tuesday, march 16, 2004
news
the university daily kansan
5A
Student's murder inspires legislation
By Anna Clovis aclovis@kansan.com Kansan staff writer
A nearly three-year-long fight for justice has left Jeanette Stauffer in debt, and she wants to make sure other families in Kansas do not experience the same problem.
A bill before the Kansas House Judiciary Committee could allow such families access to the Crime Victims Compensation Act, which provides funds for Kansas residents who are victims of violent crimes within the United States.
passed, the bill would extend that coverage to victims of violent crimes outside the country. The act does not currently provide for families of victims of violent crimes outside of the United States.
Stauffer
Stauffer's daughter Shannon Martin, a former Topeka resident and student at the University of Kansas, was murdered in Golfo, Costa Rica on May 13, 2001.
while conducting research for her honors thesis. Stauffer said her family was $101,028 in debt because of the investigation of the murder and the trial.
Stauffer said
Staulter said she wanted the bill to be successful in the Legislature.
The only funding from the government Stauffer was able to receive was $5,000 from the FBI to transport Martin's body back to the United States.
Stauffer testified last week before the committee. She said the committee wanted to make an addition to the bill that would provide restitution to her family before voting on the bill.
Stauffer said she and her family were not looking for restitution, but was honored that the committee cared.
The Kansas attorney general's
office is in charge of administering the Crime Victims Compensation Act. In a letter to Sen. John Vratil, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Duane Goossen said the bill would not affect the attorney general office's budget because the number of claims would be low. Goossen is the director of the budget for the attorney general's office.
Jan Lunsford, public information officer for the attorney general's office, said the bill would protect Kansans traveling abroad, allowing them or their families to apply for compensation if they were victims of violent crime while abroad.
Although Lunsford did not know when the House would see the bill, he said he was confident that the bill would make it to that point. He said the issue was of interest to Kansans, especially those in Topeka who had followed Shannon Martin's story.
"It's something that hasn't gotten a lot of attention," Lunsford said of the bill, "but once it gets to
HISTORY OF THE BILL
After a year, a bill proposed by the Senate Ways and Means Committee, SB 265, is now in the Kansas House Judiciary Committee. Here is the timeline of the bill.
Introduced March 6,2003.
Passed by the Senate Judiciary Committee Feb. 6, 2004.
Referred to the House
Referred to the House Judiciary Committee Feb. 16, 2004
Passed by Senate, 37-3, Feb. 12, 2004.
Hearing for the bill in the House Judiciary Committee March 9, 2004.
Source: www.kslegislature.org
the House, I think it will."
Edited by Joe Hartigan
The bill is titled Senate Bill 256. Full text of the bill is available at the Legislature's Web site, www.kslegislature.org.
Business school students may receive 'Wall Street Journal' subscription in fall
By Rupal Gor
rgor@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
The Wall Street Journal may be coming to Jayhawk Boulevard.
With the help of the recently revived Undergraduate Business Council, students in the business school may get the Journal by next fall.
The Journal would be distributed daily to undergraduate and graduate business students at the University, said Dave Brown, Overland Park senior and council president. Brown said that the number of copies would be half the number of the students in the school because not every student picks up the newspaper on the same day. As of last fall, the number of business undergraduate and graduate students was 1.459
Brown said he was not sure how the Journal would be distributed.
Brown said a $1 per credit hour fee for all students in the business school would pay for the journal. That would give the council a $40,000 budget to work with for the journal subscription.
The cost for a student to subscribe the Journal this semester is $38.
The $1 fee is the most likely method of funding for now. Brown said he was not sure what the next step would be to bring the Journal to the business school if the council decides to continue with the plan. He said other ways to provide funding could come from corporate sponsorships or fundraisers within the council.
The council is a 23-member
organization of business students, all of whom also are members of various organizations in the business school such as the marketing club or the Alpha Kappa Phi business fraternity.
The council members restored the organization last fall and have spent this semester working on projects to benefit students in the business school.
Brown said that the students' main request, apparent from a survey conducted earlier this semester, was to bring the journal to campus.
The Wall Street Journal provides business students with finance and accounting articles, along with terms and information that correlate with what they are learning in class, said Matt Webb, Overland Park junior and vice
president of the council.
Along with receiving a hard copy of the Journal, students could access the Web site and take advantage of resources online, Webb said. Overall, he said, the Journal would provide students with information to keep up with current business news.
"Knowing what's going on in the business field would help you keep up to date with what's going on in the world," Webb said.
Webb said knowledge of current events was important when interviewing for a job.
The council will conduct student surveys in April about possibly bringing the Journal to the school of business next fall, Brown said.
- Edited by Joe Hartigan
Here's one way to help you find out.
Perhaps you're one of the rare women being called by God to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. But you're wondering, "how can I truly know if I've been called?" This free CD-ROM from the Sisters of St. Joseph may help you find out. To request yours, visit www.csjwichita.org or call our Vocation Director, Sr. Ann Letourneau, at 316-689-4030. You'll be eternally grateful you did.
doors love your out of your smile?
Domestic & Foreign Complete Car Care
LAWRENCE AUTOMOTIVE DIAGNOSTICS INC.
"We Stand Behind Our Work, and WE CARE!"
842-8665
2858 Four Wheel Dr.
SUNFLOWER OUTDOOR BIKE Spring Break Essentials!
lawrenceautodlag.com
The "Roo" from The North Face
804 Massachusetts St.
Downtown Lawrence
(785) 843-5000
---
SPRING
BREAK:
1 Week
WEATHER CONDITIONS:
Not so good
DENVER CO:
566.2miles
A-1 Automotive
802 Lynn St. 842-0865
off of 19th & Haskell
On the road to the Big Dance...
We've got your KU spirit apparel needs covered.
LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO SUMMER SESSIONS.
Get More in '04
- Choose from up to six undergraduate sessions offered in May, June and July.
- Take a full year of science, including labs!
- Learn about Chicago's art, architecture and music in class and on field trips!
Apply online today!
www.luc.edu/summer/04
For more information including session dates, course topics and more, please call: 773.508.3470, or e-mail: summer-sessions@luc.edu
Chicago's Jesuit University
LOYOLA
UNIVERSITY
CHICAGO