State & Local
Page 2
The Battalion
Monday, May 31,1993
State submits bill to control alcohol
Measure leaves out provision to raise
minimum age of nude dancers in bars
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUSTIN — Lawmakers sent
Gov. Ann Richards a bill Sunday
that would give local areas more
control over alcohol consumption
and prohibit public drinking near
schools.
But the measure does not in
clude a provision to increase the
age at which people can dance
nude or topless in bars from 17 to
21. Rep. Ron Wilson called that a
disappointment.
"It appears that the House was
in the posture of protecting the
young women across this state,
and some of the folks in the Sen
ate decided to protect the pe
dophiles/' said Wilson, D-Hous-
ton, before the House approved
the measure Sunday. The bill
passed the Senate Saturday.
A separate bill overhauling the
criminal code raises the nude and
topless dancing minimum age to
18, but that doesn't take effect un
til 1994, Wilson said.
But Wilson said he was pleased
with other portions of the bill ex
tending the life of the Texas Alco
holic Beverage Commission,
which regulates the alcohol indus
try. "It gives local people more
control over their own neighbor
hoods," he said.
Among other provisions, the
bill would:
— Require a hearing before a
new alcohol license is granted to a
sexually oriented business. If an
existing business wants to renew a
license, a hearing is mandatory if
requested by half of those living
within 300 feet of it.
— Prohibit consumption of al
coholic beverages, or possession
of an open container, within 600
feet of a public or private school.
— Authorize cities to ban pos
session of an open alcohol con
tainer, in addition to prohibiting
public consumption, in a central
business district.
— Cancel an alcohol license if
the license-holder knowingly al
lows an unauthorized firearm on
the premises.
— Prohibit a bar from substi
tuting requested brands without
notice, and hold it liable in a :ivil
suit if it does so.
— Allow restaurants and bars
to brew and sell beer on their
premises, and set the brewpub li
cense fee at $500.
— Authorize the use of nation
al sweepstakes promotions in
Texas by the alcoholic beverage
industry.
— Allow the industry to adver
tise at racetracks and supplement
purses, and to advertise in munic
ipally owned professional sports
facilities.
— Require minors who buy al
cohol to attend an alcohol aware
ness course on a second offense.
— In Houston, require a hear
ing if someone raises grounds for
permit suspension or denial, and
the bar or similar business is with
in 300 feet of a home, church,
school, hospital, day care facility
or social service facility.
Legislature to regulate Edwards Aquifer
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUSTIN — Pumping from the Edwards
Aquifer would be regulated by a permit sys
tem to protect the lives of endangered species
under a bill approved by the Legislature Sun
day and sent to Gov. Ann Richards.
The aquifer, the sole source of drinking wa
ter for San Antonio, extends 176 miles under
six Central Texas counties.
The Legislature was forced to come up with
a plan to regulate water withdrawals after a
federal judge ruled rare fish, salamanders and
plant life which feed off of the underground
water source needed protection.
Regulation of the aquifer has been met with
disdain by developers, city officials and farm
ers, who say their crops and property will be
devalued by restrictions on water rights.
The court gave the Legislature until May 31
to come up with a plan, which is expected to
be signed by Richards. The Senate approved
the bill unanimously on a voice vote. The
House approved the bill on a vote of 116-22.
"This measure is a fair and balanced com
promise between those who rely on the
aquifer," said Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock. "I am
pleased that we were able to resolve the diffi
cult matter within the time constraints im
posed by the court.
"It's a milestone in the battle over use of
one of our greatest natural resources," Bullock
said.
"I truly believe that this legislation will pass
all elements of (the court's) orders," said Rep.
Ron Lewis, D-Mauriceville.
An environmental group that helped bring
about the lawsuit resulting in the regulation
called the plan a good first step, but said it
lacks planning in case of a drought.
"I think it's a step in the right direction,"
said Ken Kramer, executive director of the
Sierra Club's Texas chapter. "The big question
is, 'Does it guarantee spring flows in all situa
tions, including a drought?' The court will de
cide."
Under the plan, pumping would be limited
to 450,000 acre-feet of water annually through
the year 2007, and withdrawals would be re
duced to 400,000 acre-feet by the year 2008.
Movin 7 on up
STACY RYAN/The Battalion
Elizabeth Torres, a senior BANA major from San Antonio, moves
into Mclnnis Hall Sunday afternoon.
Jury to decide if rap
is causeldlHHlHHI
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUSTIN — Nineteemyear-old Ronald Ray Howard likes rap mu
sic. Growing up in inner-city Houston, he and his friends listened to
it, and lived by it. ,
This week, an Austin jury will decide whether he killed because of
it.
When Howard goes on trial on charges of killing Texas Depart
ment of Public Safety trooper Bill Davidson, so will "gangsta rap,"
the outlaw fringe of the rap music genre.
Gangsta's themes center around drugs, sex, violence and hatred
for police, and attorneys on both sides of the case say it will be a key
to Howard's trial.
Defense attorney Allan Tanner says that on April 11, 1992, the
night trooper Davidson was killed, Howard drove 120 miles from
Houston to Victoria while listening to Tupac's "2Pacalypse Now" re
lease and a tape by Houston rap group Ganksta N.I.P.
Howard, who was already on probation for car theft, was driving
a stolen GM Blazer near Victoria when Davidson, 43, pulled him
over for missing a headlight.
According to grand Jury testimony, the trooper walked up to the
window and Howard shot him in the neck with a 9-mm handgun his
mother had bought him.
"My foot was already on the gas," Howard told the grand jury. "I
heard him scream as I was leaving/'
Tanner says the cop-killing rap that his client frequently played is
a factor that must be considered in determining his fate. If convicted,
Howard faces up to life in prison or the death penalty.
"We’re not saying it excuses anything," Tanner said. "But it
should be considered in the sentence he gets."
Jackson County District Attorney Bobby Bell agrees. He intends to
call as witnesses Tupac and members of Ganksta N.I.P.
"I don't think all that gangsta rap made him do it, but it rein
forced it," Bell said. "He hated cops. Hated cops."
The power of rap music, and it's role in this trial, may also influ
ence a civil suit filed by Davidson's widow against California rapper
Tupac Amuru Shakur and Time Warner Inc.
Mrs. Davidson's lawyer, Jim Cole of Victoria, contends rapper Tu
pac's anti-cop message provoked Howard.
Railey's trial leads to loss of acceptance
Former Dallas minister seeks
employment after acquittal
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
DALLAS — In the six weeks
since Walker Railey's trial ended
in San Antonio, the former Dallas
minister says it's frustrating to
discover that many people still
think he tried to choke his wife to
death.
"It is kind of irritating that peo
ple won't accept that there has
been an ac ¬
"It is kind of irritating
that people won't accept
that there has been an
acquittal."
quittal. But it
doesn't take a
majority vote
in the city of
Dallas for it
to take ef
fect," he told
The Dallas
Morning
News.
The newspaper reported in its
Sunday editions that Railey has
found it difficult to find work un
der that cloud. He seeks a private-
sector or church job, one that will
employ the talents that once fu
eled his meteoric rise in the Unit
ed Methodist Church.
Railey, 45, has a tight group of
friends who are administrators
and elders at the church where he
worships, Immanuel Presbyterian
Church in downtown Los Ange
les.
But there is also a faction,
which Railey dismisses as a
"fringe element," that passionate
ly resents him and seeks to limit
his influence, he said in an inter
view Thursday.
Colleagues say Railey contin
ues to explore as a consultant to
urban churches, congregations
facing the same demographic
shifts as his former church in
downtown Dallas.
It was there, at First United
Methodist Church, that Railey's
gift for preaching and organiza-
‘ tional skills
spurred a
climb up the
church ladder.
He was on
track to be
come bishop
soon, many
-Walker Railey f e it.
In April
1987, his ascent ended. His wife,
Peggy, was found choked nearly
to death on the garage floor of
their residence. Soon Railey was
named as a suspect. He revealed
eventually that he had been hav
ing an affair, resigned his ministe
rial credentials and moved to Cal
ifornia.
His wife has persisted in a veg
etative state since the attack. She
is in a nursing home in Tyler,
where her parents live.
Railey has never visited his
wife in the nursing home, and he
filed for divorce after his April 17
acquittal.
Election
Continued from Page 1
numbers of voters, but because of
the publicity of the senatorial
runoff between Kay Bailey
Hutchison and Bob Krueger, the
council race should have a good
turnout.
"The turnout probably won't
be as high as it is in other races,"
he said, "but it also won't be as
low."
Bryan residents can participate
in early voting tomorrow between
8 a.m. and 5 p.m. at any of the fol
lowing locations:
• Bryan Municipal Building,
300 S. Texas Ave.
• Brazos County Courthouse,
300 E. 26th St.
• Arena Hall, Tabor Rd.
• Galilee Baptist Church, 804
N. Logan
• C.S.I.S.D. Teacher's Learning
Resource Center, 1812 Welsh
• Memorial Student Center,
Texas A&M Campus
Voters need to bring a Brazos
County voter's registration card
or a valid Texas Driver's License
to the polls. Absentee excuses are
not required to participate in ear
ly voting.
Amphitheater
Continued from Page 1
Haddox with the vision to get the
project started, Haddox said
teamwork enabled the project to
be a success.
"It couldn't have been done
without the work of hundreds of
people," Haddox said. "We need
everyone's support and help to
make this thing complete."
Ron Ragland, city manager of
College Station, said there will be
many future developments in
store for the Wolf Pen Creek Cor
ridor
"This is a cornerstone in the
project," Ragland said. "This is
just one lake in a series of lakes."
Ringer said this is an improve
ment to an area that was previ
ously undeveloped.
"We had the opportunity to
take an area that was once an eye
sore and turn it into an attrac
tion," Ringer said.
Bob Yancy, a public relations
assistant for the city of College
Station, said said the amphithe
ater is the major feature of the
Wolf Pen Creek Corridor.
"The city will conduct events
out there, but the majority of the
events that will be taking place
out there are not city events,"
Yancy said.
Yancy said any revenue raised
from Friday's event will go to
ward Phase II of the project.
Ringer said the developments
in the Wolf Pen Creek Corridor
improve the appearance of the
city.
"It will build up a tax base and
attract businesses to this area,"
Ragland said. "The city council is
very concerned with what will
happen to this city in the next 10
to 20 years."
JT+ tutoring 260-2660
8pm
10pm
midnite
Monday 5/31
Tuesday 6/1
Wednesday 6/2
Thursday 6/3
Chem. 101
Chap 1&2
Chem. 101
Chap. 3
Chem. 101
Chap. 4
Chem. 101
test I Review
Phys. 201
Chap. 1
Phys. 201
Chap. 2
Phys. 201
Chap. 3
C&W DANCE LESSONS
BEGINNING: LEARN THE BASICS-2-STEP, POLKA, WALTZ, & TURNS.
DATES/TIMES: JUNE 7,14, 21 28 / 8 - 9:30 P.M.
INTERMEDIATE: BEYOND THE BASICS-LEARN INDIVIDUAL TURNS,
PROMENADE, LARIAT, THE EL PASO, JITTERBUG &. MORE.
DATES/TIMES: JUNE 8,15, 22, &. 29 / 8:15 - 9:45 P.M.
ADVANCED: ADD MORE VARIATIONS WHILE KEEPING STEP.
LEARN THE WHIP, DONNA, PRETZEL, SPINS, &. MORE.
DATES/TIMES: JUNE 10,17, 24, &.JULY 1/7:15 - 8:45
CLASSES MEET AT JAZZERCISE $20/STUDENT - $22/NON-STUDENT
CLASSES TAUGHT BY DURANGO COUNTRY DANCING
* 846-7023 *
CONTACT LENSES
ONLY QUALITY NAME BRANDS
(Bausch & Lomb, Ciba, Sola/Barnes-Hind)
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For Standard Clear or Tinted
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ASK ABOUT OUR
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-■>^505 University Dr. East,
Suite 101
College Station, Texas 77840
4 Blocks East of Texas Ave. & University Dr.
Intersection
The Battalion
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