Tomorrow's weather
Kansan
Breezy with scattered showers. The high will be near 66 and the low near 36.
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
Sports: A tough draw in the NCAA tournament has coach Roy Williams rethinking his nonconference schedule.
See page 1B
TUESDAY, MARCH 14, 2000
Inside: Workers search for the missing bodies of American servicemen in Vietnam.
(USPS 650-640) • VOL.110 NO.116
WWW.KANSAN.COM
Chenowith to run for Senate
Spirit squad's needs top applicant's list
By Erin Barcomb
writer@kansan.com
Kansas staff writer
Most students probably will recognize at least one name on Student Senate ballots this April.
Eric Chenowith, Orange, Calif., Junior and Kansas men's basketball player, said he wanted to run for a liberal arts and sciences seat with the United Students coalition.
Students running for Senate seats must file with the elections commissioner by tomorrow,but the applicants must be approved by the commission before they are official.
He said he was not worried students would see him as a basketball player and not as a student senator.
Chenwihua said he found out about the coalition from a classmate.
"I really like this school, and they really know that I like this school and that I take that seriously." he said. "Other than athletes, I don't know who spends more time working for this school."
Chenowith said he would work basketball games and Senate meetings into his schedule as best he could.
Some issues Chenowith said he would
like to work on included enforcing the no-smoking policy near entryways on campus and getting more benefits for the spirit squads.
"They basically don't get anything," Chenowith said. "They get a stipend every semester, and that's about it."
Marlon Marshall, St. Louis senior and vice presidential candidate for United Students, said Chenowith expressed interest in getting involved with Senate and he had been working with the coalition since then.
"It's not a political strategy to get more votes."
Nickhell said.
Erin Simpson, Lenexa junior and off-campus candidate for Delta Force, said she hoped Ben Walker, the United Students presidential candidate, picked Chenowith for his refreshing campaign ideas. "And not as some lame vote-getting gimmick," she said.
Chenowith: Would to balance Senateate and basketball
junior, said United Students was interested in drawing students from all parts of campus.
"Just because someone is from the men's basketball team doesn't mean they shouldn't be involved." Walker
"I really like this school, and they really know that I like this school and that I take that seriously."
Eric Chenowith men's basketball player
said. "I think if Eric were to be elected senator he would be a power voice for students."
Chenowith said he ran for student government in high school but lost.
University Archives show that Kevin Pritchard, men's basketball player, won senate seats in 1987 and 1988.
Trevor Kohl, a Paola junior, who also is running for a liberal arts and sciences seat with the Resume Builders, said he did not think Chenowith's name recognition would be a factor in the campaign.
"Manning led the team to the NCAA title, but Chenowith can't even win the Big 12 with them." Kohl said.
Kim Fuchs, Senate executive secretary, said fine arts senators often had demanding schedules that often conflicted with Senate. Fuchs said their absences were manageable, and she thought athletes' could be also.
"If he thinks he can do it, go for it," Fuchs said.
Student Senate elections will be April 12 and 13.
Girl,15,says student committed lewd acts
By Sara Shepherd
writer@kanson.com
Kansas staff writer
A University of Kansas student is being investigated for engaging in indecent liberties with a child following a report by a 15-year-old girl that he touched her in a sexual manner.
According to a police report released this week, the incident occurred between 9:45 p.m. March 6 and 2:45 a.m. March 7 at the seventh floor in McCollium Hall.
Lt. Schuyler Bailey, of the KU Public Safety Office, said the girl's name had been withheld because she was a juvenile.
Bailey said the girl was an acquaintance of the suspect, and the incident occurred at the suspect's room in McCollum Hall. There was no indication that alcohol was involved.
Bailey said yesterday police still were writing reports but the suspect had been interviewed.
"We're still conducting our investigation." he said.
Bailey said after police investigations, information regarding the case must be reviewed by the district attorney before any charges could be filed.
"All law enforcement does is indicate the crime that we believe has been committed," Bailey said. "The reports are going to be forwarded to the district attorney as soon as we're finished."
The victim, a Lawrence resident, could not be reached for comment yesterday
Kansas law describes indecent liberties with a child as engaging in lewd acts with someone who is between 14 and 16 years old.
Lewd acts include fondling or touching of either the child or the offender, with the intent to arouse or to satisfy the sexual desires of the child, the offender or another. The law applies to solicitation of the child to engage in such acts as well.
The crime is a felony.
Kimberly Grassmeyer, assistant director of Student Housing, said housing contract terms state that a resident may be removed from a residence hall if their presence poses a threat to others, but all discipline cases are handled on a case-by-case basis.
Student housing policy also states that students' housing contracts may be suspended if they are either arrested for alleged criminal acts or have criminal charges pending against them.
Police expect to see rise in thefts during spring break
Many students will leave Lawrence for spring break, which may result in increased burglaries and thefts. One way to prevent theft is to remove valuables from cars or put them in the trunk. Photo illustration by Carrie Julian/KANSAN
By Jessie Meyer
writer @kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
With students away, the burglars will prey.
"I will just guarantee it," said Sgt. George Wheeler of the Lawrence Police Department. "Normally during spring break and nice weather, we do see an increase in thefts from vehicles and burglaries of residences."
Wheeler said that last week they already had noted an increase in thefts, but that there would be a bigger jump after the break was over because vacationers wouldn't know about the crimes until they returned.
Despite the burglary dangers, many students at the University of Kansas don't seem worried.
"We don't really have any valuables in our house," said Leslie Fitch, Overland Park sophomore who will be skiing in Vail, Colo., during break. "Our complex is pretty safe."
Steve Lumetta, St. Louis senior,
said that he was somewhat worried
about theft but that other than locking
his doors, he didn't know what
else to do when he left for Florida.
"As far as personal stuff, I will probably just hide stuff so if one did break in, they would be less likely to find it," he said.
Hiding things and making them less accessible is something that Wheeler said was a good way to curb some of the vulnerability.
"Most of the thefts are thefts of
Precautions to curb theft during break
Lock all car doors.
Remove valuables from sight.
Tell trusted neighbors you will be out of town.
Lock all doors and windows.
Make sure all doors close tightly behind you.
Leave a light on inside or on the porch.
Bring lawn ornaments and patio furniture inside.
Remove valuables from the car or put them in the trunk.
Remove car stereo faceplates.
Park cars in well-lighted areas.
Source: KU Public Safety Office and Lawrence Police Department
Maggie Curry / KANSAN
opportunity," Wheeler said. "They will go until they find a car or an apartment that is unlocked."
And this problem is not limited to off-campus housing.
"We do have a large volume of cars left here over the break," said Sgt. Troy Mailen of the KU Public Safety Office. "Students need to reduce the temptation by removing loose valuables and stereo faceplates if they can."
Melissa Gomez, a Shawnee sophomore who lives in Jayhawk Towers, said she wasn't worried about theft because of her on-campus housing.
"Maybe if I lived off campus I would be more concerned," said
Gomez, who will leave for vacation on Friday. "We lock everything up, but I am not too concerned about it."
Wheeler suggested some ways people could make their homes and cars more secure.
"Crooks are lazy." Wheeler said. "You need to make certain that your car, house or apartment is locked up and it looks like it is still occupied."
To do that, Wheeler suggested leaving a light on in the house or on the porch and bringing in items such as patio furniture and lawn ornaments.
Wheeler said another important thing to do was to record the serial numbers, makes and models of valuable items.
"A lot of times we'll recover things that were stolen, and we can't return them unless they can identify it," Wheeler said. "There are a lot of Sony VCRs out there, so you have to know the serial number and the description."
Despite an increase in thefts during spring break, Wheeler said Lawrence was following the national trend of declining crime rates. He there were 721 burglaries in residences, businesses and automobiles in Lawrence in 1997, 703 in 1988 and 561 in 1999.
"But it's still a significant problem." Wheeler said. "People need to take precautions."
Mailen said if a theft did occur, students should call the police right away.
"Time is of the essence in locating suspects and property," Mailen said.
Student, friend struggle for survival as ski trip takes near-fatal turn
By Sindy Greenfield
writer@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
For those planning to go skiing or snowboarding during spring break, Kevin Williamson has a warning.
It was Jan. 27, and he and his best friend, Shane Vok尔derking, who is living in Kansas City, Kan, were snowboarding at the Heavenly Resort. They wanted to have one more run late that afternoon, but instead of finding a snowboarding adventure, they found themselves in a fight for survival that lasted more than 12 hours in strong winds and temperatures of 35 degrees below zero.
He didn't have either of those when he became trapped in a makeshift shelter made of a rock outcropping and a snowdrift near Lake Tahoe, Nev.
"Never go skiing without a tiny Bic lighter and a power bar," said the Overland Park senior said, laughing.
and froze the lenses of their goggles. Trying to find their way back to the lodge, they went the wrong direction and trudged through 15 feet of snow for 2 hours straight, using their snowboards like a soldier would use a machete in the jungle.
They climbed more than 700 feet — across a distance of about five football fields — before they found the rock that saved their lives. Williamson said the decision whether to stay at the rock or keep moving was tough.
am temperatures of 80 degrees
a sudden blizzard blurred their vision
Hours after they had been sitting and waiting for someone to see the bright colors of their snowboards sticking out, the shaking and suffering from hypothermia began.
"It was like having a seizure for 12 hours straight," Williams said.
"It's almost surrendering by not being able to find your way back," he said. "We wouldn't have made it if it weren't for that rock."
Williamson and Volkerding did the
AVOIDING HYPOTHERMIA
■ Wear several layers of clothing.
■ Keep the head and neck covered because most body heat is lost from these areas.
■ Carry blankets.
■ Carry food and water.
■ Drink warm — not but hot — fluids.
■ Keep a slow, steady pace while walking.
Source: Watkins Memorial Health Center
best they could to stay warm. They sat face to face and pulled their arms into their sleeves, but this did not spare their legs and feet. So they started a routine. Every 15 minutes, the two friends would take off their boots and place their bare feet under one another's shirts trying to produce heat. Williams remembers telling Shane to wiggle his feet.
See SKIING on page 6A
Shane Valkerding recently became stranded in the snow while snowboarding with a friend in Nevada. The two waited 12 hours before they were rescued by a ski patrol. Contributed Photo