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Thursday, September 6. 1990 / University Daily Kansan
Theft victims may pay twice
Pawnbrokers also have interest
By Christine Groody
Kansan staff writer
Kansas residents who are victims of theft may also find themselves in conflict with an opinion issued last week by attorney General Bob Stephan
Rick Trapp, Douglas County assistant district attorney, said the opinion, based on a 10th Circuit Court of Appeals case, stated that property could not be seized by police from pawnbrokers and turned over to the
Pawnbrokers have property interests in their merchandise and can require a court hearing to defend that interest before turning the property over.
The property will be returned to its
rightful owner, but the pawnbroker must be allowed to make a claim of loss of property, Trapp said.
Theft victims have two options for recovering their property when no suspect has been charged with the theft, Trapp said.
Another option is for the owner to go to court and request a motion for disposition of evidence. Trapp said
The owner may come to an agreement with the pawnbroker and pay him the sum of money he has invested in the property, he said.
Disposition of evidence allows the court to determine the rightful owner of property. Trapp said this option was often used in Douglas County courts.
If the thief who pawned the merchandise is arrested, the prosecution will try to seek restitution for the pawn fees the victim paid, he said.
Mary Horsch, Stephan's press secretary, said the opinion was issued to protect the pawnbroker's rights.
A recent incident in Lawrence has prompted one Lawrence resident, Lawrence Bodle, to take court action to retrieve his property.
Bodie's VCR was stolen in July and was found by police at the Jayhawk Pawn and Jewelry Shop, 1804 W. Sixth St. When Bodie went to the shop to retrieve his VCR, he was told he had to buy a $55 fee.
Bodie has filed a claim in Douglas County small claims court. His hearing is scheduled for October.
Jack Jacobs, owner of Lawrence Pawn and Shooters Supply, 718 New Hampshire St., said instances like Bottle's were uncommon in his shop.
"We have 1,500 to 1,700 items per year pass through the shop. Last year, seven of those pieces were reported stolen," he said. "When someone comes in to pawn an item, we assume they are the rightful owner of that property. Ninety-nine percent of the time that's accurate."
Jacobs said he did not sell an item until he was sure it was not stolen merchandise.
Pawshock owners are required by law to report the full description of the items they buy and the name of the seller to the police. Jacobs said
Most people whose stolen property turns up in his shop pay the pawn fee, he said.
Jacobs said property owners angered by the pawn fee should consider how difficult it would be to return back from a private individual
Speaker celebrates Hispanic diversity
Kansan staff report
It is important to recognize the contributions of Hispanic students at KU, the state secretary of aging said yesterday.
Esther Wolf, who spoke to about 2 people at the Kansas Union as part of the Hispanic-American Leadership Organization's celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, said September should be a time to remember the diverse cultures that make up the Hispanic community.
"The Hispanic community consists of Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Mexican-Americans and Central and South Americans." Wolf said. "Our language, heritage and religion is what ties us together."
This is the first year HALO will officially recognize the Hispanic heritage celebration at the University of Kansas.
Angela Cervantes, president of HALO, said that when the group decided to recognize the month, they chose Wolf as the guest speaker.
"Because of the confidence she has in us and the work she has done for
Esther Wolf
'Our language, heritage and religion is what ties us together.'
— Esther Wolf State Secretary of Aging
HALO we felt she was the best choice." Cervantes said.
Wolf is a Lawrence resident and KU graduate with a bachelor's degree in social work.
The department of aging, which has a $15 million annual budget, assists elderly Kansans.
Jose Vasquez, HALO sergeant of arms, said Wolf had been a mentor to Hispanic students.
"She has been very instrumental in getting HALO to the point it is oday," he said.
Louie Lopez, treasurer of HALO said the group had grown from 35 students last year to 70 this year.
Wolf, secretary of aging, discusses the Hispanic role in society.
Crumbling health insurance system affects KU
Kansan staff writer
By Courtney Eblen
A crumbling health insurance system that prevents millions from receiving adequate medical care has affected KU students as well.
Although 86 percent of University of Kansas students are insured, other through their parents' plans or through their employer's benefits through Blue Cross & Blue Shield, the remainder of the student population — more than 3,000 people — has no insurance at all, said Charles Yeager. He worked at Watkins Memorial Health Center.
Yokley also is chairperson of the health and public policy committee of the Kansas chapter of American College of Physicians. Beginning tomorrow, Yokley's committee will meet to discuss an ACP proposal devised to rebuild the health care system.
But since it could take years for any solution to take effect, Yockey is urging students who are not insured
to invest in medical coverage The benefits of insurance outweigh its costs
"We hate to see the most financially pressed students who can't pay the premiums," he said.
medical care jumped 18 percent in the last year, and that insurance premiums rose along with the cost of that care.
Mary Betzen, a spokesperson for Blue Cross & Blue Shield, said that
"The inflation of the '70s never stopped in medical care." he said. "It just keeps going. Clearly, something it has to be done." It's just going to
'The inflation of the '70s never stopped in medical care. It just keeps going. Clearly, something has to be done. It's just going to reach a crisis point soon.'
Mike Lambert
more than 1,900 KU students already had either renewed their coverage or had purchased new policies, and that she expected the number to rise
Student Health Advisory Board chairperson
Mike Lambert, chairperson of the Student Health Advisory Board, which is in charge of recommending candidates for the Senate, said that the cost of
According to the National Medical Expenditure Survey, 37 million U.S. citizens are uninsured. When under insured people are included in the survey, the number rises to 50 million one in four U.S. cities.
reach a crisis point soon.'
Yockey said 14 percent of KU's student population was uninsured
either because they could not afford the rising premiums or because they believed they did not need insurance.
"The chance of something happening is very small, but those people just can't afford not to have insurance." he said.
The ACP is one of eight national physicians' groups offering suggestions to doctor the ailing health care system.
The ACP plan, which advocates a complete restructuring of the medical care system, was introduced at the national ACP meeting in April. Yockey said that the plan would be discussed by each state's ACP com- ment and that suggestions would be made at the next national conference.
The ACP is considering a system much like that of the Canadian health care system, which gives equal health insurance coverage to the institution through taxes and standardized salary programs for physicians.
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Slashing of tires is random crime
By Debbie Myers
Kansan staff writer
In a five-minute period slightly before midnight Aug. 25, at least $500 damage was done to six vehicles in the 100 and 1100 blocks of Indiana Street, according to a Lawrence police report.
Witnesses saw four men walking along the street and heard the hissing noise of air escaping from car tires.
At least two of the victims that night were KU students.
“It’s hard to delve into psychological reasons why a person would slash tires on people's cars, other than for a thrill.” Muluvenon
Chris Mulvenon, Lawrence police spokesperson, said the department received 50 to 60 reports of tire-slashing each month. The crime is usually random and unprovoked.
KU Police Lt. John Mullens said that in the first six months of this year, three fire-siashings incidents and parking lots had been reported.
Most of the time, the tire-slasher has no idea who the victim is, Mullens said.
He said it was difficult to pinpoint a suspect unless someone witnessed the person doing it.
"It's something that people are embarrassed enough to be doing that they're not going to be doing it in the presence of other individu-
Other vanandalism, such as scratched paint and broken mirrors, sometimes accompanies tire-slashings, he said.
Mullens said that although some people slashed tires to get revenge, most did it simply to be destructive.
Dwyer said it costs at least $50 to replace a slashed tire.
"If we have a suspect in a series of car vandalisms, I would say probably 75 percent of the time that would result in an arrest," heomon said. "Far more times than, we do not have a suspect."
He said the two tires facing the street were usually the ones damaged. It is rare for all four tires to be slashed.
Although tire-slashings are hard to prevent, students can take a few precautions:
Don Bird, an agent with Farm Bureau Insurance, 544 Columbia Drive, said that tire-slashing was covered by comprehensive policies but that most students only carried liability coverage.
- Park in a well-lit area. Treslashing is a nighttime crime, Mullens and Mulvenon said.
- ais, he said. "It's a sneaky type of crime."
- Check your car frequently. Mullens said it was harder to find a suspect the longer a crime was unreported.
Call the police when you see someone acting strangely in a parking lot. Mulens said police investigators to investigate these situations.
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Daryl Dwyer, co-owner of D and D Tire Inc., 1009 Vermont St. said he thought tire-slashings occurred in Kentucky and Tennessee streets.
Mulens it was hard to find evidence because fingerprints or instruments were rarely left behind.
Mulvenon said most of the time there were no suspects.
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