6A
Thursday, October 12, 1995
JUMPRIGHTINTO STUDENT SENATE
STUDENT SENATE IS NOWACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR THE FOLLOWING SENATOR SEATS:
- Fine Arts
- Engineering
- Liberal Arts and Sciences
- Graduate
- Journalism
- Off-Campus
- Non Traditional
APPLICATION DEADLINE: Wednesday October 18th at 5PM Check out the Senate Homepage on the WWW@ : http://ukanaix.cc.ukans.udu/~senate/senate.html
The University of Kansas HOMECOMING WEEKEND October 13 - 15, 1995 SCHEDULE Homecoming Parade Friday, October 13, 2:20 p.m. Chi Omega fountain to Adams Alumni Center See Chancellor Hemenway, the KU Band, student organization floats, Ex.C.E.L. Award winners and more. Parade starts with a rally on Wescoe Beach.
SUA Homecoming Show Friday, October 13, 8:00 p.m. Performance featuring Denny Dent and his Two-Fisted Art Attack! Kansas Union Ballroom. For tickets call 864-3477
NATION/WORLD UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
SUA Movies
The Bridges of Madison County 7:00 and 9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday The Exorcist Midnight, Friday and Saturday Woodruff Auditorium, Kansas Union All tickets $2.50 except midnight $3.00, tickets available 30 minutes prior to show at SUA box office
Football Game KU vs. Iowa State
Football Game KU vs. Iowa State Saturday, October 14, 1:00 pm. kickoff, Pregame at 12:40 pm. Call Allen Fieldhouse at (913) 864-3141 or 1-800-34-HAWKS for ticket information After the game, limited shuttle service is available from the Northwest entrance of the stadium (11th and Illinois Streets) to the parking garage near Allen Fieldhouse ($1.00)
Ex-mobster testifies despite retaliation
PHILADELPHIA — Despite the murder of his brother last week, a mob hitman-turned-informant took the stand against his former boss and associates, detailing two murders of men aligned with a rival crime organization.
The Associated Press
John Veasey, who went into the federal witness protection program last year, spent more than five hours Tuesday talking about his life in the mob under the tutelage of boss John Stanfa.
Stanfa and seven associates are charged with racketeering conspiracy. They are among 27 people charged last year as the government moved to end a gang war between Stanfa and Joseph Merlino, who wasn't charged.
Veasey's brother, Billy, was shot to death Oct. 5 as he drove to work a few hours before Veasey initially had been scheduled to testify. Officials speculate that Billy Veasey, believed to be a Mafia associate, was slain in retaliation for his brother's cooperation in the investigation.
Under questioning from Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Courtney, Veasey said he was recruited to kill Merloina by Stanfa's co-
defendant Frank Martines, alleged to be the acting underboss of the Philadelphia-South Jersey organized crime family.
Veasay's orders were simple: "Just kill anybody aligned with Merlino," Veasay said. He carried out his assignments with gusto.
"After I killed two people, I got a tattoo on my back ... it had two
1993. The hit was carried out a short time after Stanfa's son, Joseph, was shot in the jaw in an apparent attempt on his father's life.
builts on it,
Vesayse said. He
and Stanfa's
co-defendants
S er g i o
Battaglia and Herbert Keller
later added a t a t t o o inscribed in Chinese letters that read:
"Loyal and Faithful to John."
He said he also got a raise — from $300 a week to $500 $6981 billion
Veasey, a barrel-chested former drug addict, also talked about many hits that were botched. He often stared directly at Stanza, 54. Several times he seemed to be
"After I killed two people,I got a tattoo on my back...with two bullets on it."
John Veasey mob informant
— "after I killed the second guy." Veasley recalled Stanfa's reaction after Veasey told him that he and another Stanfa associate killed Merlino's ally Joseph Baldino outside a diner Sept. 17,
m o c k i n g
Stanfa.
Veasey also explained why he began taking antidepressants several months ago.
"I was having nightmares from the shooting and my family not being in the program," Veasey said.
protection program since pleading guilty to racketeering charges in January 1994. His relatives had refused government protection.
Veasey has been jalled and in the witness
Defense in Selena trial says shooting was an accident
The jury has not been told about Billy Veasey's murder.
The Associated Press
HOUSTON — The shooting death of Tejano singing star Selena was a cowardly act of violence committed by her former fan club president, a prosecutor told jurors yesterday in opening statements.
"The perpetrator of that act, the person sitting in the courtroom, Yolanda Saldivar, shot her in the back," prosecutor Carlos Valdez said.
Saldivar is charged with murder in the March 31 shooting at a motel in Corpus Christi, Texas.
But defense attorney Douglas Tinker said the shooting was an accident, that police failed to put that in their reports and in Saldivar's confession and that Saldivar and the singing star were like sisters.
"I didn't mean to shoot her; the gun went off," Tinker quoted Saldivar as saving.
Tinker also said the shooting
After Tinker's statement, Quintanilla was the first witness called by the prosecution.
was a culmination of a campaign by Selena's father and manager, Abraham Quintanilla Jr., to regain control of his daughter and keep Saltivar out of her life.
The jury was seated Tuesday. State District Judge Mike Westergren, who has said he wants the trial completed in two weeks, abandoned plans to seat two alternate jurors.
Saldivari, 35, rose from fan club president to overseer of the Grammy Award-winning singer's clothing business. Selena reportedly was about to fire her on March 31 for allegedly embezzling $30,000 when Saldivari pulled out a gun and fatally shot the singer at a motel in Corpus Christi, prosecutors said.
But when the tickets were distributed this morning, only 48 people were in line. The wouldbe spectators, some of whom arrived before sunrise, were easily outnumbered by a horse of reporters and camera crews.
Only 25 courtroom seats will be available for spectators, and officials at the Harris County courthouse were bracing for as many as 2,000 of the singer's fans to participate in a lottery for the seats.
If convicted of murder, Saldivar could get up to life in prison.
The trial was moved to Houston because of pretrial publicity and Selena's popularity in her hometown of Corpus Christi. Of 155 prospective jurors questioned, about one-third had heard of Selena.
The 23-year-old singer, whose full name was Selena Quintanilla Perez, was beloved by fellow Mexican-Americans who listened to Tejano, a spirited Spanish-language blend of country and polka. More than 2.5 million copies of
More than 2.5 million copies of her albums have sold since her death.
Simpson flees interview scene
1
The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — O.J. Simpson canceled last night's live interview on NBC after his lawyers balked at the no-holds-barred format the network had demanded.
"NBC News had a clear understanding as of (Tuesday) morning with Mr. Simpson and his lawyers that there would be no conditions attached to this interview," NBC anchor Tom Brokaw said in a live special report.
The interview was scheduled for last night on "Dateline NBC." It would have been Simpson's first extensive interview since he was acquitted of the murders of his ex-wife and her friend.
"But Mr. Simpson's lawyers overnight prevailed upon him not to participate, they said, because of the civil suits he faces from the families of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman," Brokaw said.
NBC had said it would conduct the interview only if it were done with no ground rules.
Simpson never took the stand at his yearlong murder trial but may have to do so if the wrongful death lawsuits reach trial.
Since his acquittal last week, Simpson has made few public comments.
Simpson's lawyers didn't immediately return calls to The Associated Press yesterday.
The inte. view promised to be a ratings bonanza for NBC. But it also drew criticism, scared off advertisers and forced other networks to change programming.
The cancellation was a victory for protesters who think any rehabilitation of Simpson's image is a setback in the fight against domestic violence.
"Our reaction is I don't know why anyone should be surprised. Mr. Simpson has acted like a coward throughout this trial," said Tammy Bruce, president of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Association for Women.
view. But Gumbel reluctantly agreed not to participate after Simpson cited their 20-year friendship.
Andrew Lack, president of NBC News, said Gumbel could have presented a conflict of interest but denied Simpson asked that his old friend be excluded.
Initially, "Today" host Bryant Gumbel was to join Brokaw and Katie Couric in conducting the inter-
"As I understand it, O.J. was adamant that I not conduct the interview, based on our previous relationship," Gumbel told the Daily News of
"...I don't know why anyone should be surprised. Mr. Simpson has acted like a coward throughout this trial."
Tammy Bruce
National Association for Women
New York. "That is painful to me but I understand that doesn't leave NBC with much choice."
Gumbel called in sick Tuesday for "Today" show duty and wasn't on yesterday, either. He may be out the rest of the week.
NBC representatives said the network had planned to broadcast the interview without commercials to reinforce the point that neither Simpson nor the network would have made a profit in that hour.
initially was said to be pursuing a lucrative pay TV interview but found major companies going on the record against such an enterprise.
A commentator on NBC's football coverage before his arrest, Simpson
Some advertisers represented by Grey Advertising had insisted their
commercials be pulled from the program, The New York T i m e s reported yesterday.
Simpson's goal seemed to be to regain his good name among those who remained upset by the
"This man did abuse his wife," said Jon Mandel, the company's senior vice president. "Most network programming has a target audience of women."
verdict or disturbed by accounts of domestic abuse during his relationship with Ms. Simpson.
"It's clear to me I ought to do that (an interview) now, or else I'm going to continue in a life that I'm uncomfortable with at the moment," Lack quoted Simpson as telling NBC executive and friend Don Ohlmeyer.
.