' I Page 12 THE BATTALION
I WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 28, 1981
National
- —
Tax hike rejection
may close schools
United Press International
BATTLE CREEK, Mich. —
Voters in a Michigan school dis
trict, unsure of their economic fu
ture, rejected a property tax hike
— despite the threat of a shut
down of local schools.
In a record turnout Monday,
Harper Creek voters refused by a
152 vote margin to approve a
three-year, 26 percent property
tax hike.
The Harper Creek proposal,
calling for a nine-mill hike in the
first year, eight in the second and
seven in the third and final year,
was rejected by a 2,532-2,380
vote. It would have raised enough
new funds to eliminate a $1.5 mil
lion deficit.
The owner of a $50,000 home in
the southwestern Michigan city,
would have seen property taxes
climb from $861.75 to $1,087, or
$226.25 annually, if the tax was
approved.
Under state law, another elec
tion cannot be held for 30 days. By
that time, officials said, the five-
school district will be bankrupt
unless deep cuts are made im
mediately.
“Now we may have to close
down,” Harper Creek School Su
perintendent James A. Brouwer
said. “We can’t cut enough of our
programs and still stay open for a
full school year. ”
Brouwer said unless the drastic
cuts were implemented by Nov.
9, the district will be forced to
close in early December.
“Closing the school would be
the least acceptable alternative,”
Brouwer said, “(but) there aren’t
many alternatives left to us. We
can cut, but we re talking about 25
percent of the budget. ”
As an alternative to closing,
Brouwer said, he planned to ask
the board to consider a system-
wide layoff of 19 teachers and 11
other school workers, elimination
of all athletic, extracurricular
programs and bus transportation.
In addition, food services will
be cut at elementary and junior
high schools and the school day
will be shortened by one hour and
15 minutes.
As Michigan’s economy has
worsened, the number of school
districts in financial trouble has
grown steadily. State officials say
the state cannot bail out the local
districts.
On Oct. 16, officials in Alpena
in northeastern Lower Michigan
closed classrooms for 6,800 stu
dents following rejection of a mil-
lage request. Another vote on the
levy is set for Saturday.
Last week, voters in the Detroit
suburb of Taylor rejected a 20.4-
mill levy and schools for 15,900
students are to close Nov. 13. Offi
cials, meanwhile, hoped to have
another election in December.
Three other school districts —-
Pontiac, Lincoln Park and Romu
lus — need an infusion of new tax
money to remain open. In Pon
tiac, voters have rejected the last
eight millage requests, including
renewals.
“No other state is having the
kind of economic problems that
Michigan has,” Robet McKerr,
associate state schools superinten
dent, said.
Michael Maddry, a sophomore accounting major from
Denton, and Dee Ann Cobb, a sophomore management
major from Roundrock, put the finishing touches on
Aggie jack-o-lantern, which took four hours to carve,
n
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Bottle diggers strike loot
from 9 57 payroll robbery
United Press International
WINDSOR, Conn. —A couple
digging for old bottles in a wooded
area hit real paydirt and unco
vered what police say was loot
from a $66,573 unsolved payroll
robbery 24 years ago.
“It just seemed like it wasn’t
going to end,” said Curtis Stoldt,
23, of Windsor, who made the find
with his girlfriend. “I couldn’t be
lieve it. I thought I’d hit some
money someone had hidden there
instead of going to the bank. ”
Stoldt said he and his girl
friend, Andrea Golden, 22, of
Hartford, alerted police Saturday
after unearthing a pile of coins and
then coming onto a “vein of
money” more than a foot deep at a
randomly picked spot where they
were digging for old bottles.
Police Detective Cmdr. John
Riccio said Monday that a dug-up,
rotted burlap bag contained
thousands of dollars in decaying
bills.
Riccio said payroll stubs pro
vided positive proof that the
money was the loot from the April
11, 1957, robbery at the former
Hartford Machine Screw Co.
Riccio said police were unable
to determine the exact amount of
money found because the bills
were in such lousy condition. It
was turned over to the FBI, which
will try to determine the amount
and verify the source through se
rial numbers.
Terry Shumard, an FBI agent
in New Haven, said authorities
were uncertain who could b
the money.
“We’ve been asking oursek
the same question and ive
don’t know,” he said. “Ifsposs! '
an insurance company mightk 1 l )rci
paid a claim on the money anil 0 ,, 1C
that case, they’d get it. Were® 1 e
vestigating that possibility," ■ ’ 501
Police never solved the
Uni
TOME
disa
flash
'others
lanton i
OK (
lers go
For 3
ry soul
unity (
oody p
rough i
bery but believe it was pulledJ
by a Hartford man, Francis Kdl
:
stilln
,en th<
h
kowski, 42, who died by his
Sen lay
hand after he killed an FBI agt
in a shootout with authority
week after the robbery.
Police declined to give thesf
cific location where the mos
was found in the wooded area
treasure hunters may descendi
the area' looking for more moa?
3 of 14 charges against
Presley s doctor dropped
nous it
True
lactmer
rrral, t
United Press International
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A judge
has dismissed three of the 14 drug
charges against Elvis Presley’s for
mer physician, a decision ex
pected to bolster defense argu
ments that he did not overpre
scribe addictive medications to his
patients.
Attorneys for Dr. George C.
Nichopoulous were scheduled to
open their defense Tuesday after
the prosecution closed its case
Monday and Criminal Court
Judge Bernie Weinman directed a
verdict of acquittal on the three
charges.
Weinman granted the acquittal
after determining the state had
not presented enough evidence to
substantiate charges that Nicho-
poulos illegally overprescribed
medication for himself and a can
cer patient, Robert Deason.
Nichopoulos still faces 11
counts of overprescribing addic
tive pills to Presley, singer Jerry
Lee Lewis and seven others.
“I’m excited about it,” Nicho
poulous said. “I think it will help
us a lot. I know it will help me a
lot.”
Defense attorney James Neal, a
former Watergate prosecutor,
would say only that his first wit
ness would be a doctor. He would
not comment when asked if
Nichopoulos would testify in his
own defense.
Neal requested the motion for a
directed verdict of acquittal after
the state rested its case, several
days earlier than anticipated.
Prosecutors Jewett Miller and
James Wilson cut their case short
after talking with Neal and saying
their next four doctor witnesses
would testify in substantially the
same manner that Dr. Alvin Cum
mins testified.
Cummins said Nichopoulos
grossly exceeded the bounds of
accepted medical practice in pre
scribing thousands of addictive
pills to Presley. Cummins said the
excessive practices were particu
larly outrageous and dangeroi
since Nichopou/os knew the /A
was addicted.
Before the state rested, Ns
told the jury drugs taken by 1ft
sley can make a person so p
logically dependent they "caii
make it through the day witlffll
the drug.”
He likened the withdrawalpft
cess to pulling a crutch awaylk®
a patient.
The prosecution has pro
evidence that Nichopoulos pis
scribed about 19,000 addict!'*
pills for Presley during the
months of his life.
Of narcotics in particular, l }
which the rock n’ roll king'' 15
addicted, Neal said, “Their abu*
potential has been distinctly^
clearly known since the first p* 1
of this century.”
Heart disease was ruled as ik
cause of Presley’s death on A»S
16, 1977. However, a portion''
the results of an autopsy shovvi*
superstar had 14 different drugii*
his body tissues.
ENGINEERING OPPORTUNITIES
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campus Monday, November 2, 1981.