Leaving water in the desert to save illegal immigrants = littering

[Sean]

Web-designer Walt Staton, 27, a volunteer with a Tucson AZ humanitarian aid group, routinely places sealed jugs of drinking water in the Arizona desert at the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, in the paths undocumented migrants use as they to attempt to enter the US. For that, he was convicted this month of littering. This criminal misdemeanor carries a punishment of up to one year of in prison and a $10,000 fine, according to information provided by the group he assists called, appropriately enough: No More Deaths.
Source: Allvoices.com (http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/3441711-volunteer-convicted-of-littering-while-trying-to-save-lives)

Now, I know that this is a bloody outrage, that in and of itself would make a pretty pointless thread since I'm sure we're all in agreement. My question is, how could this be improved so that the government would get off No More Deaths' back?
Having designated areas of the desert mapped out would be pointless as forces would simply camp out and pick the dying off as they arrived there. Biodegradable would cost much too much, and I don't know whether adding a sign on it to tell the passer by to take the container with them would make any difference in court. Any suggestions how to get water to people dying in the desert when the government is looking for reasons to stop you?

[GPDP]

By the racist logic undoubtedly at play here, they should be commending this guy for preventing the littering of American soil with dirty Mexican corpses.

Oh wait, we Mexicans are biodegradable, aren't we?

[Rascolnikova]

I don't see a solution.

Even if it weren't a matter of saving lives, the charge of littering would still be bogus--most of the water carriers go to the same spots and replace what's been used regularly, carting away empty containers and litter. . . although the immigrants themselves do often seem to leave a trail of odds and ends.

Immigration is one of the few issues that most people here still have something to say about. If not littering, it's trespassing, or they'll just start in with bogus charges of transporting illegal immigrants. Passing laws that protect water carriers is not a realistic option at the moment.

Sometimes it's best to worry less about legality and more about not getting caught. :/

[ev]

This is interesting, i saw a documentary of a native american (US citizen) who replaced the water containers on the US-Mexican border, he left the containers at the same location however border control and anti-immigration citizens would come along and slash the bottles of water. I think it was 50 immigrants that die each year as a result of dehydration crossing the border.

It's fucking disgusting and the people who make these rules and spend billions on border protection are scum..

[Misanthrope]

It's disgusting that some people value artificial boundaries and nations so much as to essentially kill fellow humans that were not born in the same nation as them.

[NoMore]

Littering is a major enviormental issue. Mexica... I mean Plastic water jugs should be disposed of properly.

The same people who made this law drive giant suv's and have private jets.

[Sean]

[I] saw a documentary of a native american (US citizen) who replaced the water containers on the US-Mexican border, he left the containers at the same location however border control and anti-immigration citizens would come along and slash the bottles of water. I think it was 50 immigrants that die each year as a result of dehydration crossing the border.
Never heard about that, but its about what I expected and so cannot see how designated watering holes so to speak would work.

[Revy]

While littering is not a good thing, if it can save human lives it is acceptable.

Ultimately, it is the anti-immigration policy in this country that causes migrants to cross the desert instead of seeking easier and safer means of getting into the US.

The xenophobic policy is the problem. Many people die trying to cross the border. We should give people the same level of dignity, and make the immigration process easier, so that they do not have to risk their lives.

A few water jugs left in the desert is petty in comparison the kind of littering that goes on all the time around America, and the landfills and many kinds of pollution that is released into the land, air and water by corporations. But you never see executives get charged for that....

[Rascolnikova]

Littering is a major enviormental issue. Mexica... I mean Plastic water jugs should be disposed of properly.

I'm not sure if you're missing the point on purpose, but the water carriers don't actually litter.



The same people who made this law drive giant suv's and have private jets.Analysis by one who has never attempted to pass environmental legislation in Texas; I have no way of actually knowing this, but I'm sure.


Please don't make conflicting interests where there aren't any.

[Misanthrope]

Littering is a major enviormental issue. Mexica... I mean Plastic water jugs should be disposed of properly.

The same people who made this law drive giant suv's and have private jets.

You're missing the point. The whole issue of littering is irrelevant in this case because the law is being used to stop immigration, to let the immigrants die in the process.