By Signe K. Skinion

SIUC will face S & M Enterprises, owner of the Stevenson Arms, in court on Friday concerning a motion of a contempt for allegedly not following a December preliminary injunction over the proposed change in freshmen housing policy for the 1996-97 school year, University officials say.

A preliminary injunction ordering SIUC to delay telling prospective freshmen of a possible change in housing policy that restricts where freshmen can live, was issued by Judge Richard Aguirre of the 20th Judicial Circuit Court in St. Clair County on Dec. 14. On Dec. 29, Aguirre heard a motion to clarify the preliminary injunction and said it was to preserve the status quo, including all rights and privileges of freshman approved status.

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Stanley R. Lieber, landlord of Stevenson Arms, 600 W. Mill St., and a SIUC geography professor, said he filed the motion because the University neglected to follow Aguirre’s preliminary injunction. He said by not mailing brochures telling prospective freshman about their choice to live in off-campus, University-approved housing, the University was not complying with the preliminary injunction and was therefore in contempt of the order.

We have filed a motion for contempt against the University for not complying with the original injunction, Lieber said. They began by saying the order was vague, so when we went to the judge, he took the vagueness out.

However, what they are trying to do is interpret the order the way they want it to read, not how it does read.

University officials said they were unable to comment because of pending litigation.

In the past years, University Housing sent prospective freshmen information regarding where they could live. The information included brochures from University-approved off-campus housing facilities, such as Stevenson Arms.

A policy that was to be implemented for the 1996-97 school year which stated new freshmen could only live in University-owned housing was passed by the SIU Board of Trustees. Lieber said this policy did not follow due process by allowing the landlords of the University-approved facilities a chance to voice their opinion about the change in time.

University Housing sent out about 4,000 brochures to prospective freshmen with the new policy stated. Since the preliminary injunction was issued, some prospective freshmen have not received the information about University-approved off-campus housing that the school is required to issue by the judge’s order, Lieber said.

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Lieber said he hopes the hearing on Friday will help the University gain perspective on its failure to comply with the preliminary injunction.

I hope that Friday the judge takes a hatchet and buries it right down the middle of their little minds and makes them comply with the previous message, Lieber said. This is the University’s third time on this issue. The judge could do anything from issuing them legal fees, monetary damages he can even put them in jail.

The hearing will be Friday morning, but the time has not been released.