J0 ^ the bahalion la s conn 1 comple. i the in. )lems. Senate Committee Considers Legalization Of State Wiretapping AUSTIN, Tex. <**> — The fed- Iral government’s top wiretap lawyer told the Texas Senate ommittee Tuesday that defend- ints always plead guilty when as State Bared with wiretap evidence. le d these B <‘The cases never go to trial,” arl y la- Bgid John Bartels of the Justice Common B)epartment. Since the accused st work Binnot deny an admission in his !S or face Bwn voice, he pleads guilty, Bar- United Kris said. '• restric- B In three years, Bartels got au- Bjorization for 58 wiretaps, which he said led the nation. Bartels testified before the Sen ate Jurisprudence Committee in support of a bill by Sen. D. H. Harris, R-Dallas, that would le galize state wiretapping. The bill was referred to a sub committee after a three-hour hearing that included many un friendly questions by members of the committee. The committee also heard and approved a bill by Sen. Oscar Mauzy, D-Dallas, that would al low a plaintiff’s percentage of negligence to be subtracted from the defendant’s in accident suits. Under present law, if a jury finds a plaintiff even 1 per cent negligent, he gets nothing. The legislature approved Mau- zy’s comparative negligence bill two years ago, but Gov. Preston Smith vetoed it. The bill now goes to the Sen ate floor for debate. Harris’ bill would permit a prosecutor to go to zf state dis trict court judge and get per mission to tap a wire—or con duct any other kind of electronic surveillance—upon a showing that a major crime has been, is being or is likely to be committed. Unauthorized wiretapping could be punished by a $5,000 fine and a 5-year prison term. The victim of an illegal wiretap could file a civil suit for up to $1,000, plus punitive damages and court costs. Russell Ormesher, Dallas assist ant district attorney, said the bill was needed because: “We’re try ing and convicting the dummy, so to speak. We’re not reaching the top.” Sen. Jack Ogg, D-Houston, pressed Ormesher on what safe guards there were to prevent a prosecutor from saying: “This is a bad guy, and, Judge, if you’ll give us this, we’ll bring you back some evidence if you’ll just give us enough time.” Ormesher said the prosecutor and the judge were elected offi cials, and he talked of other fea tures of the bill, but he ended up answering Ogg’s question by say ing: “I think the district judges can be trusted.” The bill also would allow a prosecutor’s assistant to authorize a wiretap in “emergency” situa tions involving organized crime. A judge would have to approve the action within 48 hours. Sen. Charles Herring, D-Austin, chairman of the committee, said he did not like the assistant idea. SPECIALS GOOD WED., THUR., FRI., SAT., FEB. 14, 15, 15, 17, 1973 LIMIT RIGHTS RESERVED ONELESS SHOULDER 7? $ U.S.D.A. CHOICE BEEF ■L™, SWISS STEAK-"*-”-- • ROUND BOME^ARM ..1^1^ OH EES E skaggs aisertson s siNG “?f. A . p . p . E ? mg 69 BONELESS CURESrHAMS^-.j! 7 ’ SLICED BACON dickirs QUALITY OR janh LEE l195* BONELESS STEWi;Z‘^™ZZ*T 1 oa PIZZA MAR.OS PEPPERONI 9 „ S|ZE EA 79* TURKEYS SWIFT S PREMIUM BUTTERBALl 10 TO 22 LB. AVG. ^ Kj| ^ i DELICATESSEN-SNACK BAR BABY SWISS CHEESE " $ 1‘ 5 IMPORTED HAM SS *1" BBQ BEEF BRISKET = $ 2 3 ’ HOT CORNED BEEF SANDWICHES69* NORTHERN BATHROOM TISSUE ROLL 365.60 SQ. FT. U.S. NO. 1 BANANAS m I :. ■ . f 1% M K ji L Mi ■' M GOLDEN RIPE COTTAGE CHEESE—29 C COCOA MIX, SWISS . M ! SS . is* BLACK PEPPER “ ,c !!..i39* YOGURT JOHNSTONS ASST. FLAVORS 1 ^ 3 -t HEART SHAPED CAKES c ;.>s . ORANGES 4 m. $ 1 00 CAULIFLOWER....™ ....5R* POT ATO ES. !“ i ." 5 59^ APPLES = 3 r 68* MUSHROOMS — 99* SWANSON POT PIES CHICKEN, . m 1 TURKEY gl T 1 8 ■IF OZ. FRENCH BREAD 4 - $ 1 JANET LEE ORANGE JUICE i $ l ''CHOCOLATE FUDGE BROWNIES 2D *| NIBLETS CORN BUTTER SAUCE $ 4 o’z 0 *1 PKG. LEMON MERINGUE PIES 179* $ 2 LAYER WITH .A LARGE ROSE IN THE CENTER SPECIAL ASSORTMENT HOURS MON. THRU SAT. SA.M.U 12 P.M. SUNDAY • A.M.t« 10 P.M. [Aj SKAGGS ALBERTSONS DRUGS & FOODS BAR SOAP ZEST t FABRIC SOFTNER DOWNEY 64 OZ. BOTTLE LIQUID CLEANER MR. CLEAN 4 UNIVERSITY DRIVE AT COLLEGE AVENUE “I want the man himself (the district attorney). I want him to go to the pen for five years for a violation,” Herring said. Mike Hinton, Houston assistant district attorney, said: “We need this bill very badly.” Hinton works fulltime on or ganized crime. “Houston, for in stance, is wide open,” he said. “ . . . They are coming. Indeed, I can tell you they are already there.” Sam Houston Clinton, an Aus tin lawyer representing the Texas Civil Liberties Union, spoke against the bill. “This bill moves us one step closer to 1984,” Clinton said. “This is a wide open, pervading, per missive electronic surveillance bill.” U. S. Dollar Devaluation Explained By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS The dollar has been devalued. What does it really mean to the average American? Here are some questions and answers: Q. What is devaluation? A. The dollar devaluation an nounced Monday means a dollar can be exchanged for 10 per cent less currency of a foreign coun try. If you go to Germany and ask for change of a dollar, you will get, roughly, 2.9 marks in stead of 3.2. If you buy a Volkswagen there or here, it will cost you more dol lars even if the car’s price in marks is the same. Q. Does it affect American goods I buy in the United States? A. No. An American car or an American soft drink will cost the same as before. Q. Why was the dollar deval ued? A. The United States lately has run up major trade deficits by importing much more than it ex ported. This created a large sup ply of dollars held abroad. In vestors abroad began to worry about the value of these dollars because of American inflation. Q. What will devaluation do? A. The hope is that by making foreign imports more expensive in the United States and U.S. ex ports cheaper abroad, it will bring the U.S. trade deficit back into balance. It will make foreign trav el more costly, foreign imports more expensive. But it might in crease employment at home by opening up foreign markets. It takes more than Birth Defects are forever ...unless you help. March of Dimes THIS SPACE CONTRIBUTED BY THE PUBLISHER