The Battalion
Thursday -JulyS,l^T
Campus
Calendar
Thursday, July 3
MSC Visual Arts Committee:
Study for your finals free, in the
peace and quiet of the air-condi
tioned MSC Forsyth Center Gal
leries, across from the Aggieland
Post Office in the MSC. Extended
hours on Sunday, July 6, from noon
-10 p.m. For more information con
tact Lalaine Little at 845-9251.
The Writing Center (Dept, of Eng
lish, Texas A&M): The Writing Center
in 249 Blocker will consult with any
TAMU student who needs help with
his or her writing projects for Summer
I. Hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Come by or
call 862-4181 for more information.
Aggie Roadrunners: There will be
a daily run of 2-3 miles beginning at
7 p.m. in front of G. Rollie White. Run
ners of all levels are encouraged to
attend. For more information call
Hank Bullinger at 821-6339.
Texas A&M Women’s Rugby: There
will be practice from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
at the TAMU Rugby Field. No experi
ence is necessary. For more informa
tion contact Wendy at 696-9012.
Friday, July 4
The Writing Center (Dept, of Eng
lish, Texas A&M): The Writing Center in
249 Blocker will consult with any TAMU
student who needs help with his or her
writing projects for Summer I. Hours
are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. For more informa
tion call 862-4181 or come by.
State predicts
36 highway deaths
AUSTIN (AP) — As many as 36
people could die on Texas highways
over the long Fourth of July week
end, the Department of Public Safe
ty said today.
Sixteen people died last year
during the 30-hour holiday period.
But with July 4 falling on a Friday
this year, the holiday period
stretches to 78 hours — from 6
p.m. Thursday through midnight
Sunday.
“We’re asking drivers to do every
thing within their power to have a
safe, enjoyable July Fourth holiday,”
said Lt. Col. Thomas Davis Jr., act
ing DPS director.
At least five of last year’s 16
deaths were attributed to drinking
and driving. July 3, 1994, remains
the deadliest day in Texas traffic his
tory, with 46 people killed in acci
dents that day.
Alien frenzy marks UFO celebratioi
ROSWELL, N.M. (AP) — Sou
venir sales soared like the ther
mometer Wednesday at the 50th
anniversary celebration of an al
leged alien encounter known as the
Roswell Incident.
As temperatures topped 100
degrees for the second straight
day, stores were selling out of such
items as pinatas, a Hispanic
Christmas tradition that perhaps
recalled cooler times — only these
were alien pinatas.
“We’re primarily an Indian
gallery but with the UFO festival go
ing on, we’ve added a lot to the
store,” said Michael Amador, the
shopkeeper at the Apache Gallery.
“We also sell Mexican imports, so
we had a friend make the pinatas.”
A group of promotional dum
mies made to resemble aliens sat
in a weathered Jeep in front of the
gallery. These five aliens, each
about 4 feet tall, were supposed to
represent the five spacemen who
purportedly crashed northwest of
here in July 1947. But with their
costumes and headgear — includ
ing cowboy hat and chaps, a feath
ered Indian war bonnet, a military
camouflage uniform and a som
brero — they were more reminis
cent of the Village People pop mu
sic group.
By noon, Amador said the store
had sold about 50 of its 250 alien
pinatas at $7.95 each.
As he spoke, tourists paraded
along the sidewalks and the mer
cury climbed to 101, according to
the National Weather Service. It had
been 105 Tuesday.
The alien designs are every
where. There are alien T-shirts, alien
mannequins, alien refrigerator
magnets and alien guitar picks.
Michelle Watts, who co-owns the
Quilt Talk fabric store, wore a
sleeveless minidress and wire-mesh
vest made with her copyrighted
“fabric from outer space,” a black-
based print pattern showing silvery
space aliens and maps of New Mex
ico with Roswell highlighted.
"I’m weird. I look at everything
in relation to ‘Can you make a
quilt or sew with it or make some
thing interesting out of it.’ This is
interesting,” she said, motioning
to her outfit. “It’s a woven (fabric)
from outer space. It definitely
won’t unravel.”
The fabric has already sold out,
but the store is accepting orders.
Down the street at the Interna
tional UFO Museum and Research
Center, guests browsed through
exhibits on, among other things,
crop circles, abduction stories and
the Air Force’s Project Mogul, a
1940s effort to monitor Soviet nu
clear testing.
Military officials say it was a
top-secret experimental spy bal-
I know some
thing happened. Fm
just not sure what.”
Jason York
Amarillo resident
asked whether he
believes in space aliens
loon from that project — and not
a UFO — that crashed near
Roswell in July 1947.
Joyce Kiess, who greets each
guest at the museum’s door, says
2,067 visitors entered Tuesday, the
first official day of the celebration,
and the number was expected to
rise daily as the week coni
Most visitors were fromle:
California, she said, with some!
as far away as Vermont
Some visitors expressed be!
the UFO story. Most, like 7-yea
Colby Kraft of Bradford, Pa.
just having a good time.Askeii
believed in space aliens, 0
shrugged and smiled.
“I don’t know,” he said.
Added Jason York, 19,ofAic
lo, Texas: “I know something
pened. I’m just not sure what.
Festival organizers said
hotel rooms became avail
Wednesday when a television) eer j
duction company cancelled)! 0 [| e
to cover the event.
But there was still overiiI. c j e
Representatives of some nemt
lets were housed at a retirei a j
center.
“So obviously, there’s a
rooms,” said publicist TomGani |f]
Non-military lawyer
approved for Marine
REDFORD, Texas (AP) — The
Marine who killed a teen-ager
near the Mexican border needs to
have his side of the story “more
forcefully presented,” said a civil
ian attorney retained by the sol
dier Wednesday.
Cpl. Clemente Banuelos, who
already has a military attorney, re
quested private counsel to repre
sent him as the Texas Rangers in
vestigate the May 20 shooting of
Ezequiel Hernandez Jr., a Redford
high school student.
The U.S. Justice Department
approved the request and con
tacted Houston attorney Jack Zim-
mermann, a retired Marine Corps
colonel, who agreed to take
Banuelos as a client.
Such a move “doesn’t happen
very often because there’s not
many times when a federal offi
cial acting in his official capacity
is threatened with prosecution
by state authorities,” said Zim-
mermann.
Zimmermann said he was not
yet prepared to discuss the case
because he had only been hired
Wednesday, but added: “I do think
that his side of the story needs to
be more forcefully presented.”
Military officials say Hernan
dez was shot after the teen-ager
had fired twice at a four-man Ma
rine surveillance team that was
watching a suspected drug route
at the request of the Border Patrol.
The military maintains Her
nandez had raised his .22-caliber
rifle for a third shot when the Ma
rine opened fire.
^ I do think
that his side of the
story needs to be
more forcefully
presented.”
Attorney Jack Zimmerman
on investigation
of Marine who shot
a West Texas teenager
The Marine Corps has said it
stands behind its personnel, but
civilian investigators have raised
questions about the series of
events. Authorities say the evi
dence has not matched the
Marines’ account and suggest
Hernandez was not facing the sol
diers when he was killed.
Presidio County District Attor
ney Albert Valadez plans to pre
sent the case to a grand jury later
this month.
Judge hushes murder defendan
LIBERTY, Texas (AP) — State District Judge W.G.
“Dub” Woods Jr. is barring capital murder defendant
Robert Morrow from speaking with anyone except his
attorney and family members.
Woods’ restraining order was issued in the wake of
a Houston Chronicle story last week quoting Morrow
saying he is innocent of fatally stabbing a former Lib
erty councilman’s daughter.
In the newspaper interview, Morrow, 27, an oil field
worker from Liberty, said he knew who killed Myra Elis
abeth “Lisa” Allison, 21, a University of Nevada at Las
Vegas student who vanished from a car wash while
home on spring break on April 3, 1996.
Morrow acknowledges his blood was found in her
car but contended he was picked up by the killer af
ter her death and injured during a fight over drug
paraphernalia.
isor
Woods said he was concerned more public a ™|
might contaminate the jury pool. The judge eaii
had issued a gag order telling participants in theca
not to discuss it.
Morrow, however, told the newspaper becausei ^ or '
faces a possible death sentence he believes hell P 0
nothing to lose by discussing the case and couldbt 11
efit from having his side heard
Chronicle attorney Joel White, who is annealiipMl
Woods’ decision to seal public records
Morrow’s arrest, believes the restraining orderistuM
constitutional.
“You can’t prohibit a defendant from talkingo pen
any subject at all against his will,” White saidlue
day. .“It’s one thing to protect a defendant’s
a fair trial, but it’s another to shove it downil
throat.”
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No arrests made in baby’s deatli
GEORGETOWN, Texas (AP) —
Police are continuing to pursue
tips regarding the death of a new
born boy whose body was found
in a portable toilet at a public
park.
“Just anonymous tips that peo
ple are calling in — nothing con
crete we can go on yet,” George
town Police Detective Steve Benton
said today.
Police named the boy Michael
Gabriel because they didn’t want
him to be buried as John Doe. Fu
neral services are planned for
Monday.
The death of the baby, who is be
lieved to have been born within 24
hours of when he was found Satur
day, is being pursued as a homicide.
Police said the baby was full-term,
weighed 4 pounds, 8 ounces and
had brown hair.
Police suspect the baby was
livered inside the toilet somi
after dark Friday. His body
found by a woman who was at
park with her children.
An autopsy on the infant
conclusive labout the causti
death, so Williamson County/usd
of the Peace jimmy IhtzhasOTM R
more tests. t
Weather Outlook
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
Sunny
High: 94°
Low: 75°
Sunny
High:94 c
Low: 75°
SI
Sunny
High: 95 e
Low: 75°
:9:3(
frilla
Arrests tarnish ‘Speed-Trap’ police ^ h
LAVON, Texas (AP) —The police
department of the city that became
known as “Speed-Trap, Texas” be
cause of its reliance on ticket mon
ey is now waging another war to re
pair its tarnished image.
Jeff Gardner, a lieutenant
whose successful drug operations
were beginning to erase the de
partment’s notoriety, and anoth
er former officer are facing crim
inal charges.
“I hate what it’s done to our city
and our police department,” May
or Chris Wess said. “It’s hurt our
reputation. It’s stirred up hard
feelings and may cost us part of
the department.’
Critics say the recent trouble
just shows that the small Collin
County town of350 people doesn’t
need a police force.
“We can’t afford it, and we don’t
have any crime,” said resident Will
Morrow. “The police department
is the only criminal element in
this town.”
The city lost two of its five paid of
ficers June 10. Gardner, 44, is facing
federal charges of stealing money
during drug raids. He is free on
$20,000 bail and confined to his
home with electronic monitoring.
Thomas Wayne Merryman, 30,
resigned after his arrest on charges
of stealing a shotgun and supply
ing a firearm to a minor. He is free
on $10,000 bail.
Three Lavon officers were with
Gardner April 10 when federal
agents say they secretly videotaped
him putting cash in his waistband
during what he thought was a drug
raid. The sting was set up by state
and federal authorities and is in
cluded in the complaint against
Gardner.
Gardner’s drug raids brought in
$79,989, more than a third of the
city’s total income this year, Lavon
records show.
By Quati
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Stew Milne, Editor in Chief
Helen Clancy, Managing Editor
John LeBas, City Editor
April Towery, Lifestyles Editor
Kristina Buffin, Sports Editor
James Francis, Opinion Editor
Jody Holley, Night News Editor
Tim Moog, Photo Editor
Brad Graeber, Graphics Editor
Jacqueline Salinas, Radio Editor
David Friesenhahn, Web Editor
Staff Members
City- Assistant Editors: Erica Roy & Matt Weber;
Reporters: Michelle Newman, Joey Schlueter &
Jenara Kocks; Copy Editor: Jennifer Jones
Lifestyles- Rhonda Reinhart, Keith McPhail
& Jenny Vmak
Sports- Matt Mitchell & Jeremy Furtick
Opinion- John Lemons, Stephen Llano, Robby Ray,
Mandy Cater, Leonard Callaway, Chris Brooks,
Dan Cone, Jack Harvey & General Franklin
Night News- Assistant Editor: Joshua Miller
Photo- Derek Demere, Robert McKay, IW
Angkriwan & Pat James
Graphics- Quatro Oakley, Chad Mallami
Ed Goodwin
Radio- Tiffany Moore, Will Hodges, Missy M
Amy Montgomery, Sunny Pemberton, Joey
Schlueter, Michelle Snyder & Karina Trevino
Web- Craig Pauli
Office Staff- Stacy Labay, Christy ClowdusS
Mandy Cater
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