The Battalion
Vol. 92 No. Ill (12 pages) 1893 - A Century of Service to Texas A&M - 1993 Wednesday, March 10,1993
w
AITING in
AGO Day 10
Koresh becoming
moody, FBI says
Negotiations with the messian
ic leader of a heavily armed reli
gious cult are proceeding along
^two irreconcilable tracts'^ — one
peaceful, one not — the FBI said
today.
FBI special agent Bob Ricks
said Branch Davidian leader
David Koresh goes from bel
ligerency to peacemaker during
talks aimed at ending the 10-day
standoff.
The FBI had been portraying
the negotiations as positive, but
Monday began discussing what it
called "the dark side" of Koresh,
who claims his name is "the sur
name of God."
While Koresh has amassed an
arsenal that could includes rock
ets and grenades, Ricks said the
FBI has sufficient firepower to re
spond.
"I want it absolutely clear that
we have sufficient firepower to re
spond overpoweringly," Ricks
said.
"We have sufficient firepower,
if we chose, to completely neutral
ize this situation at any moment,"
Ricks said. "We do not choose to
do that."
The FBI said early in the siege
that it was not planning to storm
the compound. Ricks repeated
that pledge today.
31 members are
British, reports say
As many as 31 British citizens
are holed up with radical reli
gious leader David Koresh, British
government officials said Tues
day.
"Obviously, if we have British
people involved we have an inter
est," said David Parker, British
consul from Washington who has
been monitoring court proceed
ings and news briefings in Waco
for the past several days.
Parker and Helen Mann,
spokeswoman for the British con
sulate in Houston, said that wor
ried relatives of cult members had
been contacting the British gov
ernment.
"We've had relatives of family
members calling the Foreign Of
fice in London," Mann said.
"From those calls, we know that
some 31 people in the compound
are British citizens. There are indi
cations others might or might not
be in there as well."
Relatives seeking
custody of kids
Relatives from around the
world converged on a county
courthouse Tuesday to seek cus
tody of 21 children released from
the besieged Branch Davidian
compound, but a judge ordered
all but three of the children to re
main in the hands of the state.
In wrenching, tearful testimo
ny, the relative begged to be al
lowed to take the children home,
away from the group home the
state has established for them.
"I just want to take her out of
here," said one father, William
Nobrega, of his daughter, Natalie,
11.
He said he wanted to "take her
back to the family and friends
that she knows, and not leave her
in an environment where she has
to think about the trauma she has
been through."
Nobrega, a Briton whose es
tranged wife is still in the reli
gious sect's compound, was one
of two people who came from
London for the hearing. He said
his daughter had lived in England
until last April, when his wife
spirited her away while he was
on vacation.
State District Judge Bill Logue
expressed sympathy for the rela
tives. But he ordered the children
held by the state office of Child
Protective Services until it can
complete evaluations of the rela
tives' homes.
The Associated Press
Leaders ask community to fight gang problem
By JASON COX
The Battalion
Civic leaders urged the community to
get involved and emphasized the need
for education to eliminate gang violence
at the second organizational meeting of
the Citizen's Crime Commission of Bra
zos County Tuesday night.
Dr. Paul Kingery, Texas A&M's Well
ness Program director, said there has
been a remarkable increase in violence
over the past few years and "there is
something unique about Texas" which
makes it higher than the national average
in the number of children carrying
weapons.
Kingery said youth violence in big
cities is spreading to rural areas and offi
cials are reluctant to acknowledge the
problem because of the bad image it can
create.
Children disregard the school's poli
cies and punishments for carrying
weapons because to them it is not a mat
ter of possible injury but of survival, he
said.
"We need schools and
communities to participate
in studying the problem."
- Dr. Paul Kingery
A&M Wellness
Program director
"We need schools and communities to
participate in studying the problem,"
Kingery said.
Dr. Ben Crouch, associate dean of
Texas A&M University's College of Liber
al Arts, said everyone has a different view
of gangs and said it is a "mistake to con
clude that all delinquents are gang mem
bers."
Crouch compared the levels of gang
involvement to a target, saying the bull's
eye represent hardcore members while
the outer rings indicate lesser degrees of
participation.
See Community leaders/Page 3
Hittin' the slopes
KEVIN IVY/The Battalion
Freshman Roy Ford, falls after losing his balance during his Introduction to Snow
Skiing class Tuesday morning on Mt. Aggie. Many Aggies will be hitting the
slopes, as they travel north to go skiing for Spring Break.
State Senate OKs $1.6 million bill
for computer link of A&M System
By JASON COX
The Battalion
A bill recently approved by the Texas
Senate provides $1.6 million for the cre
ation of an electronic database to link the
schools of the Texas A&M University
System.
Two installments of $800,000 over the
1994-1995 school year will pay for
staffing, equipment and software for the
project.
The A&M System plans to create a
network that will allow students and fac
ulty members of the A&M System to
share access to periodicals and collabo
rate on research projects.
Sen. Jim Turner, the bill's sponsor, said
in a prepared statement that because li
braries are cutting back on subscriptions
to important journals and periodicals the
database can help System schools pool
their resources.
"The database will put students and
faculty at each campus in touch with each
other and with an expanding base of elec
tronically stored information," he said.
Kevin McHargue, an official in Turn
er's office, said the College Station cam
pus can expect to receive $250,000 for its
part in the project.
McHargue said he expects to see much
more collaboration as a result of the pro
ject.
Dr. William Perry, associate provost
and dean of faculties, said the major
thrust of the bill is to improve access for
other campuses. He said it is a measure
to enhance access and resources across
the System.
Because libraries cannot subscribe to
every book and journal. Perry said, the
database will "gain some economy" as an
efficient means of dispersing information.
"As information grows, the access pro
vided by electronics holds promise for
the future," he said.
Turner said the program will help
A&M keep pace with the opportunities
provided by today's technology.
"Texas A&M is preparing to be part of
a global information economy," he said.
King testifies: T was
trying to stay alive'
ly coming to a stop.
The testimony in the federal trial of
four white policemen came two years af
ter the March 3, 1991, beating that led to
a state trial, acquittals and three days of
deadly rioting.
King, 27, said the officers asked at one
point how he felt. "I said I felt fine. I
didn't want them to know what they
were doing to me was really getting to
me. I didn't want them to have the satis
faction."
Under questioning by prosecutor Bar
ry Kowalski, King insisted he never re
sisted arrest and suggested that a woman
state Highway Patrol officer who first
tracked him down for speeding could
have handcuffed him if Los Angeles po-
See King/Page 5
Bush to attend Muster
Ex-President wants to learn Aggie tradition
By JULI PHILLIPS
The Battalion
This year's Muster will have a special
guest.
Former President George Bush sent a
letter to the Muster committee confirm
ing he will attend the April 21 ceremony,
but committee members are concerned
his presence may detract from it.
"We are thrilled that he is coming,"
said Muster Chair Maureen Gannon.
"But we are concerned that students will
attend Muster to see George Bush and
forget about the spirit of the tradition."
Gannon said Bush also is concerned
about upstaging the ceremony's message
and said in his letter that he wants to be a
normal participant and learn what
Muster is about.
"I think this is a great way to intro
duce Mr. Bush to A&M and to its tradi
tions," she said. "I just hope that his
presence doesn't convey the wrong mes
sage."
Although he will be in attendance.
Bush will not speak at the ceremony. The
key-note speaker at Muster will be Jack
Fritz, Class of 1953.
He is former president of the Associa
tion of Former Students and has been in
volved with Muster ceremonies around
the world.
Fritz is also the originator of the
Muster candle lighting ceremony.
The Class of 1943 will be the guest of
honor.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
LOS ANGELES — Rodney King took
the witness stand Tuesday for the first
time since his videotaped beating and
said he was "attacked" by police officers,
including one who screamed racial in
sults and told him, "We're going to kill
you."
King, speaking in a soft voice, said he
never attacked the officers accused of vi
olating his civil rights.
"I was trying to stay alive," King told
the jury. He said that during the beating
he was coughing blood out of his mouth.
King's testimony was his first detailed
public account of the night the black mo
torist's speeding car was pursued by po
lice officers and he was beaten after final-
Easterwood receives funds
for terminal improvements
By JEFF GOSMANO
The Battalion
The Bryan City Council earmarked
$100,000 in a meeting Tuesday night for
improvements to Texas A&M Universi
ty's Easterwood Airport.
Councilmember Hank McQuaide,
who voted in favor of the funding re
quests, said airport upgrades are neces
sary to facilitate private businesses and
organizations that use the old airport ter
minal. However, the money must be
used for terminal improvements, he said.
"I think, in the broad picture, the facil
ities at the Easterwood Terminal are a
disgrace," he said. "However, I do have
reservations that if we fund this project,
the University must carry through with
its plans to improve the old terminal."
See Easterwood/Page 5
'Keyed entry' crimes
Thefts create security concerns
By REAGON CLAMON
The Battalion
Theresa Harrington may never trust a
locked door again.
Harrington's VCR was stolen from her
room in Hobby Hall during the Christ
mas holidays. She believes she is a vic
tim of what police call a "keyed entry" —
a break-in accomplished through the
unauthorized use of a key.
"I'm not angry," said Harrington, a
senior biomedical science major from
Nederland. "I just feel kind of weird
about somebody being able to walk into
my room and take something."
Two other thefts during Christmas
break might also be the result of keyed
entries, said University Police Detective
Bill Wade. A 13-inch television was tak
en from a room in Neeley Hall, and jew
elry and a calculator were taken from
Appelt Hall.
Wade said no evidence of forced entry
was found in any of the incidents. In
most of the cases, the victims said they
locked their rooms before leaving for the
break. Resident advisers said they also
double checked the doors.
Police have no leads in any of the cas
es.
Wade said many crime prevention ef
forts are futile against a thief with a key.
Investigating these crimes is frustrating,
he said, because most keyed-entry thefts
leave few clues.
Still, Harrington said she holds the
University responsible for her loss.
"I don't think there should be more
than two or three sets of keys," she said.
"I know there are at least four sets of
keys floating around."
Dan Mizer, assistant director of resi
dence life, facilities and operations, said
the extra keys are necessary to keep the
University running.
"When there's an emergency, like wa
ter is gushing from underneath the door,
we're obviously going to have to go in,"
Mizer said. "We don't want to go into a
room, however, unless it's absolutely
See 'Key entry' crimes/Page 2
Sports
•Baseball: Aggies pummell Illinois
State 12-3
•Basketball: Lady Aggies ready
for SWC tournament
Page 7
Opinion
•Exploring the crimes of fashion:
A&M offenses include cattle
clothes, beltbuckies
•Handy hints for having a happy
spring break vactation.
Page 10