Page 4/The Battalion/Tuesday, June 7, 1983
1
Children aged 10 to 16 tried
Court lets teens be the judg
by Clara Hurter
Battalion Reporter
“Court is now in session,
Judge Hollingsworth presid
ing,” the baliff says in a high
small voice. “All rise.”
A thin young sandy-haired
judge walks in the courtroom
and ascends the steps to his
bench.
Quiet falls over the room as
the judge explains the upcom
ing procedures of the trial.
The prosecuting attorneys sit
opposite the defense attorneys
scribbling last minute notes.
The scene depicts hard
working members of a criminal
court. However, there is some
thing different about the court.
The members of the court
are theft, property offenses,
shoplifting, criminal mischief
(damage to property) and
assault, German said.
The Brazos County Teen
Court is the second criminal
teen court in Texas, said John D.
German, Intake/Court Unit su
pervisor for the Brazos County
Juvenile Services Department.
The other teen court was in
Robertson county. However, it
lasted only a few months. Ger
man attributes the failure of the
Robertson county teen court to
economic hard times.
senior level in high school, ap
plied the First year,” German
said. “So what we’ve done is used
the applications to collect jury
members for the last three
staff photo by Brenda Davidson
Don’t call it dirt!
are teen-agers.
The Brazos County Teen
Court tries children aged 10 to
16 for offenses ranging from
truancy to burglary. The court
tries between six and 10 cases
yearly.
The most common crimes
committed by the children tried
“They probably couldn’t get
the funds to continue,” he said.
The Brazos County Teen
Court began in 1980 and was
patterned after a New York teen
court, German said.
The junior high and high
schools in the College Station/
Bryan area were contacted ab
out the program and asked for
volunteers to be court members.
“Over 250 students, including
seventh grade up through
years.
Rita Villarreal and Joan
Boson, juvenile probation offic
ers for the Brazos County Juve
nile Court’s Counseling Unit,
took over the teen court during
the 1981-1982 school year.
German and Villarreal are
the 1982-1983 administrators
and advisors for the teen court.
They prepare cases for court
and train court members at the
beginning of the year.
“Whatever the decision of the
jury is, it is final,” German said.
“Teens do understand their
peers better than adults do.”
Villarreal and German take
turns attending the trials to en
sure everything runs smoothly,
he said.
court for up i
German said the teen court
members act professional and
usually are well prepared, he
said.
the teen
months.
The child who entenilil
formal adjustment program
not have a formal record
offense. If, however, tk
quits the adjustment pi
before the term is oversee;;
will be tried in a regularpj
court.
The training consists of four
sessions where prospective court
members attend lectures, tour
the local prison and conduct a
mock trial.
“As far as the actual fcourt
g rocess, they (the court mem-
ers) handle it, the whole thing,”
German said. “We (German and
Villarreal) don’t intervene in
what they’re doing.
Most of the cases that go to the
teen court involve first-time
offenders that would normally
be handled informally through
the juvenile probation depart
ment, German said.
“The State Family Program
allows the probation depart
ments to place kids on what is
called informal adjustment,” he
said.
The informal adjustment
program is a probation period
where probation officers coun
sel the children found guilty by
Most children involved>L
the adjustment program
their probation period,& t/W 1 S
said.
Those found guilty bil
teen court have a righitoa*| e Brazc
to a regular juvenile couitWIr,
said Khmciai
fhe course
Although the teen A. in Ro
probably won’t preventctimBThe 60
Brazos County, it could pit Emergency
crime if teen-agers an do$100 will b
det s get involved withtkpwfynyone
ram, he said. further inf
“They need to actuillgd.
ness a court process,” CtreM
said. “We’re looking fori
involvement of studentsui
future.” r'\rr)
USB a
Tim Martini, a senior animal science major
from Henrietta, determines the electrical
conductivity of a soil sample. Students enrolled
in Soil Science 301 make a thorough analysis
of their soil samples in the laboratory.
Oilman keeps money from state
University
businessmt
Two me
United Press International
AUSTIN, — A state land
office official says money and
manpower shortages in the
agency allowed South Texas oil
man and rancher Clinton Man
ges to avoid splitting mineral
lease money with the state.
The Dallas Morning News
Sunday reported Manges used a
loophole in state mineral leasing
laws to collect more than $2.2
million in land “bonuses,” while
the state — entitled to half —
collected only $51,000.
The copyrighted story said
Manges worked around split
ting the money by leasing miner
al rights to 3,000 acres of “min
eral classified” land on his Duval
County ranch to an employee,
buying the rights, then subleas
ing to an energy company.
Texas has 6.4 million acres of
“mineral classified” land in
which property owners hold
surface rights and the state owns
mineral rights.
Though state authorities said
they believe Manges did nothing
illegal, they said funding and
personnel limitations keep the
land office from closely moni
toring all leasing of “mineral
classified” land.
“We have to somewhat rely on
the surface owner to know
what’s going on,” said Jack Gil
bert, chief clerk of the state Gen
eral Land Office, which has a
staff of 15 to keep tabs on all
“mineral classified” land in
Texas.
January and March of 1982,
Manges leased about 6,200 acres
to M.W. Haun, an employee of
Manges’ Duval County Ranch
Co., for between $25 and S100
an acre, the Morning News re-
C orted. Proceeds from those
?ases were split with the state.
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Luncheon Buffet 'A
Sunday through Friday |
11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. f
5DID YOU KNOW?*
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“We never have the personnel
to check all 6 million acres of
land,” he said.
“If anyone is truly interested
in ripping off the state, the last
office they will send the infor
mation to is us,” said land office
attorney James Phillips.
In a series of deals between
Haun then sold his interest in
the leases back to Manges for
sums amounting to between $ 10
and $180, and Manges then
“subleased” the mineral rights to
Kansas-based Pan-Western Pet
roleum Co. for $ 1,083 an acre,
the newspaper reported.
Of the 6,200 acres involved,
about half was “mineral classi
fied” land. Had Manges leased
Hied adv
Hhe two
that land directly lo Robert A. 1
Western, records showedHy Cues
state would have receivedSiegert anc
million in bonus monev. Hdam.C
As it was, the state retilf Souther
about S1,000, based ontkjff], er of C
bomises paid to Haun. Harpy, (
fhe loss of more thanSlHate inv
lion in state revenue camHjuest, C
time when Gov. MarkWtaBan-Coll
unsuccessfully seekingauijpOdom is
to fund teacher pay raises ||gradua
“T he irony is not lostupa Seigert, '
believe me,” Phillips said low is eng,
However, Phillips saidaBones, a
rule talking effect June 12(Blege Sta
ties the state to haffofaniH
era! leases to third partiesB
w i t h in t h ree y ears of the orl|i
lease. H
rnicmic
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I ty-six foot salad bar with great condi-1
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Army trainees injured
when weapon explodes|
United Press International “-t-i ,i.. i . i- • • -i j BtX
Dr. R.G. A
emly was i
■2 by the
Ihemical E
o-auth(
jtila, bot
Open to the Public i
^ “Quality First”
I
I
WALK AND SAVE
To the Sbisa Basement
OPEN
Monday through Friday 10:45 a.m.-1:45 p.m.
QUALITY FIRST
I
I
//i
I
United Press International
EL PASO — An anti-tank
weapon being demonstrated for
Army basic trainees at an out
door classroom at McGregor
Range exploded Monday, injur
ing 27 soldiers.
Officials said 26 of the sol
diers were basic trainees, includ
ing one West Point cadet. The
non-commissioned officer de
monstrating the LAWS weapon
— which is fired by one man
from the shoulder — also was
injured.
“They are brand new sol
diers,” said Fort Bliss comman
der Maj. Gen. James Maloney.
“They have only been in the
army a few weeks.” Maloney was
on hand at the hospital and
helped medics carry the wound
ed to the emergency room.
“Some of the men were hurt
from their heads to thir toes,”
officials said.
Cause of the explosion has
not been determined.
The classroom was being held
outdoors at McGregor Range lo
cated in the New Mexico desert,
about 30 miles north of El Paso.
The area is used extensively for
test-firing missiles and
trammg new weapons. m ’ hen
I he men were wft«
camouflaged uniforms B
their faces were darkent® , .
simulate camouflaged / ou iav
lions in desert warfare. . i! mn ’ t< , J
No names of the injure# 1 or cal
been released, accordingto|
Bliss Public Affairs spokes
Ed Starnes.
There have been noi
from the accident, butontl
dier was listed in seriousflf
tion.
GLAD TO SEE
YOU BACK, AGGIE!
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Group knocks U.S.
for marijuana treatmeiHEm
follow]
rted to tl
irtment 1
I 5.
United Press International
AUSTIN — The National
Organization for the Reform of
Marijuana Laws Monday criti
cized the U.S. government for
allegedly helping to fund an
“immoral” marijuana eradica
tion program in Belize that
NORML said posed a health
threat to American marijuana
smokers.
Scott Miller, state coordinator
for NORML, said thousands of
tons of Belizean marijuana tre
ated with the herbicide paraquat
were being smuggled into
Texas.
dio from
Miller said the erad -kup in pa
program in the South Arat *A wallet
country was partially fim s h, a drivei
by the U.S. government. Igcard am
He said it was foolish t[|men’s loc
lieve that treating mar 1 White Co
with paraquat would deif *AblueS<
estimated 1.5 million T( e Zachry 1
and 22 million Americans®rack,
smoking marijuana. wA gree
Paraquat causes irreu d-Pro bicyc
damage to the lungs. It was a H
used to destroy marijuana! *A blue ]
in Mexico in 1975 and e Ball Stre
sprayed by the U.S. govern®I *A ma
on marijuana fields inIbBd lO-spe
last year, NORML said.
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