I hope the rest of the country passes such laws to forbid illegals from working here and getting free medical care and education. The student who said she feels like she is in a nazi country should feel that way...she is here illegally and getting an education at my expense and is obviously too lazy to wait for the 7 years to become a legal citizen, therefore she is leaving the state for another one...just to leach off of them. That is the mentality of most mexicans who are here illegally. They do not want to do what it takes to be here legally, because they will have responsibility to pay taxes and do what is required by law for citizens of a country.

Also...I have no sympathy for the persons whose companies are suffering a loss of income because of losing their illegal workers. They should lose their license to do business in that state because they were ripping the government off of tax money the whole time they employed illegal workers. Serves them right. They didn't pay workman's comp, unemployment insurance, or health care for those workers. They didn't pay medicare or federal taxes on that money. The employers are just paying back for all the money they pocketed during the time they were stiffing the workers and the goverment. Maybe now there is room for americans to find jobs, that otherwise weren't able to, because of low waged illegals being in those positions. They were breaking laws and are lucky they aren't being jailed for doing it.

I sure hope that NC gets the guts to put forth the same effort that Oklahoma did, to protect their citizens from the ever needy illegal population. I am anxious to see just how much money the government in Oklahoma will save annually from not dishing out money to people who don't belong here. I am confident that it will more than overpass the monies lost from not having them living there. They send the majority of their money back to Mexico.