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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 12, 2000)
Wednesday Inestlay, April 12, 2000 NATION Arringt THE BATTALION Page 13 turdavs Mgtere comes Peter Cottontail” Hun's what makes draj: ick) everj'bodyliesor l u o y ears ago, Indianapd an kepi everyone gi , hether he would takePeji i Ry an Leaf with tliefirstpi lanning and says now ,ars and L.eafstruggles-| as always No. 1 inhisheai Hie pri/e for most tmthfi ->l> goes to Buffalo’s John elore the 1997 draft said It an instant if Antal fell to 23rd, wherj pieked. Smith fell if Buffalo jumped, f This year, Snydiil f underlings in 1 notably coach Non and personnel direa Cerrrato, have to k nervous. "We like fours - e l s w e’re happy withtwi 1^1 them,” Cerrato sad! to Arrington, Brown: and Warrick. "Whoe: id lakes, we’re goingtoemi p o outstanding footballplave Still, Warrick and Samuelsii ipped in some scouts’ejt irriek because he ran 40)215.1 ; seconds at his private wot muels because he Showec " MELISSA BARNES/Special TO The Battalion Aggie mom Karen Barnes shops at a boutique featuring an s ic draft anabstshavc Easter display with stuffed rabbits at the Blue Bonnet Festival on P k Burrcss of M. Saturday, April 8 in Chappell Hill. ing out of the top 10. althougp m likely to go to Pittsburghai But no one really knows. Tests dear man of rape, implicate brother NEW ORLEANS (AP) — When Clyde and Mario Charles left a house 19 years ago, they said they hitch hiked in different directions down a road in the heart of south Louisiana’s bayou country. Their lives — like their paths — went in opposite directions that night. Clyde Charles was accused of raping a nurse whose car had broken down a short distance away. He was con victed and spent most of the next two decades in prison. Mario Charles was not charged in the crime. Clyde Charles consistently protested his innocence and pushed for DNA testing once the technology be came available. He got help from New York-based lawyers and PBS’ “Frontline” investigative TV series. In December, Clyde, now 47, was released from the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola after DNA tests showed he could not have committed the crime. Less than four months later, the brothers’ paths have crossed again: Authorities say the same DNA tests that Clyde Charles had requested have now implicated Mario. And on Monday, three days after Mario Charles’ ar rest in Virginia for the rape, the sheriff of Terrebonne Parish accused Clyde Charles of knowing his brother committed the crime. Clyde Charles “may be innocent of the rape, but 1 feel he knew about his brother raping that woman,” said “There's no way in the world he was covering up for his brother. You don't go about saying your brother did it if you can't prove it" — Barry Scheck defense attorney Sheriff Jerry Carpenter. “This thing could have been re solved 20 years ago if he would have stepped forward.” Former O.J. Simpson defense attorney Barry Scheck, whose New York-based Innocence Project at Cardozo Law School helped free Clyde Charles, ridiculed Larpenter’s claim. “There’s no way in the world he was covering up for his brother,” Scheck said in a telephone interview. “You don’t go about saying your brother did it if you can’t prove it.” Carpenter said there is enough evidence to have Clyde Charles booked with obstruction of justice, but added that it might not be productive to pursue a charge on a crime carrying a six-month maximum jail sentence. “Clyde has served his time,” he said. Clyde Charles was age 28 when he was sentenced to life in prison for raping a woman near a house where the Charles brothers had been drinking in Houma, La., about 40 miles southwest of New Orleans. A flat tire had stranded the 26-year nurse nearby, and she said a man came up behind her, punched her in the face and raped her. A deputy who found her ly ing on the ground had seen Clyde Charles about a mile away. The nurse identified him as her attacker. Doctors admit to falsifying insurance News in Brief leased with her perform >athy Eissinger said. ‘S'j performed solidly des:i ianne Guerrero also deft; egal immigrants ^ LOS ANGELES (AP) — Fifteen llegal immigrants from China have seen detained after authorities p ound them crammed in a filthy prgo container unloaded from a No. 8 Carmen Santa( shi ? h ar ™ n e fr °T H ° n ! K ° ng ; „ - being ousted in ttieaBjjf S rou P. taken 'nto custody He- narda Zen,l,al*“ on<,a '' morning was inside a con- 1 tamer unloaded in Los Angeles rompete next at tk Harbor from the ship dubbed Pres- >v and Sendai- on (HeT 16 " 1 Adanls - Virginia Kice, spokesperson for the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). found in container INS officers had to put on haz ardous materials gear before en tering the container. Smugglers rigged the 10-by-30- foot metal container with escape hatches and an elaborate ventila tion system using fans and car batteries for the two-week trip across the Pacific Ocean. The container was supposed to contain toys, said John Pacht- ner, spokesperson for American President Lines. CHICAGO (AP) — More than a third of doctors surveyed nationwide admit deceiving insurance companies to help patients get the care they need. Their tactics include: exaggerating the severity of an illness to help patients avoid being sent home early from the hospital; listing an inaccurate diagnosis on bills; and reporting nonexistent symptoms to secure insurance coverage. In a random mailed survey of 720 doctors nationwide in 1998, 39 percent said they had used at least one of those tactics “sometimes” or more often within the preceding year. The results ’were published in Wednesday’s Journal of the American Medical Association. Thirty-seven percent said their pa tients “sometimes” or more often asked them to deceive insurers. More than a quarter — 28.5 percent — said it is nec essary to “game” the system to provide high-quality care. Of the doctors who reported using de ceitful practices, 54 percent said they did so more often than in the past. “As pressures to control health care costs increase, it is likely that manipu- I Aggieland STAFF APPLICATION If you are interested in designing pages, writing stories, or taking pictures for the 2001 Texas A&M yearbook... then simply fill out this form and drop it off in room 004 (basement) of the Reed McDonald Building. Available Positions Include Name: (Check all desired positions) □ Managing Editor □ Section Editor(s) □ Copy Editor □ Photo Editor □ Web Editor □ Designer(s) □ Writer(s) E-mail: □ Photographer(s) Classification: Major: Phone Number(s): Please read and type your responses to the following ques tions on a separate sheet or paper that is to be turned in with this form. Also, attach any samples of work that you have along with a resume, if possible. All applicants are encouraged to include any other relevant information. Editor Positions 1) Why do you want an editor position? 2) What changes would you like to make to the yearbook? 3) What experience do you have in leadership roles? Staff Positions 1) Why do you want to be on the staff? 2) What prior experience do you have that relates to the position you are applying for? DEADLINE for all applications is Thursday, April 20 If you have any questions, call Jon Niven at (979) 845-2681 lating reimbursement systems will in crease,” wrote the researchers, led by Dr. Matthew K. Wynia of the AMA’s Institute for Ethics in Chicago. “Health plans in which the use of these tactics is common should care fully review their rules and procedures and work with physicians to reduce the perceived need for covert advocacy.” Dr. Charles M. Cutler, chief medical officer for the American Association of Health Plans, which represents more than 1,000 HMOs and other insurance plans, said doctors who deceive insurers are “essentially allowing people to get benefits for which they haven’t paid.” “The people who pay for that are everybody else who’s paying for the premiums,” Cutler said. He said the practice will ultimately backfire and cause costs to rise. A smaller survey published in the AMA’s Archives of Internal Medicine last year found that more than half of doctors approved the use of deceitful practices with insurance companies. The authors of the latest survey said theirs is the first to report what doctors are actually doing. Physicians’ falsehoods Responding to pressures in the health care system, some doctors who answered a 1998 nationwide survey admitted to deceiving insurance companies to get proper care for their patients. How frequently, if ever, in the last year have you had to ... ... exaggerate the severity of a patient’s condition to help them avoid an early discharge from the hospital? Never 43%— 1 Rarely 30% Sometimes 24%—J Often 3% Very often 1 %- ... change a patient’s official (billing) diagnosis to help them secure coverage for a needed treatment or service? Never 48%— 1 Rarely 30% ^ Sometimes 19%—^ Often 3%—' Very often 1%- ... report signs or symptoms that a patient did not actually have to help the patient secure coverage for a needed treatment or service? Never 71%— 1 Rarely 19% 1 Sometimes 8%— 1 Often 1%— 1 Very often 1% Percentages may not total 100 due to rounding. Source: Journal of the American Medical Association AP » % N Summer & Fall ’00 Staff Application If you can write, edit, design pages, draw, use a camera... Texas A&M's award-winning student newspaper is looking for you. Name: Phone Number(s): E-mail; Major: Classification: Number of hours you will take in the summer or fall: Expected graduation (semester): If you have another job, what is it: How many hours per week? Do you plan to keep it, if hired? Managing, Section, & Asst. Editor Applicants* 1) What are your goals for managing your staff? 2) What do you believe is the role of The Battalion? 3) What changes would you make to improve The Bat talion? Pay particular attention to the position for which you’re applying. Staff Applicants* 1) Why do you want to work at The Battalion, and what do you hope to accomplish? 2) What experience do you have that relates to the position for which you are applying? (include classes, seminars, etc.) 3) What changes do you feel would improve the qual ity of The Battalion? (Give special attention to the section for which you’re applying.) V V *Please type your responses on a separate piece of paper, and attach a resume and samples of your work (stories you have written for publications or classes, pages you have designed, photos taken, drawings made or other creative samples — just show us what you can do. *Deadlines: Wednesday, April 12, for editor posi tions, and Monday, April 17, for staff positions. Turn applications in at 0I3 (basement) Reed McDonald Building. OPENINGS INCLUDE: Please check the semester and position(s) for which you are interested. If you are interested in more than one position, num ber them in order of preference with 1 being your top choice. □ Summer □ Fall ___ Managing Editor Section Editors Campus Community Lifestyles and Entertainment Opinion Science & Technology Sports Night News Copy Chief Graphics Photo Radio News Web News Assistant Editors Opinion Photo Radio Sports Editor Web News Staff News Reporter Science & Technology Reporter Feature Writer Entertainment Writer Sports Writer _ Columnist Web Designer Radio Reporter Photographer Graphic Artist Cartoonist Page Designer Copy Editor