THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAS
FRIDAY,OCTOBER 6,2006
NEWS
5A
Part 6: Rose trial set for February
BY MARK VIERTHALER
The individual charged with starting the fire that burned down the Boardwalk Apartment Complex in July is awaiting a district judge's decision on whether to exclude certain evidence from the trial.
Jason A. Rose, 21, of Lawrence, faces three charges of murder and one count of aggravated arson with substantial risk of bodily harm.
The Oct. 7 fire killed University of Kansas student Nicole Bingham and Lawrence residents Jose Gonzales and Yolanda Riddle.
Through his attorneys, Timothy Frieden and Ron Evans, Rose filed a claim on July 21 claiming his questioning on Oct. 10 and 11 was coerced out of him. A statement prepared by his attorneys said interrogators used information illegally from Rose's records at the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services without his permission.
The statement also said Rose's Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and 14th Amendment rights had been violated. The district attorney's office challenged the statement, saying there was no evidence presented on
how the interrogators violated Rose's rights.
At the hearing on Sept. 20, the defense questioned the mental stability of Rose and how truthful his confession was. Evans used Rose's history of sexual and emotional abuse, his history of mental-health issues and his use of drugs as evidence of his state of mind.
The agency's files on Rose said Rose had a history of starting fires.
A representative from Judge Jack A. Murphy's office said the judge was still reviewing recordings to determine if any wrongdoing was committed. Murphy will then decide whether to admit evidence at the trial.
When Rose was brought to the scene of the crime, he repeatedly changed his story concerning the origin of the fire, according to court documents.
Repeated calls to the district attorney's office were not returned during the last week.
Kansan staff writer Mark Vierthaler can be contacted at mvierthaler@kansan.com.
— Edited by Shanxi Upsdeli
Timeline
On Oct. 7,2005 Lawrence-Douglas County and Fire and Medical receive a call at approximately 1:25 a.m. that the Boardwalk Apartments are on fire. The fire department gets the blaze under control by 4:30 a.m. An estimated 18 are injured at the end of the night.
Three days later, emergency personnel find three bodies in the wreckage of the building. The building has burnt down to the foundation. An estimated 35 KU students are left homeless.
On Oct. 12, 2005, a probable cause warrant for the arrest of Jason A. Rose is issued by the Lawrence Police Department and signed by Judge Jack Murphy. He is arrested after offering conflicting stories about what happened. He confesses in a videotaped interrogation that he started a small fire, but he didn't intend for it to rage out of control.
One day later, official charges are brought against Rose. These include three counts of murder in the first degree and one count of aggravated arson. He appears
in court 11 days later for his preliminary hearing.
One month later on April 10, the defense requests the case be thrown out because of lack of evidence to convict the defendant. The court document argues that the state of Kansas has not presented enough evidence to show any wrongdoing on behalf of their client.
On July 21, Rose submits a request to have his previous statement to court be thrown out, citing his mental health. He appears in court on Sept. 20 to defend this request. A decision by Judge Murphy is still pending
A list of witnesses three pages long is presented as evidence against Rose. Lawrence police detective Troy Squire presents evidence consisting of 911 calls, victim testimony and a transcript of Rose's testimony.
On March 11, Rose's attorneys submit a motion to get the 911 call from Helen Riddle thrown out as evidence.
VOTE (CONTINUED FROM 1A)
Jessica Alexander, Shawnee freshman, said she thought the effectiveness of peer persuasion was great only if your friends were as passionate about politics as you were.
Alexander said she was heavily involved in politics but her friends weren't. She said she thought she could have only a small influence on her friends.
She said the Internet was a good
"Students' votes are examined to see how many people vote in that age group," Loyd said. "The more students vote, the more local candidates will see that this group of people do vote and do participate and in turn, local candidates will target student issues."
way of advocating and promoting people to register online.
Mariel Alfaro, Wyandotte junior,
said she thought that people needed
to vote and that many students
would register on Facebook because
it was a site students visited.
"I know on KU's campus there's just a lot of kids that would probably do it because kids are on Facebook all the time versus kids whose parents who send them in a ballot they're never going to mail back in," she said.
Kansan staff writer Erin Castaneda can be contacted at ecastaneda@ kansan.com.
THEATER (CONTINUED FROM 1A)
Macy sat down to visit with the Leaches in Linwood for several hours at a time on multiple occasions. He also spoke extensively to Harold Leach during phone conversations and read through hundreds of pages of documents related to the case that included rumors, tips and court papers.
"We had to telescope the eighteen years down to a story that we could tell in an hour and a half." Lim said.
Despite all of Macys research, he said his play was not a historical
The play is being considered for several awards and is an entry in the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival.
Kansan staff writer Darla Slipke can be contacted at dslipke@kansan.com.
account of what happened. Rather, it's "loosely based" on what was believed to have happened on the night of Leach's disappearance.
BINGHAM (CONTINUED FROM 1A)
called if she was OK. But maybe she was unconscious in a hospital somewhere.
Her friends hadn't seen her after the fire but Nicole's body had not been found, either. Nancy drove to Lawrence.
When she arrived, firefighters asked her to help them search for Nicole's car. Five people were still missing and Nicole was one of them. Nancy knew where to look — Nicole always liked to park around back.
Nancy Bingham, mother of Nicole Bingham, sits on her daughters bed holding a Big Bird stuffed animal that replaced the one lost in the Boat walk Apartment last year. Nicole died as a result of the fire. Few Items in Nicole's bedroom at her house in Wichita have been moved since her death.
Lisa Lipovac/KANSAN
Nothing was left of Nicole's apartment, firefighters told her. The fire eviscerated the entire floor. Nancy wanted to leave, to isolate and to go numb.
Nancy said she had a pretty good idea of what happened to Nicole that night. Nicole's heart couldn't take a lot of stress. She couldn't withstand heat, either. Temperatures higher than 90 degrees sapped her strength.
On the Friday of the Boardwalk Apartments fire, the temperature inside the flaming buildings was more than 10 times that hot.
"I believe all the fire caused her heart to stop," Nancy said. "I believe it was why she didn't get out."
Several months earlier, chest pains had sent Nicole to the emergency room. After the scare, Nancy had broached a sensitive subject: "We know what we'll do with me," in terms of her own death, she said to Nicole. "But what should we do for you?"
Jack Davis, Lawrence firefighter, brought friends from Nicole's Alpha Delta Pi sorority to comfort Nancy. They insisted Nancy stay at the sorority house.
"I could hear their tears and my tears that night," Nancy said. "They just made me part of the house."
Nicole's friends consoled her, gave her space and checked on her often. The girls shared stories about how wonderful and caring a friend Nicole was. In a rare moment of lightheartedness, Nancy said, "Don't forget how argumentative she was."
The girls laughed. It was true — Nicole could be pretty bossy sometimes.
Sharing continued and more members of Alpha Delta Pi quietly entered the room.
Eventually 20 to 30 girls had gathered, "telling stories about Nicole, crying and laughing and experiencing a tremendous amount of healing," Nancy said. "The more I comforted others, the more comfort Iot."
"We got to hear about all the stuff Nicole did when she was little, and all the friends she made, and the things she did in high school," Denchfield said. "Nancy's being there gave us the ability to open up."
Meghan Denchfield, Pickering, Canada, senior, said the way Nancy opened up was one of the biggest factors in her own healing.
On the day before Nicole's birthday, officials located her body in the rubble of her ruined apartment. Nancy observed Nicole's birthday the next day with her sorority sisters and signed Nicole's cremation papers.
Several days later, a friend of Nicole made a tribute DVD with a special sound track: a Melissa Etheridge song called "This is Not Goodbye."
Nancy was struck by a line from the song: "All my strength, all my
desire cannot numb this present fire"
"There's just a numbness that comes, like a protective shell against the shock," Nancy said.
She stopped working after Nicole's death. A Wichita-based software designer, Nancy couldn't make her mind focus on the detailed job. Days became weeks. Winter came. Depression and nightmares enveloped her for a time.
Nancy wanted to stay in the moment, just like Nicole lived her life. Stay in the moment, don't focus on the future. Live right here. She didn't talk to the media at all, making only brief public appearances at Nicole's memorial services in Lawrence and Wichita.
Friends of Nicole kept in close contact via e-mail and phone calls.
Spring arrived. Mother's Day.
Many phone calls, letters and e-mails flooded to Nancy on that day.
A couple of months later, Nancy took the yearly trip to Crested Butte with several of Nicole's friends. They climbed the mountain, just like Nicole had always wanted to. Her heart condition had always stopped her.
Nancy is planning a short candle-passing ceremony at Alpha Delta Pi to mark the one-year anniversary
of Nicole's death. She also wants to be in Lawrence when Jason A. Rose, the man charged with starting the Boardwalk fire, stands trial in February.
Nancy said people have asked her if she will feel strong enough to work through the trial. Though many dark months have passed, she said she's ready to face the memories the trial will bring.
"Nancy is such a strong lady, she knows how to cope with things," Meghan Sullivan, a KU graduate who spent time with Nancy at Alpha Delta Pi, said. "I think she gave me the strength. If she can make it through, then I can."
The passing of time and walking through memories have been integral to Nancy's emotional healing, she said. Remembering Nicole is both the hardest and the best thing.
"She touched so many lives," Nancy said. "I believe that we go through hard times so we can have experiences to share with others so we can help others through. She continues to touch people who never knew or even met her."
Kansan staff writer David Linhardt can be contacted at dlinhardt@kansan.com.
Edited by Elyse Weidner