Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 9, 1984)
Tuesday, October 9, 1984n"he Battalion/Page 5 Utility rates figured Computers aid cities By DOUG VORWERK Reporter A new computer program has been developed by the Texas Rail road Commission to help cities in gas utility rate cases. The program is designed to de crease the time period of' calculation in rate making, said information specialist Ray Grasshoff. Grasshoff, who works for the Of fice of Information Services of the Commission, says this program is available to cities free of charge. Ifa gas company wants to change their rates, they must first go to the city government to see if they can, Grasshoff said. A gas company usually is well pre pared with all the figures they need, while most city governments, espe cially the small ones, don’t have the knowledge to work with these num bers, he said. Grasshoff said this program should help cities with the informa tion they will need to bargain with the gas utility companies. “Setting rates can be very complicated,” he said. Hotel fire complaint to be filed United Press International CORPUS CHRIST ! — City of ficials decided Monday to file a complaint against the owner of a hotel where one man was killed and five severely burned in rooms not equipped with smoke alarms as required by a new state law. Fire Marshal Jesse Guzman said the complaint against Juanita Garza, owner of the T exas Hotel, would be filed today. Guzman said a report from a joint inspection by the fire chief, arson investigators and others would also be made public today. Other than the absence of smoke detectors, only a few mi nor infractions were found in the inspection, Guzman said. Violation of the new smoke de tector law is a Class B misdemea nor punishable by a maximum $1,000 fine and/or 6 months in jail. Dionel Garza, son of the hotel owner, said Monday that his mother was not aware of the state law. “The fire department never came out, and no officials from the city even notified us that those detectors were required by law," he said. “If we had been aware of it, we would have taken some action.” Judge still refuses to release couple United Press International HOUSTON — A judge refused Monday to free a couple he ordered jailed a month ago for declining to testify before a grand jury investigat ing their murder-suspect son. State District Court Judge I.D. McMaster ordered Bernard and Odette Port returned to the Harris County jail until they agree to testify before the grand jury. Defense attorney Randy Schaffer said he would appeal the ruling to the state Court of Criminal Appeals and ask that the couple be released on bond pending a decision. The Ports have been jailed since Sept. 12, when they refused to testify before a £rand jury that later in dicted their son, David, 17, for the slaying of mail carrier Debora Sue Schatz, 23. Schaffer argued Monday that the indictment meant the couple’s testi mony was not needed, and that they should be released. But prosecutors countered that the jury was consid ering upgrading the charge to capi tal murder, and that the Ports’ testi mony was essential. The defense attorney claimed forcing testimony from the Ports would mean they were helping pros ecutors obtain a death penalty against their son. “It means prosecutors can say to parents in Harris County, “If we de mand it of you, you must help us kill WOW What An INCREDIBLE RENT SPECIAL Investigate Immediately 696-9771 /f For health insurance, check with State Farm. Call: Bruce Boyd 300 Univ. Dr. E. 693-1683 State Farm Mutual Automobile insurance Company Home Office Bloomington. Illinois RESTAURANT & BAR Advertise an item in the Battalion. DAILY SPECIAL MON-SUN 1) Steak Dinner 8 oz. Sirloin Steak Marinated in Pineapple & Sherry. Baked potato, salad. 2) Shrimp Dinner 10 Large Fresh House Battered Shrimp, Baked Potato, Salad $495 $495 3) Chicken Fried Steak Baked Potato, Salad $395 4) Fajitas or Tacos Spicy beef or chicken $395 5) Steak & Shrimp Dinner 8 oz. Sirloin Steak and 8 Large Shrimp, Baked Potato, Salad and Fruit $6 95 HAPPY HOUR M-F 3 for 1 4-7 p.m. & 10-12 p.m. 4501 S. Texas Ave (Formerly Rebels) 846-3696^ Warped by Scott McCullar Bryan and College Station could use this service, Grasshoff said, be cause any city that wants to borrow the program can get it from the Commission, and get the informa tion in a short time. A personal com puter can even be used once they have the program, he said. The program was designed by the staff of the Gas Utilities Division and members of the Commission’s confi- puter staff, Grasshoff said. Grasshoff said he hopes this pro gram will help put the cities on equal ground with the gas companies. SHOE by Jeff MacNelly your child and if not, we’U throw you in jail,’’’Schaffer said. Schaffer told prosecutors the Ports would consider submitting sworn affidavits to the panel or an swering certain questions with his advice. But Assistant District Attor ney Jim Lavine said the couple had no power to control a grand jury in vestigation. “We anticipate what they would have done by affidavit would not have done anything for the investi gation,” he said. “They would have said they knew nothing. If they were before a grand jury we could have tested them on the truthfulness of their answers.” Port testified initially that he might answer some questions under Schaffer’s guidance, but later told Lavine he would not appear before the grand jury. Mrs. Port also re fused outright to appear before the panel or answer any questions on any subject. “Would you be willing to answer any questions if these were not detri mental to your son or his position?” Lavine asked. “I would be more comfortable not answering any questions at all,” Mrs. Port said. Schaffer said after the judge’s rul ing that the grand jury investigation was over, and that prosecutors were not considering upgrading the charge against the younger Port. Aerobic Exercise Tahoa Apt*. Club doom "Where* *sss Plainsman. Bryan Time* eoo te e^op.m, Days* Monday A Wad., or Tuas. A Thum Fee* $24.00/6 wk. clasaoa Starts* Octobar 16,1964 Taught JBjy'suai* O’Connor To Register Call* Warkouta to music AN INTERNSHIP IN EUROPE COULD HELP YOUR CAREER PROSPECTS Semester, Quarter and Summer programs in LONDON, EDINBURGH, PARIS, MADRID & BONN If you have a positive attitude, right GPA, good command of the language concerned you could intern in the_ House of Commons, French National Assembly, Spanish Cortes, German Bundestag. Other place available in Law, Social Science, Research Labs., Business Museums, Town Planning, The Arts and European Politics. 1985 Semester costs from $2,975, Quarter & Summer costs from $1,690. Full academic credit available FULL DETAILS FROM EPA, MARYMOUNT COLLEGE, TARRYTOWN, N.Y. 10591 Phone (914) 631-3200 Torture Americans tell tales about Mexican prisons United Press International JUAREZ, Mexico — Americans imprisoned in Mexico and returned to the United States under a 7-year- old treaty continue to tell horror sto ries of torture and hard labor be hind bars. Typical of the complaints related by Americans is the case of Jared Hill, 41, and his wife. Hill, who said he and his wife were arrested a year ago for growing marijuana in their garden, was one of six American prisoners handed over to federal authorities in El Paso over the weekend. “They had my wife in a separate cell,” Hill said. “They disrobed her and took me to see her standing naked in a cell full of federal po licemen. They told me to sign some papers if I didn’t want my wife raped.” Hill said his wife was released 20 days after their arrest when Hill signed a confession that he alone was responsible for growing marijuana. All of the American prisoners in terviewed by news media in the latest prisoner exchange complained of torture, extortion and intimidation during their stay in Mexican prisons. Each was sentenced to seven or eight years in jail. “Nobody beats a sentence in Mex ico unless they’ve got a lot of money to pay off judges, lawyers, cops, you name it,” said Patrick Allen Tate, 20, of San Diego, Galif. The prisoners said torture and brutality were not limited to Ameri can prisoners. American officials say it is likely that stories of mistreatment are true. “I’ve heard so many stories from previous transferees that some of them must be true,” said Robert Ra mos, an assistant federal public de fender in El Paso who has been in volved in the prisoner transfer program since it began. The first prisoner exchange be tween the United States and Mexico took place in December, 1977. That month, 61 Americans were returned to the United States and 36 Mexi cans were returned to prisons in their country. Since then, hundreds of prisoners have been exchanged. The ex changes takes place about every three months. In 1976, there were approxi mately 5,070 U.S. citizens in Mexi can jails and 1,100 Mexicans in U.S. jails. The program has both advantages and disadvantages. oiiibi MSC Arts Committee presents NATIVE WEAVINGS OF GUATEMALA in the MSC Gallery Oct. 12 - Nov. 18, 8am-8pm Oct. 9,10,12 11 am -1 pm Oct. 10 11am -1pm Oct. 11 7:30 pm 8:30 pm Guatemalan weaving demonstration MSC Main Lounge Fashion Show by Guatemalan Student Association Rudder Fountain Lecture by Joe Hutchinson - Environmental Design Dept. Dr. Norman Thomas - Anthropology Dept. Linda de Barrios - Museo ixchel Rudder Forum Reception MSC Gallery Daily 12 pm -1 pm Docents available for individual and group tours For appointments, call Theresa Chiang 845-1515 For more information, contact MSC Arts 845-1515