Who among us can understand the grief of William and Barbara Barnhill, or fail to admire their choice to be emboldened rather than embittered by it?

The Barnhills' son Kevin, 27, was murdered outside the Mason Pub on Aug. 26, a cowardly and senseless act that seemed as unlikely a way for a popular, bright young man's life to end as anyone could imagine.

His parents responded, not with the withdrawal or rage that many of us fear we'd display, but with a decision to pour their grief into a campaign. The two men charged in their son's death are believed to be illegal immigrants. The Barnhills formed a group, Citizens for Legal Communities, and began a campaign to stop illegal immigration and the crime they say it is breeding in Warren County.

All of us are saddened by the Barnhills' tragedy and touched by their willingness to use it for what they see as broader good. But those emotions cannot blind us to the dangerous, if unintended, undertones of the cause they've undertaken.

Part of the rationale that drives the effort is that illegal immigrants carry with them what William Barnhill terms a "culture of violence." Warren County Prosecutor Rachel Hutzel says her office has seen an increase in violent crimes by illegal immigrants although she has no hard numbers. She told an audience at a recent Citizens for Legal Communities meeting, "People who don't want to obey our immigration laws aren't going to obey our criminal laws."

Yet officials at the U.S. Department of Justice say they have no statistics to back up those claims. In fact, they say they believe the majority of undocumented workers conduct lives of quiet conformity, working steadily at jobs and caring for their families. A 1994 study by the Justice Department showed aliens - here legally and illegally - to be six times less likely to commit violent offenses than were U.S. citizens. Indeed, many law enforcement officers say, fear of deportation makes illegal aliens steer so clear of criminal entanglement that they often do not report crimes of which they're the victims.

That is not to excuse their violation of immigration laws. That is not to pre-empt the discussion of how the United States can deal with thousands of foreigners flowing illegally across its borders each year. And, clearly, it is not to deny the heinousness of the crime committed against Kevin Barnhill or the fact that there are illegal aliens who not only come here and commit crimes but come with a long string of offenses behind them.

Nevertheless, the danger lies in a mass of people being condemned for the sins of a few, and those guilty of an immigration offense thereby being accused of crimes they've never committed. And danger lies in every undocumented worker being suspected of being a criminal and then - who knows? - of everyone of a certain skin type or accent being perceived to be an undocumented worker.

What begins as a supposedly beneficial campaign by the most well-intentioned citizens can quickly dissolve into an excuse for bigotry and mistreatment by the worst-intentioned.

Then other innocent people become victims. Then a society gradually drifts to a place where misconception is tolerated - and then, perhaps, to exclusion, harassment or mistreatment.

Krista Ramsey is an Enquirer editorial wrtier. Email: kramsey@enquirer.com.

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