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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 23, 1985)
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Hcers and to view uss plans for next t t 6 p.m.-7 p,m.ai Supper. Off ice and E sagesw 1715 issified Tuesday, April 23, 1985/The Battalion/Page 7 *— Fire chief’s resignation controversy continues Associated Press HOUSTON — Houston Mayor Kathy Whitmire chose not to release the contents of a resignation letter from Fire Chief Robert Swartout because the letter was self-serving, according to mayoral aides. Swartout unexpectedly quit 10 days ago — giving five minutes notice — and then disappeared. But city council members, who had to approve Swar- tout’s hiring from a similar job in Seattle, said it was a mistake for the mayor to withhold the letter from the public. Swartout, who surfaced over the weekend at his Seattle home, blamed interference from mayoral aides and unnamed city officials and other frustrations for quitting the Houston department after just four months on the job. Those frustrations were outlined in the two-page, sinde-space typewritten letter, which Swartout released The Houston Post. The mayor’s office subsequently io released a copy of the letter on Sunday. Clarence West, Whitmire’s agenda director, said the mayor wanted to speak with Swartout before the letter was released. ‘What you have is someone you think would be a re sponsible individual, the fire chief of the fourth largest city in America, and he literally walks off the job leav ing a note on the doorstep of the person who hired him,” West said. Whitmire, who is in Europe, could not be reached for comment and did not return telephone calls to her hotel. Councilman Larry McKaskle, said it showed the mayor was “not capable of running this city, in that she cannot accept defeat in any respect.” Analyst Richard Murray, a political science professor at the University of Houston, said he didn’t think the flap would have any great impact on the mayor’s likely re-election bid because the November election is still a long way off. “Houstonians are not up in arms about fire protec tion, which is rated pretty high,” Murray said. “Even though everybody knows there’s a lot of squabbling in the fire department, people don’t think it’s so screwed up they can’t fight fires.” Whitmire has nominated Robert Clayton, who has risen through the department ranks, as successor to Swartout. Clayton said he hopes to work with the people Swar tout criticized — primarily city finance people. Tornadoes give Texans more trouble Associated Press At least 12 tornadoes black ened Central and East Texas skies Monday, demolishing mo bile homes and spawning base ball-sized hail and heavy rains that flooded streets in several cit ies, authorities said. A tornado ripped through downtown Dallas late Monday night inflicting ex tensive damage to the area. Monday was the third straight day that violent springtime thun derstorms erupted across the state. On Sunday, a tornado killed three people in Northwest Texas. Six funnels were sighted in Smith County near Tyler and one touched down in Linaale Monday night, but none caused any inju ries or major damages, Sheriffs Deputy Charlie Baker said. At least four other tornadoes, some accompanied by baseball sized hail that caused an undeter mined amount of damage, dipped down in the Waco area but caused no damage or injuries, authorities said. Only one of the tornadoes touched down on land and an other dissipated after sucking up tons of Lake Waco water, said Lt. Lewis Barber of the McLennan County Sheriffs Department. “Our luck is holding so far,” Barber said Monday night. “And the cell seems to be breaking up now, so we ought to be OK.” The only funnel to hit land was southwest of Lake Waco in Speegleville, but it immediately — and harmlessly — ricocheted into the clouds, Barber said. Another tornado that moved out over Lake Waco shortly after d p.m., turned into a waterspout and then dissipating within min utes. At least two other tornadoes were reported over Crawford and McGregor southwest of Waco, but caused no damage or injuries, Barber said. “This is the worst I’ve ever seen,” Sgt. Joe Hall of the Young County sheriffs department said. Trees were split apart, power lines ripped down and barns de stroyed as several tornadoes bounced around the area, offi cials said. Several other homes in the area had flooded yards. The fatal twister that claimed three lives at about 6:20 p.m. Sunday was one of “at least seven” tornadoes that were re ported to have touched down in Throckmorton and Young coun ties late Sunday afternoon, civil defense officials in Throckmor ton said. Stabbings increase prison violence toll Associated Press HUNTSVILLE — A Texas De partment of Corrections inmate was fatally stabbed Monday by another prisoner, bringing to 11 the number of homicides in the state prison sys tem this year, a prison spokesman. Another inmate stabbed in an un related incident was listed in fair condition, authorities said. Lynn Bernard Haskins, 24, an in mate at the Coffield Unit near Ten nessee Colony, was stabbed by a fel low prisoner about 1 p.m. Monday while waiting in line to return to work at the meat packing plant, prison spokesman Charles Brown said. After he was stabbed, Haskins ran outside the building and was at tacked again, Brown said. The vic tim suffered about a dozen wounds in the chest, back, stomach, neck and legs with a 10-inch boning knife, Brown said. Haskins was serving a life sen tence for aggravated rape, the spokesman saidL He was treated at the unit infir mary, but died about 1:30 p.m. en- route to Anderson County Memorial Hospital in Palestine, Brown said. Authorities were questioning a 26- year-old inmate, who is serving a 24- year term for murder, in the inci dent, the spokesman said. Initial investigations show the in cident may have dealt with a griev ance outside the prison unit, Brown said. In an unrelated incident, another inmate was in fair condition Monday after he was stabbed by two fellow prisoners, Brazoria County sheriffs officials said. The attack took place Sunday night after one of the inmates over powered prison guard Danny Faz- zio, 21, took the guard’s keys and freed himself and a fellow inmate. The two prisoners then went to the cell of Toe Leonard Price, who was stabbed. Sheriffs Capt. Gene Smith said Fazzio was in the main hall of the prison’s solitary confinement unit when an inmate reached through the bars of his cell, grabbed Fazzio by the shirt, pulled him against the bars and held a knife at the guard’s throat. After Price was stabbed, Fazzio was released and the inmates re turned to their cells, Smith said. Price is serving a six-year sentence for burglary of a building in Dallas County. Eleven inmates have died in Texas prisons this year and more than 80 others were stabbed. Lawmaker supports amendment barring school consolidation Associated Press AUSTIN — Rep. Bill Haley, D- Center, won House approval Mon day for a proposed constitutional amendment that would bar lawmak ers from forcing school districts to consolidate. Haley pulled 91 votes in a prelimi nary vote last Wednesday. It takes 100 votes to approve a constitutional amendment, and he got them Mon day, winning 108-31 approval. The measure now goes to the Sen ate, where approval would put it on the general election ballot in Novem ber. State law now bans the Legislature from forcing school districts to con solidate without the approval of local officials and voters. But Haley said that might not be enough protection against lawmakers who see consol idations as a way to save state money. Some urban lawmakers and school officials have complained that school districts in sparsely pop ulated, rural areas are money-wast- ers that should be consolidated. Legislators could change the cur rent law to allow them force consol idations. But if the provision is put in the Constitution, it would take a popular vote to change it. A This says that we may not capri ciously consolidate school districts without the approval of voters in the districts,” said Haley, chairman of the House Public Education Com mittee. Two lawmakers who spoke against the proposal said they like the idea, but not the method. “The statutory provisions are fine and sufficient as they are,” said Rep. Bill Hammond, R-Dallas, adding that the oft-amended Texas Consti tution already is too long. “Things of this nature simply do not belong in the Constitution.” Rep. Gary Thompson, D-Abilene, said the Constitution now carries 269 amendments. Surveillance cameras aid agents in nabbing aliens along border Associated Press EL PASO — Surveillance cameras along the United States-Mexico bor der near El Paso have been such an aid in nabbing illegal aliens that the Border Patrol is considering their use elsewhere, officials say. Since beginning the use of the cameras a year ago, the apprehen- lion of illegal aliens in the El Paso sector has increased by as much as BO percent, said Gustavo De La Vina, sector deputy chief patrol gent. “They’re definitely a big aid to its,” De La Vina said in a recent in terview. “They’ve been fantastic.” Eleven of the cameras, similar to hose used for security in banks and iffice buildings, are located atop telephone poles or buildings in strat- :gic spots along a nine-mne area of he border, De La Vina said. “We’ve got them at the most fre- pently crossed places, at the low- level water crossings that are used by aliens a lot,” he said. Designed to help agents catch ille gal aliens who otherwise would evade detection by conventional se curity methods, the cameras have been a big aid in nabbing people who were trying to reach the interior United States, De La Vina said. The cameras rotate nearly 360 de grees while scanning an area up to a mile away and are equipped with zoom lenses. They project images on small television screens in a com puter room at the Paso del Norte bridge in downtown El Paso. An agent controlling the equip ment can switch one of the pictures to a larger screen for added detail. Though colors cannot be seen, light er dark-colored clothing and sex can be determined to help pinpoint the person being sought. Once aliens are spotted, the con trol agent dispatches officers to the V ’• . . : . •>■ ' ' ' . MSB area for apprehension. “They’ve really helped us to pin down aliens,” De La Vina said. “They allow an agent at the control headquarters to keep an eye on the aliens while other agents are en route to pick them up. We really can monitor their (aliens^ movement.” El Paso was chosen as a test site for the monitoring project early last year because of its unique location, De La Vina said. Just across the Rio Grande from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, the area is “special because it’s two cities back to back,” he said. “With the El Paso area, the dis tance between the river and down town is so short you only have just a few minutes, if that long, to effect an apprehension,” he said. “Unless you’re right there, the aliens are going to mingle into the crowd quickly.” I PizzaworksV It’s Twosday! Medium 2 Topping Pizza 2 Cokes $7.10 Call Dave’s for Great Pizza! 696-DAVE 326 Jersey St. (Next to Bother’s Bookstore) OPEN11 a.m. DAILY fc \^ vAc* V ~ lPo8 ‘°*fc?* ct Tan Aggie Finals Survival Kit Give yourself, your friends and your roommate a special gift to help get through finals! Running over with fruit, nuts, brownies, chips, cookies, candy, coffee and much, much more!! Kit A: Send in this coupon with your check, Mastercard, Visa, American Express and this kit is only $20°° plus tax. Reg. 28 98 Kit B: Roommates edition. Enough for 3 or 4 plus free delivery. $50°° (Name Address Phone. Pick up date number of kits MC □ Visa □ Amex □ Check □ Kit A or B # exp.date 2214 S. Texas Ave. C.S. 696-8327 3737 E. 29th Bryan 846-4360 The Aggie Players and The Liberal Arts Student Council present A Special Benefit Performance of... VOL CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU A pulitizer Prize Winning American Comedy by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman m. April 24 8:00 p. Rudder Forum Texas A&M University TAMU Students $2.50 General Public $3.00 Tickets are available in 802 Harrington or Rudder Box Office All Proceeds Go To A Liberal Arts/Theater Arts Scholarship WE DELIVER