Kansas Relays: Annual track and field competition begins today. Page 1B
Vice chancellor: Second of five candidates to visit University today. Page 3A
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KS STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY 3
PO BOX 3585
TOPEKA, KS 66601-3585
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
NEWS 864-4810
WEDNESDAY. APRIL 16, 1997
ADVERTISING 864-4358
SECTION A VOL.103,NO.136
(USPS 650-640)
Bandit's trial delayed after third motion filed
Steven Hipp's preliminary hearing was postponed for the third time yesterday in Douglas County District Court. Hipp, Wichita freshman, was charged Jan. 16 with breaking in and vandalizing McCollium residence hall during winter break.
Hipp's attorney, David Brown,
filed a third motion for continuance,
which was signed yesterday by
Judge Robert Fairchild. The new
hearing was scheduled for 1:45
p.m. on May 20.
Douglas County District Attorney Christine Tonkovich said postponements were not unusual.
At the hearing, the state of Kansas will present evidence that it thinks will show probable cause that Hipp committed the crimes.
Hipp was arrested Jan. 15 on counts of burglary, misdemeanor theft, felony criminal damage and pulling a false fire alarm. Damage to McColum was estimated at more than $11,000. Damages included an elevator, a wooden table and an ice machine.
Hipp had worked as a desk assistant and security monitor at McColum. The arrest report said Hipp confessed to flooding the hall basement, damaging an elevator and writing two letters implying that rooms in the hall had been burglarized.
After the incident, Hipp withdrew from the University and moved home.
Pilgrimage to Mecca interrupted by tent fire
Kansan staff report
MINA, SAUDI ARABIA — Fires driven by high winds tore through a sprawling, overcrowded tent city yesterday morning, trapping and killing pilgrims gathered for an Islamic ritual. The official death toll was 181, but witnesses said at least 300 died.
Saudi Arabia said more than 800 pilgrims were injured in the fire, which witnesses blamed on exploding canisters of cooking gas.
Helicopters dropped water from above while civil defense workers utilized firetrucks to spray water on the flames.
Most of the dead were Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, and many of them were elderly, witnesses said. Some were trampled to death as pilgrims fled the fire on the plain outside the holy city of Mecca.
Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims were stranded after the fire destroyed an estimated 70,000 tents, which the pilgrims use for shelter in the final days of the journey. Civil defense forces from Mecca, Jidah and Talf rushed to the scene, distributing tents and supplies.
FBI lab agents guilty of shoddy workmanship
WASHINGTON — FBI crime lab agents produced flawed scientific work or inaccurate testimony in major cases such as the Oklahoma City bombing, the Justice Department inspector general said Tuesday. He recommended discipline for five agents and the transfer of the original whistle-blower.
But Inspector General Michael Bromwich concluded in his report that agents of the world-renowned crime lab did not commit perjury or fabricate evidence.
Attorney General Janet Reno said the damaging findings already had been raised by defense attorneys in 13 court cases, and there had been no change in the outcome of the case. Hundreds of prosecutions that used lab evidence remain under review.
Despite significant instances of testimonial errors, standard analytical work and deficient practices, the lab is still capable of performing its mission, Reno said.
Unite victors to pay the price
Four members to face fines issue apology
By Dave Morantz
Kansan staff writer
Scott Sullivan, Mike Walden and two other members of the Unite coalition must pay $630 in fines for violations committed during Sullivan and Walden's successful bid for student body president and vice president.
The elections commission hearing board decided last night that the members of the Unite coalition would keep their offices, but more penalties could be assessed Tuesday if the commission discovers that the coalition exceeded its campaign expense fmit, said Chad Perlov, Englewood, Colo., senior
—The Associated Press
and elections commissioner
commissioner.
All complaints against
the Delta
Force coalition
were dropped
before the
hearing after
the two coali-
tions
discussed the possi
b l eviolations.
Sullivan and Walden, both Leawood juniors, must also pay for a full-page advertisement in the University Daily Kansan, in which the elections commission will explain the laundry list of Unite violations, Perlov said. The violations stem from the coalition's failure to report the involvement of former KU student Travis Harrod in its campaign and the coalition's
Scott Sullivan
efforts to mislead the commission about that involvement. Sullivan and Walden each will pay $230 for these violations.
In addition, the advertisement will cost Sullivan and Walden mer.
Walden more than $600.
Perlov said that the hearing board had assessed the strict punishments to prevent similar campaign behavior in the future.
"This elections commission has been committed to providing a fair election, and if that doesn't make a
The hearing board also determined that the Unite coalition must pay a $160 fine for distributing campaign letters to residents of Corbin Hall without the permission of the complex director, a violation of the elections code and University residence halls rules.
party happy, then we're sorry they feel that way," Perlov said. "These rules were put in to ensure fairness and that all students have an equal chance of winning an election."
For her involvement in the distribution of the letters, Dede Seibel, McPherson freshman and winner of Nunemaker seat for the Unite coalition, was fined $10 for committing a minor violation. She, too, will remain in office.
Perlov said that he would explain the offenses and punishments during next week's meeting between current student senators and the newly elected senators. He said
After the board announced its decision, Sullivan said that he was not sure how the Unite coalition would respond to the punishments or if it would try to appeal the punishments.
that Sullivan and Walden then would apologize to the joint session of the Senate.
Sullivan and Walden had committed seven campaign violations, Perlov said, by not reporting Harrod's services and by intentionally withholding information from the commission. He said that the commission would determine the hours Harrod had worked on the campaign, apply the minimum wage to the hours and require the Unite coalition to report that amount in its expense report.
Perlov said that the amount of the reported services would push the
The president's pastor
Geoff Krieger / KANSAN
J. Philip Wogaman, senior pastor at Fountain United Methodist Church in Washington D.C., speaks to a crowd during the annual banquet at the St. Lawrence Catholic Center, 1631 Crescent Road. Wogaman is the pastor at the church that President Bill Clinton attends. See the story on Page 3A.
Student plans to file lawsuit against University
By Emily Vrabac Kansan staff writer
Kansan staff writer
A KU student plans to file suit against the University of Kansas, alleging that it has not complied with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Mary Drouin, Lawrence junior, filed a complaint with the department of education in August which said that the services provided by the University were not effective in assisting her to learn on an equal level with other students. The department responded in the appropriate manner, but Drouin is not satisfied with its actions and plans to file a lawsuit.
As a result of Drouin's complaint, the office for civil rights of the department of education drew up a commitment for the University's Student Assistance Center.
Drouin, 45, is legally blind and has a spinal degenerative disease that does not permit her to sit for long periods of time.
The commitment, which was signed by Chancellor Robert Hemenway at the end of March, states that Drouin will receive her textbook tape recordings at least three weeks prior to the date that each course's syllabus indicates that she needs them. It also outlines other guidelines specific to Drouin's case.
Drouin said that the office for civil rights didn't seem to understand
her complaint. The commitment addresses whether the services exist, and she wanted it to address the effectiveness of the services, especially the University's notetaking service, of which the commitment makes no mention.
Drouin said she would not accept the commitment because the guidelines only applied to her, not other disabled students.
"The chancellor wouldn't sign something if we weren't able to act on it and follow it," Marino said. "It's what the University has reached an agreement with the office for civil rights to do."
"For another semester, I'm a guinea pig," Drouin said. "After reading this, I don't suspect they'll do anything. It really is a wishy-washy legal thing."
Drouin said she was not asked to sign the commitment, even though it was specifically designed for her, except for the last section. She had hoped that the commitment would apply to all students' guarantees of assistance.
The final section of the commitment that Drouin refers to stipulates that students and teachers should work together to decide how to best accommodate each individual student. It says that if the teacher and student cannot
Rosemary Marino, associate general counsel, said the University was responsible for implementing the commitment.
See UNITE, Page 3A
Drouin said she didn't understand why no one would take responsibility to help the students.
"The Student Assistance Center is putting the work on the teachers," Drouin said.
agree, then they should contact the Student Assistance Center for help.
Drouin's complaints about the commitment came just a few weeks after another student, Brenda VanHyning, filed a lawsuit against the University also alleging that the University violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.
"I just don't understand this because this is the law," she said. "What are they doing?"
Michael Shuttic, assistant director of the Student Assistance Center, said the broad portion of the commitment would appear in the letters sent to faculty. He said it was a clarification that told the teachers where to call if they needed help in assisting the student.
"I'm working on letting the students know so that if they feel that they want to do this, I can write it up and they can sign it." Broun said.
She said she would also work on getting the University to purchase large-print books instead of only providing recordings because the recordings were often of poor quality.
Drouin plans to meet with a lawyer and file a lawsuit with the goal of obtaining better overall service for disabled students. She said she wanted to help other students file complaints if they wanted to.
Drouin said that her schooling had taken longer than she had anticipated because of the problems she had run into with the University.
"It's starting to change my feelings and the excitement I had about going to school," Drouin said. "I'm trying to get a life here. Mine was kind of robbed from me."
INDEX
National News ... 7A
World News ... 7A
Features ... 8A
Sports ... 1B
Horoscopes ... 3B
Classifieds ... 6B
Annual lake event depends on volunteers
PARTLY SUNNY
Clinton Cleanup to be held
High 58° Low 34°
Weather: Page 2A
By Ed Miller Special to the Kansan
"This is something we wouldn't be able to do as effectively without a strong community effort," said Dave Rhoades, park manager.
The 14th Annual Clinton Lake Cleanup, a cooperative effort of the Clinton Lake Corps of Engineers, local businesses and other volunteer groups, is set for 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday. Cleanup organizers said that they hoped to engage KU students in this effort to enhance the community's use and enjoyment of the lake.
Hundreds of volunteers from a variety of local establishments will once again gather at Clinton Lake this spring to rid the recreational area of thousands of pounds of trash.
Jim Franz, a park ranger, said that volunteers at the annual cleanups removed about 2,500 pounds of garbage and recyclable items from the shoreline and lakeside every year.
"Depending on the weather, we get anywhere from 400 to 750 people," Franz said. "Camping groups and clubs like the Boy Scouts always bring a good number, but it would be nice to see more students come out."
Niraj Kapur, organizer of the KU biology club and Overland Park senior, said that he would encourage members of his group to join in the beautification effort. The club consists of almost 200 members.
"I think it's wise for the Corps to target groups such as ours," Kapur said. "There is such a wealth of human resources at KU, and many students want to get involved in the community but don't know how. It makes a lot of sense to target them, to get them involved."
At noon, the volunteers will break for a hot-dog lunch, provided by the Corps, and volunteers will be given commemorative buttons for their service.
Franz said that the only thing volunteers had to bring was themselves, but he advised them to dress appropriately and to wear leather gloves and boots.
"We've been finding more drug paraphernala in recent years — needles and such — so we urge our groups to be cautious." Franz said. "Like the Boy Scoots say, 'Be prepared.'"
Clinton Lake Cleanup
1 2
1
Time: 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
When: Saturday, April 19
To volunteer: Contact the Clinton Lake Corps of Engineers at 843-7655
A free lunch will be provided by the Corps to all volunteers.