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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 11, 1989)
/ l Wednesday, January 11,1989/The Battalion/Page 3 State/Local Woman shot by spouse filed secretly for divorce, records say HOUSTON (AP) — A woman whose husband fatally shot her and their teen-awe daughter before kill ing himself had secretly filed for di vorce last month, court records show. After killing his wife of 25 years and their 14-year-old daughter, Jef frey Nichols. 49, a highly paid Hous ton executive, shot himself Saturday. The mystery of why a $276,213-a- C ar investment manager would kill s wife and daughter in their home was slowly being untangfed Monday as law enforcement officials re viewed police records and friends belatedly saw warning signs. Barbara Nichols, 45. had filed for divorce Dec. 16 with a petition stat ing the routine reason of "discord or conflict of personalities.’’ But at her request, her husband had never been officially notified by the courts or served with her divorce petition. Before that, the couple had sepa rated and reconciled several times. “I’m not sure he ever knew a suit had been filed, unless she told him, and I don’t think she did." Mrs. Nichols’ attorney Jeffrey Uzick said. Mrs. Nichols suffered the bat tered wife syndrome mostly in des perate silence for at least 10 years, including the partial severing of her left ear when her intoxicated and en raged husband attacked her with a knife in their home in April, attor neys and police records indicated. But whether she stayed with her husband for religious convictions, to provide a home for their daughter. Lisa, or for financial stability, she asked a Harris County grand jury to drop the assault charge against nim in May because the family was re ceiving counseling through their church. “He killed her about 10 years ago," a physician and confidant of Mrs. Nichols said. “He just waited until a few days ago to finish it. "She stayed with him because she believed mat's what she was sup posed to do. But when he realized nis threats were not going to work anymore, he ended it,’ the physician said, explaining that recent counsel ing had increased Mrs. Nichols’ self esteem and decreased her emotional dependency on her husband. Uzick said Mrs. Nichols was a bat tered wife who was fearful of leaving her husband. PUTYOUR COLLEGE DEGREE TO WORK. Air Force Officer Training School is on excellent start to a challenging career as on Air >' Force Officer We offer great starting pay. medical care. 30 days of vocation with pay each year and management opportunities Contact an Air Force recruiter Find out what Officer Training School can mean for you. Call SSGT HENDRICKS STATION TO STATION COLLECT 40G-696-2612 Jury reviews death of Freon-sniffer uflii Freon-sniffing death of a 17-year- old honor student is being reviewed by a Brazoria County grand jury to determine whether criminal charges can be filed against a group of teen agers who provided the gas at a re cent party. While state law makes the sniffing of glue and spray paint a misdemea nor, Freon abuse has not been made illegal, said District Attorney Jim Mapel, who plans to take the case be fore a grand jury next month. The grand jury decision on whether to indict any of the teen-ag ers would depend on investigators' findings concerning their actions at the party and what led to the Dec. 18 death of Ms. Lee Franke Cam mack, Mapel said Monday. Lxcept for a 15-year-old, the teen agers were 17 ana 18 and could be tried as adults under state law. Officers said Cammack, who was an honor student and member of Brazoswood High School's Just Say No (to drugs) program, and six other teen-agers naa inhaled Freon in a Lake Jackson motel room Dec. 17. She died a hospital the next day. A preliminary autopsy report at tributed her death to sniffing the Freon, Justice of the Peace Roy Knopp said. Freon is used as a refrigerant and aerosol propellant. Child-welfare worker i 1 . fired after boy’s death EL PASO (AP) — The state De partment of Human Services has fired a child-welfare supervisor who did not investigate a child-abuse re port on a 2-year-old boy who later was beaten to death because he spit up his food, an official said. The supervisor was the first in the agency’s child protective services di vision to be fired in at least eight years, Joe Tarin, DHS regional ad ministrator, said. Tarin said the supervisor, Ernesto Gonzalez, should have assigned an investigator to the case. Andres Avalos died Dec. 17 of in juries he suffered from a beating. His stepfather, Jesus Alvarez, 24. is in El Paso County’s jail without bail on a murder charge. The boy’s mother. Linda Alvarez. 22. is in jail in lieu of $50,000 bail on a charge of endangering a child. She is accused of watching Alvarez beat Andres and not doing anything to stop him. The boy died less than three weeks after the boy’s father, Jesus Ricardo Avalos Sr., called the child- protection agency to report that he oelieved Alvarez was beating Andres. But Avalos and the Alvarezes were involved in a custody dispute over Andres and his 5-year-old brother, JesusJr. When Avalos called Gonzalez Nov. 28 to report that he thought Andres was being beaten, Gonzalez wrote on the report, “custody dis pute" and closed the case, according to court testimony during a custody hearing for the 5-year-old. Report: Dropouts cost state billions in their lifetimes AUSTIN (AP) — Each “class" of school dropouts costs Texas- $17.12 billion over their lifetimes, a special committee reported to the l^egislature Tuesday. The committee considers the dropout problem more than just a school problem. “It is a parental problem and it is a community problem,” Rep. Ernestine Glossbrenner, D-Alice, said. Glossbrenner is the co-chair of the Joint Special Interim Com mittee on High School Dropouts. Dropout costs include tax reve nue lost and indirect expenses, such as welfare and incarceration, Richard Hamner said. Hamner is the legislative direc tor for Sen. Gorrzalo Barrientos, a Democrat from Austin and co chair of the committee. Almost 90 percent of the Texas prison population dropped out of school, the committee report said. The report also said that two- thirds of Aid to Families with De pendent Children payments are made to people who failed to fin ish high school Over the lifetime of the 1985- 86 dropKHit class — students who were to have been graduated that year but left school oefore then — losses in tax revenue average ap>- proximately $60,000 per drop out, the committee said in its re- p>ort to the 71st legislature. Among the committee's recom mendations is a proposal to allow some students to make up unex-- cused absences of longer tnan the five days now allowed under the law. The 1984 education reform SEMESTER SPECIAL £?►. Vi PLUS S6 PHOTO ID CARD FACILITIES INCLUDE: COED CONDITIONING -LOOP FREE WEIGHTS ICARIAN EQUIPMENT WET STEAM BATH DESFRTDAY SAUNA RELAJ0MG WHIRLPOOL PRIVATE SHOWERS, LOCKERS & DRESSING OPEN 24 HOURS WEEKDAYS 7 DAYS WEEKLY & \^v ! '/ iYMS OF TEXAS on ■ (T1 01 law made it mandatory that stu dents who had more than five days of unexcused absences not be given credit for a class. Rules and local plans should be tailored to at-risk students, the prop>osal said, and “not be a loop>- nole to p>ermit excessive non-con- secutive absences.” “While this (five-absence rule) is an effort to keep students from missing excessive amounts of school, it also acts as a barrier to prevent those students who have temporarily withdrawn from school to return,” the committee said. Among other recommenda tions: • School -districts with large numbers of students from low so cioeconomic populations should provide alternative education programs for pregnant and par enting school-age students. Alternative programs would include daycare for children of students who are parents. • Every school should develop and maintain a -campus-based parent involvement program. • Districts should establish a school-based program to provide care before and after school for pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and elementary grade school chil dren. • Three-year-olds whose fam ily income is below pjoverty level or who are otherwise potentially disadvantaged should be eligible to enroll in a two-year pre-kin- deijgarten program. Tne current limit is 4 years of age. $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 WantAri- £vmntnmAtir nationt* with nhv/cu-ion $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME STUDY Wanted Symptomatic patients with physician diagnosed Irritable Bowel Syndrome to participate in a short study. $100 incentive for those chosen to participate $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $40 $40 $40 S40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $46 HEADACHE STUDY £o t An Do you have a headache? TTI Earn $40 for a 4 hour at home study with currently available medtea- TTi bqps no Wood drawn, no physical exams $40 Call Today $40 $40 After 6p.u. and weekends call 361-1500 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 , ASTHMA STUDY ' US Individuals who have regular asthma to participate in $400 an stethma study. $400 incentive for those chosen to l^ 00 participate. $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $400 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 US! FREE STREP THROAT TESTING US $100 F° r individuals 12 years and older with sore throat willing $ 10 o $100 to participate in a study to treat strep throat. Diagnosed $100 $100 stre P Ihroa! welcome $100 incentive for those chosen to j^qo $100 participate $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 SORE THROAT STUDY Wanted: Individuals ages 18-70 with sore throat pain to par- £40 tidpat* in a 90 minute study to compare currently available £40 over-the- counter pain relief medication. $40 incentive to £40 those chosen to participate $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $40 $100 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 CEDAR/WINTER ALLERGY STUDY Looking for mountain cedar allergic indIvtdualB to partici pate in a shod allergy study. $100-$200 incentive for those chosen to participate. Free skin testing available to determie eligibility. $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $100 $200 $200 CALL PAULL RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 776-0400 & SCOTT& WHITE CLINIC, COLLEGE STATION 1600 University Drive East Audiology Richard L Rit^v Ph D. Cardiology Dr J. JamcN Rnhack Dermatology Dr David D. Burton General Surgery Dr Frank R Arkn Dr Dirk I. Bm-sm Internal Medicine Dr Valeric Chatham Dr Alton Graham Dr Davfd Hackrthorn Dr Michael R Schlahach Health Education Solly Scaggy RD > Obstetric*/Gynecology Dr James R. Meyer Dr William l. Rayburn Dr diaries W Sanders Occupational Medicine Dr Walter J Linder Ophthalmology , Dr Mark R Coffman Orthopedic Stagery Dr Robert F. Flincs Otolaryngology Dc Michael J Miller Pediatrics Dr Dame M Foster Dr Mark Sicilio Dr Dan Ransom* Plastic Surgery Dr. William M Cocke. Jr Psychiatry Dr. Steven Kirk Straw n Psychology Dr Jack L Boddcn Radiology Dr. Inis Canales Urology Dr Michael R Hermans ’Available November I ‘>88 Scott and White specialists work with your doctor to pnnidr high quality health care far >iri and your family. Call 268-3322 For Appointment KRR2 o . ' -- c; a’-m .*■ -->*,:$tV- ' >. .s » a.- • Plug into the r.-.~ - V >’*** •».> * r. -re •Published Monday through Friday ’•Read daily by 45,000 students, faculty & staff 230 Reed McDonald*TAMU*College Station. TXG77843