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The Battalion
Vol.92 No. 105 (8 pages) 1893 - A Century of Service to Texas A&M - 1993 Tuesday, March 2,1993
Religious cult standoff continues
Leader negotiates with authorities as convoy moves in; tells mother he's dying
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WACO — The leader of a heavily armed
religious cult told his mother "I'm dying, all
right?" after two lethal gun battles with an
army of police and federal agents, who ringed
ihe group's fortified compound Monday.
The cult Branch Davidians allowed 10
children to leave, but more children remained
in the bullet-scarred compound. A man who
identified himself as a cult member said others
would be released later.
Shortly after 7 p.m., authorities moved the
command post further from the compound
and then about 8 p.m., reporters were ordered
todear the road into the compound.
Moments later a convoy of 25 trucks, cars
and vans carrying Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco
and Firearms agents in riot gear headed
toward the compound. The convoy stopped,
although the vehicle lights could be seen
snaking down the road.
Authorities kept up negotiations a day after
a rain of gunfire killed four federal agents and
two members of the sect, one reportedly a
daughter of cult leader David Koresh.
The negotiations were continuing in the late
afternoon Monday, said Franceska Perot, a
spokeswoman for the federal Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
At least 75 people remained in the
compound about 10 miles east of Waco, about
a third of them children, authorities said.
Koresh, who says he is Jesus Christ, said many
of the children were his.
One of the three people in the shootout was
charged Monday with attempted murder of a
federal law enforcement officer and use of a
firearm during commission of a violent crime,
said Jim Deatley, a spokesman in the U.S.
Attorney's office.
The FBI sent its elite Hostage Rescue Team
to the scene Monday, said a federal law
enforcement official who spoke on condition
of anonymity.
The standoff began Sunday after a 45-
minute gun battle with about 100 ATT agents
who were trying to serve arrest and search
warrants on Koresh for federal firearms
charges. Later Sunday, three people tried to
shoot their way out of the one-square-block
compound, ATF agents said.
Sixteen agents were wounded, and all were
out of intensive care and stable, hospital
officials said.
Questions arose about why the assault
failed. ATF spokesman Jack Killorin in
Washington said authorities believe the cult
got a phone tip of the raid. He also said the
agency had people working undercover within
the cult.
Koresh claimed agents shot first. "They
were scared. You can't blame them," he said.
But the ATF and media witnesses said cult
members started the shooting.
Koresh spent early Monday talking to
KRLD radio in Dallas, discussing his
interpretation of Revelation and its predictions
for the end of the world.
After radio stations broadcast his religious
message, the cult allowed six children to leave
the compound in groups of two, eyewitnesses
and sheriff's deputies said. Four more,
including an infant, were released Monday
afternoon.
Speculation about cult raid
pointless, UPD director says
By GINA HOWARD
The Battalion
Speculation about whether
Sunday's deadly raid of a
Waco area cult could have been
handled better is irrelevant,
said a former FBI special agent
and director of the Texas A&M
University police.
"As a Monday morning
quarterback it is easy to look
back and see how things could
have been done differently,"
said UPD Director Bob Wiatt.
"But at the time, they felt the
assault they had planned
would be adequate."
Agents with the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms
(ATF) tried to serve warrants to
search for explosives and fire
arms at the Branch Davidians
sect compound and arrest the
sect's religious leader, Vernon
Howell. A 45-minute shootout
followed which left four
agents dead and fifteen
wounded.
Reflecting on Sunday's
events, Wiatt said the assault
did not work out as planned,
but he doubts anything should
have been altered at the time.
"I would never Iry and sec
ond guess their actions," he
said.
Cult members had the up
per-hand in the shootout be
cause firing restrictions are
placed on federal officers,
Wiatt said.
See Cult raid/Page 8
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International Week kicks off
BILLY MORAN/The Battalion
Jun Lu plays an ar-huu, a two-stringed Chinese
violin, at the People's Republic of China booth in
the MSC Monday afternoon. The exhibit was part
of the International Week celebration.
Bill proposes tuition increase
for students with 158+ hours
By JULI PHILLIPS
The Battalion
A Texas House bill, which
would raise tuition rates for un
dergraduate students with 158
credit hours or more, will have
minimal effects on Texas A&M
students if it passes, A&M offi
cials and student advisers said.
"We don't have that many stu
dents with an extraordinary
amount of hours anymore," liber
al arts student adviser Georgia
Fox said. "It shouldn't affect too
many students."
Students with high numbers of
credit hours are usually proba-
tional students under provisional
guidelines. Fox said.
According to Texas A&M's Of
fice of University Relations, if this
bill became law today, almost
1,000 students out of 10,959 se
niors would be affected.
Associate Dean of Architecture
Rodney Hill said he thinks the bill
is an attempt to cut down on ca
reer students.
"What they are trying to do is
cut down on the perpetual stu
dents who are taking too much
advantage of the bargain they get
in Texas," he said.
Texas has one of the lowest tu
ition rates in the country. Hill
said. In order to keep the rates
low, legislators have to cut down
on the number of students.
Fox said advisers are trying to
keep students in the college in
which they started and help them
graduate on time.
"We don't want students
floundering around," she said.
"The University is trying to make
sure that students are here for
only as long as they need to be
here.'.'
According to the office of Mea
surement and Research, 60 per
cent of the student body will
change majors at least once dur
ing their college career. Twenty
percent will change majors within
their first year.
If students change majors after
their freshman year, they can
amass between 152 and 158 hours
if they graduate at the minimum
university requirement of 128
hours in their new college - most
colleges require between 132 and
135 hours.
Double degree students and
double major students take a min
imum of 144 hours for double de
grees and 162 hours for double
majors.
Executive Associate Provost
Jerry Gaston said, "It is not diffi
cult for some students to exceed
the 158 margin, and exemptions
will be made for students who are
not career students."
Gaston said the Legislature ‘
looking at the bill in committee
with the purpose of devising
these exemptions.
"There are those of us that be
lieve that you can never get
enough education," Gaston said.
"But the other viewpoint is: you
can't have too much education,
but at what point does the state
stop paying for it."
DEC seeks to diversify campus
Unofficial organization proposes 10-point plan for equality
By REAGON CLAMON
The Battalion
A newly-formed, unofficial student organization
called Diversity & Equality Coalition (DEC) '92 seeks
to centralize Texas A&M University efforts to in
crease diversity on campus.
The group, which was formed in December, is
made up of students from other campus organiza
tions who are concerned about the University's com
mitment to diversity.
Joseph Gourrier, senior psychology major and a
member of DEC '92, said the group sees a problem in
the separated nature of A&M's diversity programs.
"Each of the different organizations is doing their
own thing," he said. "They might be working to
ward separate goals because people have different
ideas of what diversity is. We just want them to
come up with a central plan that will make the
process more efficient."
Kevin Carreathers, director of multicultural ser
vices, said the enterprise is a noble one.
"There is strength in numbers," he said. "Work
ing collectively may give them a better chance of get
ting what they want."
Carreathers agreed the disjointed nature of some
campus programs sometimes blunts their effective
ness.
"If there are six, seven, or 10 organizations with
the same agenda, and they are not working together.
that might be a problem," he said
To meet their goals, DEC '92 members developed
a list of 10 recommendations they want added to
A&M's legislative agenda.
DEC '92 members said they hope to get the rec
ommendations on the University's legislative agenda
before this week's filing deadline.
"We feel if these recommendations were passed
into law, it wouldn't just help Texas A&M, but all
other schools in the state," Gourrier said. "Texas
would take a step forward and A&M would be tak
ing a leadership position."
Some of DEC '92's recommendations have come
from student concerns; however, others are the same
recommendations made by the Faculty Senate Com
mittee on Minority Conditions in its report that was
completed last April.
"The vast majority of those recommendations
were not implemented," Gourrier said.
DEC '92's 10 recommendations are:
• Funding for the recommendations made in the
Faculty Senate committee on minority conditions re
port.
• State funding for the center for race and ethnic
studies.
• Funding for minorities and women who are
hired into faculty positions.
• Expanding the office of school relations and
See DEC plan/Page 4
Mo Silver Taps
tonight
Silver Taps will not be held
tonight because no Texas
A&M students have died
within the past month.
The ceremony is held on
the first Tuesday of the month
during the normal school year
to honor those students who
have died within the past
tnonth.
The Ross Volunteer Firing
Squad fires a 21-gun salute
and buglers play "Silver
Taps" three times to honor the
deceased. The bells of the
Albritton Bell Tower also play
as part of the ceremony.
Bryan Council debates funding airport upgrades
By JEFF GOSMANO
The Battalion
The Bryan City Council is de
bating whether to give Texas
A&M University $100,000 to reno
vate the old Easterwood Airport
Terminal and upgrade non-com
mercial aviation facilities.
Dr. Richard Floyd, Texas
A&M University associate vice
president for finance and admin
istration, said because small air
ports do not make big profits, the
University is looking for ways to
fund buildings and projects at
Easterwood Airport.
"We are asking Bryan to help
us support the operations so we
can continue with the level of ser
vice everyone is used to having,"
he said.
On Feb. 23, the council voted 3-
3 to consider a contribution to the
old Easterwood Terminal, located
in College Station.
Bryan City Councilman Larry
Catlin said he anticipates the item
will be placed on the agenda at
the next meeting when all seven
council members are present.
The City of College Station has
already agreed to give $100,000
for airport improvements. How
ever, Bryan City Councilman
See Bryan Council/Page 4
JOHN BARTRAM/The Battalion
Sports
•Football: Steve Kenney
on the road to recovery
•Baseball: 14-0 Aggies
are 4th in nation, as they
prepare for SW Texas
Page 5
Opinion
•Precautions could have
saved lives in the World
Trade Center bombing
Page 7