Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 24, 1981)
State / National THE BATTALION TUESDAY, MARCH 24, 1981 Page 7 tMCourt rejects family code suit faril ^ I H m United Press International ■) ACI1 1| WASHINGTON — The Sup Jpie Court Monday rejected a '^quittanceiftbM 1608 ?.^ 0 the Texas , f mge claimed the act discrimin- mul commissioner stes against unwed fathers of ille- ihod Johnson thesti'P t ' ,na,:e children, k to the land onvT The justices let stand a ruling a ' had paid taxes for n 13115 daughter, born out of wed- fa century, said hen Me could be adopted. However, a support of the pr Justices William Brennan, Byron tional amendment ' White and Thurgood Marshall state to give up the tpd they would have heard the aably would helpwr; case ns. | While she was 14 and attending Kh school, Cynthia Tuttle gave . 1 ^ r Erth to a baby girl in March 1977 q )0 y ro ™ the ''-at a home for unwed mothers run C dS 1 W i a , nte ,t°^B Catholic Charities of Gal- (qin aie solutiontt» on .jj ous t on u , Armstrong sail 1 Tuttle, who was not married, KCided to give the baby, Tarra aid those meeting c-jElizabeth, up for adoption. Catho- s office Mondayger .lie Charities filed suit in Harris he constitution wilhCounty under the state’s family icnded to permittt code to terminate the parent-child up its claim to theplationship in order to place the i the attorney gem child for adoption, search to determine® The father, James Oldag, who ire can give up 4 .was 18 and a high school senior at a vote of the peoplf the time the baby was conceived, filed a cross-suit to legitimate the child and obtain custody. —BlAfter trial, the court ruled in nr of placing the child up for adoption. Oldag appealed on grounds the state’s family law dep- Bed him of the same rights afforded the mother of an illegiti mate child. HA state civil appeals court re- fiked his arguments and the pxas Supreme Court affirmed. noting the state law says a parent- child relationship exists between a “parent” and a child. A father qualifies as a “parent” only when his paternity has been estab lished, the court said. Once this is established, he has “equal rights with the mother who is identified as the child’s parent at birth.” The state’s top court noted Texas’ objective in requiring the biological father to establish his status as a parent was to avoid treating “a sperm donor, a rapist, a ‘hit and run’ lover, an adulterer and the like in the same legal sta tus as a father who had accepted the legal and moral commitment to his family.” Oldag was given notice of the proceedings necessary to place the child for adoption, but a jury found it was not in the child’s best interest that Oldag have parental rights, the Texas high court said. Oldag “never lived with, raised or established any kind of relation ship with the child, having seen her only the one time shortly after her birth,” the court noted. Thus a father who has not “established a substantial family relationship” with his child cannot except the same treatment under the law as a mother, the court said. Oldag appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, arguing the law discriminated on the basis of sex because it treated unwed fathers differently than mothers and married fathers. Catholic Charities filed legal papers opposing high court re view, arguing that Oldag had been given notice of all court hearings in the case but did not file a proper statment of paternity. Both sides gave contrasting views of Oldag’s fitness to be a father. His papers said he was a Boy Scout, a “hard worker and saves his money and lives at home. sharing in the responsibility of car ing for his niece and nephew. ” Catholic Charities said Oldag was arrested on a rape charge, had been picked up in a marijuana bust and arrested for assault with a knife. Solar energy project begins in Crosbyton United Press International CROSBYTON — Steam created by the sun’s rays Monday began turning a turbine at the Crosbyton Solar Power Project, creating the first commercial electricity produced by a solar steam generator. The $6 million project of Texas Tech University and the U.S. Department of Energy was to have been put into service at a ceremony Friday, but a cloud cover and sandstorm shut out the sun, canceling the demonstration part of the ceremony. The system began producing electricity at 11:30 a.m. Monday as sun from a clear sky fell on the huge solar collector. The generator, which now produces enough electricity for about 15 homes in Crosbyton, is a prototype for what Texas Tech engineers and DOE officials hope will be a large solar steam system for the town. Congress is considering funding for the expanded project. Senate votes to give $36 million for jails United Press International AUSTIN — The Senate voted Monday to appropriate $35 million for |ison construction and to permit the prison system to use $250,000 of hat money for a work release program to begin immediately, if The House has already approved the $35 million for new inmate giusing but has not voted on the amendment, which Sen. Kent ]aperton, D-Bryan, said he introduced at the request of the Depart- nent of Corrections. As of Friday morning, Caperton said, 2,472 inmates of Texas prisons vere sleeping on the floor. I; “This will allow the TDC to immediately address the problem that las become so vivid in everyone’s mind,” Caperton said. “Something ms to be done because it is right, regardless of what a federal judge Hs.” '■ U. S. District Judge William Wayne Justice has ordered the Texas psons to relieve overcrowding, understaffing and other problems in he system. Sen. Ed Howard, D-Texarkana, the only vote against the appropria- gm, explained that he resents the interference of federal judges in Texas spending decisions. ^ “In this case, they are spending $35 million of our money today,” Howard said. i He also criticized Gov. William P. Clements for vetoing an approp- iation in 1979 for prison construction. ||;“This Legislature last session met its obligation,” Howard said. I Sen. Carlos Truan, D-Corpus Christi, asked Caperton if he expects the governor to veto the appropriation this year. j|‘Tt is my understanding that it will not be vetoed,” Caperton said. In fact, he has designated it an emergency.” I “The taxpayers of this state are having to pay $5 million more than the figures showed it would have cost two years ago,” Truan said. | Truan also complained that the governor turns down too many parole recommendations. | The Board of Corrections has voted to spend the $35 million for dormitory-style housing at three existing prison sites. Jester, Beto and Coffield. Each site will house 960 prisoners. | The Department of Corrections has requested $268.5 million for new cell space in the coming two years. The emergency appropriation would come out of that but would be available immediately. Attention! If you haven't picked up your 1980 Aggieland, be sure to do so before you leave here — Student Publication Office 216 Reed McDonald Bldg. Monday-Friday 8 A.M.-5 P.M. ! USED I GOLD ! WANTED! Cash paid or will swap for Aggie Ring f Diamonds. ^diamond brokers International, ine.^H O Prescriptions Filled Glasses Repaired 216 N. MAIN BRYAN Mon.-Fri. Sat. 822-6105 8 a.m.-5 p.m. 8 a.m.-1 p.m. oocoooo^ SCO" g- * c \e s ' E 1 C - Scientist found guilty of violating clone rules United Press International SAN DIEGO — Internationally recognized scientist Ian Kennedy has been convicted of violating national cloning guidelines and conduct ing unauthorized experiments by an investigative unit of the National Institute of Health. Kennedy, a 38-year-old virologist at the Uni versity of California, San Diego, cloned the gene tic material of a rare virus not permitted to be cloned under federal safety guidelines, the unit found. When word of the cloning incident leaked, Kennedy’s research in the university’s recom binant DNA laboratory generated a worldwide controversy and triggered fears among some sci entists of a public backlash against all “genetic engineering” projects. On Sunday, the National Institute of Health’s Executive Recombinant DNA Committee re leased its final report on the incident and ordered sanctions that may end Kennedy’s research career. The investigators found Kennedy guilty of cloning fragments of genetic material from semli- ci forest virus instead of sindbis virus, which he had received approval to work with. Kennedy has steadfastly denied he deliberate ly cloned the prohibited virus. The controversial cloning experiment dealt with Kennedy’s pursuit of the construction of an anti-viral gene, initially against the sindbis virus. Kennedy said he cloned the virus — which turned out to be a semliki — because he needed “a lot of the anti-viral genes to do the experi ment.” The institute investigators also found that Ken nedy committed a second infraction in using the viral genetic material generated by the cloning to infect mouse cells, another unauthorized recom binant DNA experiment. Through a spokesman, Kennedy said he would have no comment on the report. He resigned from the UCSD faculty last year asserting that he was not granted a fair hearing during an internal campus investigation of the cloning. The institute’s final report concluded that “the seriousness of these infractions would be suffi cient to warrant consideration of specific sanc tions of remedial action if Dr. Kennedy still were receiving NIH support.” The committee recommended that if Kennedy applied for National Institute of Health research grants or support in the next two years, the re viewers should be supplied with a copy of the report on the cloning incident. Fellow scientists concurred that being outside the field for two years could end Kennedy’s re search capabilities. YOUR OPTICAL SHOPPE 15% off All eyeglass orders and non-prescription sunglasses from NOW until the end of March! Hours: Monday-Friday 10-6 p.m. Thursday 10-8 p.m. Saturday 9:30-3 p.m. YOUR OPTICAL SHOPPE MANOR EAST MALL NEXT TO WARDS. ■i ■ • . BRYAN Phone: 779-1509 Sales, Service & Repairs Emergency Pick Up Service 846-7580 1403 University • Northgate bsocccooococoeoooooooc |niiuiiiimmmHiiimiiiiiiiniiiiiiimnniyi (WRITE THE I I BOOK! | We can help assemble and print all your Short Course Materials. KIXKO'S COPIES 201 College Main 846-8721 Battalion Classifieds Call 845-2611 qLdort-d* March 26-29 1981 Guest of Honor JOE HALDEMAN DEALERS’ ROOM, ART EXHIBITS, WRITERS’ WORKSHOP AUTOGRAPH PARTY, SPEECHES, PANELS, MASQUERADE, DAYTIME FILM PROGRAM, BANQUET, AND MORE! TT»e year is 20241... 'ij*- JB23F THURSDAY a future you’ll probably live to see. ^ , Barbarello-ZGOp.lTl., A Boy and His Dog- 9:20p.m. ''M-utwi- 1 SKLmmih' '....iW i 1 FRIDAY: ANIMATION NIGHT Watership Down-7p.m., Wizards-8:50p.m., Allegro Non Troppo*10:40p.m., Fantastic Planet-12:30a.m. SATURDAY Close Encounters-7p.m., 2001-9:20p.m., Sleeper-11:45p.m., The Day the Earth Stood StilM:30a.m. TICKETS NOW ON SALE AT THE M.S.C. BOX OFFICE ONE DAY FULL CON A&M Students $2.50 $4.50 Non-students $3.75 $7.50 Sponsored by MSC Cepheid Variable