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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 21, 1988)
Monday, March 21, 1988/The Battalion/Page 3 ft I V: (1 It , Owl bJ an 11 im I ;iiecl :an'il kittfe ‘thin it* | State and Local iBIand gets appointment, replaces Jenkins as fire department chief By Richard Williams Senior Staff Writer James Bland was appointed as the new chief of the Bryan Fire Depart ment Wednesday. Bland, who had been second in command, was appointed to the po sition by City Manager Ernest Clark, but the appointment will not be final until approved by the City Council. Bland, a 20-year department vet eran, replaces Claude Jenkins III, who resigned effective Feb. 12. Jenkins had been placed on disci plinary probation in December after all 79 department Firefighters signed a petition in October stating they had no confidence in Jenkins’ ability to manage the department. Bland said the past is one problem that should remain behind the de partment. “We’ve got some wounds that we’ve got to heal, and I believe time will heal them,” Bland said. “The main thing Fve been preaching was that the past is the past and there’s nothing we can do to change it. All we can do is work toward the future and that’s where our hope is.” After signing the petition, fire fighters had said department morale was at an all time low, but Bland said that has changed. “The moral is very high,” he said. “Everybody in the department is very happy a person was appointed from within the department.” Clark said the city did not accept applications from individuals not currently working with the depart ment. “We made a decision early on that if there was somebody in the depart ment that we could appoint chief it would be better for the depart ment,” Clark said. Bland said the appointment of someone from within the depart ment was a move in the right direc tion. “I feel we have taken a tremen dous step in healing the past and working toward the future,” he said. The department has everything it needs to improve, Bland said. “We have a bunch of very talented and intelligent people working for the fire department and these peo ple want to move forward,” he said. “They want to improve the depart ment and they want to make it the best it can possibly be. I think with this attitude and with the proper leadership . . . and the resources provided by the city we can accompl ish that.” Clark said he will be working more closely with the department then he had in the past to help de velop a standardized training pro gram and to review the policy and procedures manual of the depart ment. The petition signed by the fire fighters complained about Jenkins’ use of department policy and the lack of a “viable training program.” Clark said he understands “where they came from and the problems they thought they had.” “We tried to correct it,” he said. Nine applications were submitted for the position, but one applicant withdrew before the selection was made. During his 20 years with the de partment Bland has been operation- draining chief, deputy chief in charge of a shift, a lieutenant in charge of an engine company, an ap paratus operator and a driver. Bush, Dukakis remain on top of pack as counting of delegates continues | (AP) — Massachusetts Gov. Mi- ichael Dukakis remains the leader of |the Democratic presidential pack as Ithe dust settles on more delegate- I counting in Kansas, Texas and | South Dakota. , Meanwhile, Puerto Rico was hold- ling Republican and Democratic I presidential primaries Sunday, with I Vice President George Bush poised I to sweep the winner-take-all GOP I contest. The Democratic race in Puerto I Rico hinged far more on local issues [than on tne candidates. The U.S. commonwealth sends 14 Idelegates to the Republican National [Convention and 53 delegates to the ^Democratic National Gonvention. The Democratic delegation is ex pected to go uncommitted and vote as a bloc. Bob Dole, fighting for the survival of his Republican presidential bid, was in Wisconsin campaigning for the state’s April 5 primary. The Kan sas senator, who has suffered a series of crushing losses to Bush, has pledged to keep his faltering cam paign alive at least until that contest. Dole made a visit to a veterans hospital in Milwaukee on Sunday. A poll published in the Milwaukee Journal suggested Bush held a com manding lead in Wisconsin. The sur vey of likely Republican voters, with a 6-point margin of error, said 69 percent backed Bush while 25 per cent supported Dole. Pat Robertson trailed with 6 percent. On the Democratic side, Dukakis led in Wisconsin with 38 percent, with Jackson at 30 percent, the Jour nal survey indicated. The other three Democrats were closely clus tered: Rep. Richard Gephardt, 1 1 percent; Sen. Paul Simon, 1 1 per cent and Tennessee Sen. Albert Gore Jr., 10 percent. The Demo cratic survey had a margin of error of 5 percentage points. Dukakis, at a Boston breakfast on Sunday, was upbeat after his victory a day earlier in the Kansas Detno- cratic caucuses, joking that he was just a simple farm boy — from Brooklyn. Although he was edged out by Ge phardt in delegates counted Satur day in South Dakota and by Jackson in Texas delegates counted the same day, Dukakis remained ahead in na tional delegates. The South Dakota totals were in line with last month’s primary, which Gephardt won. Texas had already allocated the bulk of its delegates on Super Tuesday, with the Saturday figures from county conventions and caucuses. The latest AP delegate count gave Dukakis 575.5 delegates to 510.55 for Jackson and 362.8 for Gore. Si mon had 171.5, Gephardt had 154 and 289.65 were uncommitted. To nominate, 2,082 delegates are needed. Gore was in New York, where he was making a country-club appear ance in wealthy Westchester county speaking to Jewish leaders in Brook lyn. Jackson and Robertson were both in California on Sunday. Police frustrated by rise in attacks against officers SAN ANTONIO (AP) — A se ries of bloody attacks on law offi cers statewide since the first of the year has fostered increased frustration among police and the criminal justice system. Three Dallas officers were killed over a six-week period in January and February, while 21 other officers were injured in as saults. San Antonio officials, mean while, were shocked as six officers were wounded by gunfire during a 10-week period from December to February. “It’s a risky job. But nobody signs on for stuff like this,” San Antonio police Lt. Rudy Vernon says. “There’s no question people are getting more violent against cops. Maybe with the badge and gun, they should issue a bullseye to wear.” Police officials, unions, crimi nologists and patrol officers are confused by the rising violence and are trying to pinpoint the causes. Overcrowded prisons, lax pa roles, a failing economy, rising crime rates, increased drug traf ficking and a general decline in the country’s moral fiber all are cited as causes. Michael McMains, a San Anto nio Police Department psycholo- ist, says the increased violence is aving a definite impact on offi cer morale. “There’s a lot of anger and fear,” he says. “Recently, I’ve heard many more officers say they will be much more careful and a lot more suspicious on the street.” Doug Moore, a former officer now teaching criminal justice at Sam Houston State, says being a police officer today is much more difficult than it used to be. “A lot of young officers are dropping out, not because of the boredom or even because of the danger, but from the realization that the people out there hate them,” he says. Law enforcement officers, like Sgt. Harold Flammia, head of the San Antonio Police Of ficers Asso ciation, blame the increased at tacks on a lax criminal justice sys tem that imposes light sentences i and paroles prisoners too soon. “Right now there is no prison system.” Flammia says. “The ap peals court and the parole board are sending them back into the streets as quickly as we can get them in. The criminals know nothing will happen with them when we arrest them. We’re los ing the war.” From 1980 to 1985, assaults against law officers in Texas rose 14.4 percent, according to De partment of Public Safety figures. In 1986, 4,380 Texas law officers were violently assaulted, a 21.1 percent increase over 1985. In the United States, assaults on law officers rose 30 percent from 1976 to 1986, but fatalities dropped 29 percent during that time, according to the FBI. But in 1987 there were 69 po lice fatalities, the first national jump in eight years. Garole Eberhart, of the chiefs office at the Dallas Police Depart ment, says the situation places a tough burden on police officers. “They grieve for their fellow policemen who died,” she says. “Then they go right back to work out on the streets.” But Raymond Teske, of Sam Houston State University’s crimi- 1 nal justice school, says the 36 per cent increase in assaults on offi cers is roughly equal to the 33 percent increase in the number of aw officers in T exas from 1976 to 1986. 'P if ha dio ppt ethii t “sh own apf; sciti fori: MOVIES THURSDAY * Bad Dreams Robocop A Clockwork Orange FRIDAY Heavy Metal Fire and Ice Wizards SATURDAY The Running Man AggieCon 19 March 24-27 1988 The Largest Annual Science Fiction Predator Terminator & Fantasy Convention in the Southwest Guest of Honor: Joe Haldeman Artist Guest of Honor: Bob Eggleton Special Guest: Katherine Kurtz Toastmaster: Kerry O'Quinn STUFF * Special Sneak Preview- Only 600 tickets available. Those who buy Aggieon passes automatically get tickets to the preview. All other tickets will be given out beginning at 5 TAMU Student Prices: Full Con $10.00 One Day $5.00 Special Event Prices: Banquet $10.00 Quest $4.00 Tickets Available through Ticketron For More Information, write: MSC Cepheid Variable Memorial Student Center Texas A&M University Box J-l College Station, TX 77844 Or call (409) 845-1515 Non-Student Prices: Full Con One Day DEALERS ROOM Find all the books, comics, games and memorobilia you need (or don't need) in our large and spacious showroom of SF collectibles. COMIC ARTISTS Scott McCullar-creator ofWARPED seen daily in the Battalion Ben Dunn-creator and artist of the comic book Ninja High School. Tom Tenney-illustrator of Robotech. EVENTS Masquerade Ball Art Show and Auction Quest - live role-playing game Beat the Klingons trivia game Banquet Demonstrations by the SCA ...and much more $14.00 $6.00 JJU nr