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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 16, 2001)
UESDAYOCTOBER 16, 2001 1 SECTION • 12 PAGES y> October I5j • THE BATTALIOfi trical malfunction nat supplies cam conditioning. IN BRIEF ;capee d Saturday P) - Law enfe rs from sevefi urday night te- I of five escape: n a North Teas resting him aft!* former relative ty. my Riley, 27, s s taken into cue it 8:45 p.m o other escapees er, Jerry Hf TWey sville, andJerew; lolds, 21 of were capped moon after to table was i osper, about 35 of Sherman. [sssoiinnssH Easterwood opens passenger entry Easterwood Airport has eopened the lower level ter- ninal entrance for passen- ierpick-up and drop-off. The amp has been closed since iational Guardsmen report- id to duty at Easterwood this with because of the Sept, attacks in New York City ind Washington, D.C. Because of increased ecurity, drivers are urged follow all traffic signs, iehicles and baggage must ie attended at all times in the drop off area, officials said. UT student dies after fight at party AUSTIN (AP) — A University ofTexas-Austin freshman has after a fight with anoth er student at a party. Assault charges against the other student could be upgrad- since Terrance McArdle, 18, died Saturday after spend ing days in critical condition at Brackenridge Hospital. McArdle was injured on Oct. 7 while attending a party, according to Tracy Karol, sheriff’s department spokeswoman. University of Texas-San Antonio student Brandon Threet, 19, was charged with aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury, Karol said. Witnesses say the two teens had challenged each other to begin hitting one another but in a joking manner. McArdle was kicked in the head, Karol said. PUBLIC EYE Events held at Reed Arena last year totaling 383,384 people 297 ivriHiUi Page 3 Feel the burn • Rec Center offers personal trainers, tips on working out for health benefits Ags melt down in third quarter ' A&M’s second half spelled disaster Page 11 knowledge in college of the vine ’ Programs focusing on the alcohol business a positive ■ II III f today m-z !/ tomorrow ijLn Trt HIGH 69° F LOW 48° F HIGH 73° F LOW 41° F FORECASTS COURTESY OF Www.weathermanted.com Texas A&M University — Celebrating 125 Years THE BATTALION SERVING THE TEXAS A&M COMMUN 1 T Y S 1 1 N C E 18 9 3 Volume 108 • Issue 37 College Station, Texas www.thebatt.com DTD pledge fell asleep at wheel By Sommer Bunge THE BATTALION The driver of the Toyota SUV that crashed into a tree early Sunday morning fell asleep at the wheel, a Department of Public Safety (DPS) official said. The crash killed the vehicle’s two passen gers. both students at Texas A&M and pledges in Delta Tau Delta fraternity. Jonathan Steed, a sophomore political sci ence major, fell asleep at the wheel of his vehi cle three miles north of Giddings in Lee County on U.S. Highway 77. The SUV veered off the road to the right and struck a tree head on, said DPS Trooper Bruce Opperman. Passengers Antonio Torres II. 18, a fresh man business administration major from Mission, and 20-year-old Xavier Monge Ortega, a freshman agricultural economics major from Guayaquil, Ecuador, were killed. Steed, from Amarillo, was transported to Brackenridge Hospital in Austin for treat ment of minor injuries, and released. There was no evidence of alcohol in the driver, and Torres and Monge Ortega were not tested, Opperman said. Torres and Monge Ortega were not wearing seatbelts, he said. “This was a massive collision — it totaled out the vehicle,” Opperman said. “By the time I arrived, EMS and Giddings Fire Department vehicles were already there.” Steed, also a Delta Tau Delta pledge, was at home with family in Amarillo on Monday, said Ann Goodman, associate director of stu dent life at A&M. The fraternity hosted a “chapter brother hood retreat” on a ranch in Sealy Saturday, and Steed, Torres and Monge Ortega attended, Goodman said. The three chose to leave early Sunday morning, and that was the last the fra ternity heard from them, she said. Visitation services for Antonio Torres II will be held atthe Virgil Memorial Chapel in Mission today from 1 to 5 p.m. A funeral mass will be held tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, also in Mission. ADRIAN CALCANEO • THE BATTALION “All members were present, and the advisers were aware of the retreat,” Goodman said. “These gentlemen chose to leave earlier than the rest; maybe they want ed to get back to campus, do laundry and get ready for another week of classes. See WRECK on page 10. Walking the line STUART VILLANUEVA • THE BATTALION Emily Granath, a sophomore biomedical sciences major, makes her way through an obstacle high above the ground as her classmates wait below during a beginning venture dynamics class at the high rope challenge course Monday. Students are required to use teamwork to make it through the obstacles in a set amount of time. VPS A clarifies flag ban decision By Rolando Garcia THE BATTALION In the wake of a public fer vor, University officials reversed course Monday and announced that students living on campus will be allowed to hang American flags outside resi dence halls. “There was a misinterpreta tion about the (Department of) Residence Life policy addressing safety,” said Vice President for Student Affairs Dr. J. Malon Southerland. “I want to make it clear that there is no prohibition against flying the American flag.” Residence Life rules prohibit students from hanging any objects from their windows because of concerns that stu dents may injure themselves leaning out of upper level win dows, but Southerland said he felt compelled to issue a “clarifi cation” because of the wide spread misunderstanding that the rule applies to the American flag. “The American flag was the only object at issue, and Tm saying the American flag can be flown, but the policy still applies to all other objects,” Southerland said. Students hanging American flags from their windows must do so in a safe manner, Southerland said, and University personnel are available to assist them. Southerland declined to com ment further on his decision or how safety would be ensured. “That’s (safety) between Residence Life staff and stu dents,” Southerland said. The fkig controversy erupted after the Residence Hall Association (RHA), which repre sents on-campus residents, voted against a resolution at its Oct. 10 meeting requesting Residence Life make an exception and allow students to hang American flags from their windows. The resolution was derailed after opponents said it would be dis criminatory to make an exception for the U.S. flag. Chris Bernard, the RHA del egate who proposed the resolu- See Flags on page 10. StuAct recognizes competitive cheer squad 30 members, 4 alternatives chosen Saturday By Melissa Sullivan THE BATTALION Texas A&M introduced a new student organization this year: the Fightin' Texas Aggie Competition Cheer Squad, found ed by sophomore journalism major Shannan Johnson. “I organized this even though there were already yell leaders because there are a lot of women and men on A&M’s campus who want to show their Aggie spirit the best way they know how — through competition cheerleading,” Johnson said. Preliminary tryouts for the 2001-2002 squad were held Oct. 13. Thirty squad members and four alternates were chosen. Johnson said several people have voiced concerns that the squad wants to take the place of the yell leaders. “I know that there are certain people on the campus who are upset about the squad because they feel like we are a threat to the yell leaders,” Johnson said. “We both have our own territory and neither of our paths will ever cross unless they want it to. Yell leaders don’t jump, tumble, dance or cheer; hence the name yell leader.” Johnson said the Competition Cheer Squad had no intention of taking the yell leaders’ places. “They were here first, and they are part of the tradition of Texas A&M,” she said. The squad will represent Texas A&M at collegiate cheerleading competitions across the nation. They will compete in the National Cheerleading Association (NCA) competition and the American See CHEER on page 10. FHK residents By C.E. Walters THE BATTALION More than 400 students will be looking for housing after Hughes and Keathley Halls are closed in December for renovations. Department of Residence Life officials said. Residents were informed before moving into the halls that they would be required to leave after Fall 2001. said Mack Thomas, assistant director of Housing Assignments and Conference Services. While Hughes and Keathley residents are not guaranteed housing on campus in the spring, Thomas said he expects to find rooms for almost 300 of the residents. Hughes and Keathley Halls, both part of the to be displaced FHK complex that was built in 1964 will be closed in December to undergo renovations that include replacing the air-handling systems in the halls, adding new first-floor study lounges and TV rooms, painting rooms, retiling floors and bathrooms, and new mattresses. The renovations are “not something you can do with people around,” Thomas said. Fowler Hall will receive similar repairs in the Spring 2003 semester and will close its doors dur ing the renovation period. The majority of the students who will be dis placed are freshmen, said Joseph Medina, FHK president and a sophomore business administra tion major. “[Hallj representation will change because in See FHK on page 10. Child of ABC News employee infected NEW YORK (AP) — The 7-month-old son of an ABC News producer has developed the skin form of anthrax after recently spending time in the newsroom, authorities and network officials said Monday. The boy, the youngest of the four Americans diagnosed with the disease this month, is responding to antibiotics and is expect ed to recover, ABC News President David Westin said. “The prognosis is excellent,” he said. ABC is the second major news organization in New York to report an anthrax case in the past three days. Authorities are also investigating a letter that apparently infected an NBC employee with the same form of anthrax last week. Like the boy, she is also expected to recover. See Anthrax on page 2.