Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 4, 2002)
Sports: Soccer captures Big 1 2 Title • Page 5 Opinion: Republicans vs. Democrats • Page 9 Volume 109 • Issue 47 • 10 pages www.thebatt.com Monday, November 4, 2002 Mounted Cavalry suspended on hazing allegations By Rolando Garcia THE BATTALION Parsons Mounted Cavalry has been ispended while police conduct a crimi- ilinvestigation into hazing allegations. Lt. Gen. John Van Alstyne, com- landant of the Corps of Cadets, sus- nded the unit Oct. 15 after one of the iidents in the cavalry came forward the allegations, said Maj. Doc fills, Corps spokesman. At the request of Brazos County Attorney Jim Kuboviak, the University 'dice Department (UPD) will begin a criminal investigation into the alleged hazing incident, UPD Director Bob Wiatt said. Wiatt declined to comment on the substance of the allegations, saying only that they were of sufficient severity to warrant prosecutorial interest, and, in addition to hazing, may include assault. ‘There were injuries, and some peo ple protested and were not willing par ticipants,” Wiatt said. According to a Nov. 2 article in The Bryan-College Station Eagle, an unnamed source said some students are accused of beating other cavalry mem bers, urinating on them and dousing them with water and horse feces. The Cavalry, with about 60 mem bers, is a specialized Corps unit similar to the Fish Drill Team and Ross Volunteers, Mills said. The unit is head quartered on Fiddlers Green, a 27-acre tract of land on Harvey Mitchell Parkway, and is famous for firing the cannon during yell practice and home football games. With its operations sus pended, the cavalry will not march in with the Corps at this weekend’s foot ball game between A&M and the University of Oklahoma. However, Mills said, a limited num ber of cavalry members will continue to fire the cannon and care for the horses at Fiddlers Green. “We want to get any problems that may exist in the Cav fixed because they are a special part of the Corps,” Mills said. Dean of Student Life David Parrott told The Eagle possible punishment of the students who are under investiga tion by the University won’t be consid ered until the criminal investigation by See Parsons on page 2 RUBEN DELUNA • THE BATTALION A Tuff job ALISSA HOLLIMON • THE BATTALION Texas A&M mascot Reveille VII suits up for the inclimate weather in Stillwater, Okla. at the football game against Oklahoma State Saturday. The Cowboys beat the Aggies 28- 23, handing them their fourth loss. Former chaplain shares death row experiences By Sarah Walch THE BATTALION The death penalty is akin to legalized murder, said Rev. Carroll Pickett, chaplain at the Texas Prison System’s Death Row in Huntsville for 20 years, during a talk at Texas A&M Friday. Pickett spoke to a crowd of about 75 people, saying the death penalty degrades society and caters to the lowest human impulse. “How can Texas kill people to tell people that killing people is wrong?” he asked. Pickett said there is no equity in the system. If someone has money, education, and is the right race, they will not be put to death, he said. “All the convicts who were my clerks had killed their wives,” he said. “But they had enough money to get a good lawyer, and did not get sentenced to death.” Pickett was present at the death of 95 inmates. At least the last 15 he saw die at the hands of the legal justice system were black, he said. “It was my job to talk to them and to bring them over to the room where they would die,” he said. “I never had a single one fight.” He described the process in detail to the crowd, who sat in com plete silence during the description. Pickett said the warden’s signal to give the injection was removing his glasses. “Some of them were young kids,” Pickett said. “It’s difficult to watch a strong, healthy man die in less than seven minutes.” The victim’s families have his sympathy, he said. But he said the death penalty only creates a new set of victims. When two of Pickett’s parishoners were killed by three convicts during a hostage situation at the Hunstville prison in 1974, he was angry for a long time, Pickett said. But after counseling the last convict to die at the time of his execution many years later, and talking to the man’s son about removal of the body, Pickett’s perspective changed. Both the con vict’s family and the victims’ families told him they had no closure when the convict died. Pickett said when he questioned prisoners about motives, they claimed they were not deterred by the death penalty because they See Pickett on page 2 Cadet charged for hitting visiting Nebraska student By Melissa Sullivan the battalion A member of the Texas A&M Corps adets was charged last week with aching a University of Nebraska fan as ran onto Kyle Field after the tuskers’ victory Oct. 26. Bn , te Ph en Andrew Brockman, a senior cling major, came forward to police ■ Was issued a Class C misdemeanor off ISor derly conduct for the fight, an [e nse punishable by up to a $500 fine, niversity Police Department (UPD) Dlr fictor Bob Wiatt. I'cekman was caught on videotape timothy Tworek with his fist fints after the game ended, Wiatt said. Co// W ° re ^’ a sen i°f told The Bryan- wenmf ^ tatlon Eagle that he and friends k ° Wn to t* 16 track with 30 seconds ul e’^ nt ' c ’P at ' n g a win. As the final min- t 0 , away, they ran onto the field a e pictures of the football team, %n he was knocked to the ground and by Brockman's punch igetChaySj w Andrew Brockman struck ska student Timothy Tworek e d with disorderly conduct table by up to a $500 fine consequences from the , J( ranging from no action ilsion travis swenson • the battalion Brockman was acting as one of the 15 “cadets of the day,” said Corps media rela tions coordinator Maj. Joseph “Doc” Mills. Cadets of the day, who rotate between units every week, have duties that include keeping good order and discipline among the cadets at the game and supporting the band. Mills said. “Their duty is not crowd control,” Mills said. “That is the job for law enforcement.” Mills said the view from the tape shows the remaining 14 officers doing their job by keeping other cadets from rushing the field and keeping them off the track. Officers working security on the field did not attempt to chase the Nebraska fans to prevent more people from rushing the field, Wiatt said. In a joint investigation with the Department of Student Life, the Office of the Commandant is trying to determine what happened. If findings suggest a stu dent has violated University policy or procedure, punishment can range from no action to expulsion. Mills said. Tworek reported the incident to the Chancellor’s Office at Nebraska after he saw the video aired on Nebraska televi sion stations. He said he did not report the incident in College Station because he was unable to locate the police. Tworek told The Eagle that no one offered to help him or report the incident to the police. Wiatt said investigators are still try ing to determine if any other cadets were involved in the post-game scuffle. They are awaiting word from the University of Nebraska to determine if See Cadet on page 2 Kenyans win NYC Marathon titles Olympic medalist wins women’s division Olympic bronze medalist Joyce Chepchumba won the women’s division of the New York City Marathon Sunday. Rank Name 1 Joyce Chepchumba 2 Lyubov Denisova 3 Olivera Jevtic 4 Esther Kiplagat 5 Maria Runyan 6 Margaret Okayo 7 Kerryn McCann 8 Lornah Kiplagat 9 Ludmila Petrova 10 Milena Glusac Country Kenya Russia Yugoslavia Kenya Eugene, Ore. Kenya Australia Kenya Russia Fallbrook, Calif. Time (hours, minutes, seconds) 2:25:56 2:26:17 Joyce Chepchumba AP NEW YORK (AP) — About 10 miles into the New York City Marathon, Marla Runyan and European champion Maria Guida crossed paths, bumping and stum bling a bit. A short while later, Guida dropped out. Not the legally blind Runyan, who never had run a marathon until Sunday. She kept going, her fluid strides leading to the top U.S. finish — fifth overall behind women’s win ner Joyce Chepchumba of Kenya. “I’m very pleased with how I did,” said Runyan, the first Paralympian to compete at an Olympics. “You never know if you prepared properly, how the weather will affect you, how the distance will affect you.” With temperatures in the 40s and a slight headwind, Boston Marathon champion Rodgers Rop overcame pain in his side to finish in 2 hours, 8 minutes, 7 seconds, helping Kenya gain its first sweep of the men’s and women’s titles. Christopher Cheboiboch (2:08:17) — also second in Boston — and Laban Kipkemboi (2:08:39) gave Kenya the first 1-2-3 men’s finish for a country since the United States did it in 1975. Olympic bronze medalist Chepchumba ran the 26.2 miles in 2:25:56 — and was first across the fin ish in Central Park, because the elite women started about 30 minutes before the men. Los Angeles Marathon champion Lyubov Denisova of Russia was 21 seconds behind. Olivera Jevtic of Yugoslavia was third, despite cutting and bruising her elbows and knees on a late fall. Esther Kiplagat of Kenya was fourth. SOURCE: Associated Press Runyan was next in 2:27:10, 36 seconds ahead of defending champi on Margaret Okayo, who set the course record last year but had lower back problems. Runyan’s time was the 10th fastest ever in a marathon by an American woman, all the more impressive con sidering she’s accustomed to running much shorter distances. She was eighth in the 1,500 meters at the 2000 Olympics, broke the U.S. record for the indoor 5,000 in 2001, and won the U.S. outdoor title at 5,000 in 2001-02. “I really enjoyed it — until 24 miles,” the 33-year-old Runyan said, laughing. “It surprisingly didn’t feel as long as I thought it would. I felt very good even through 11 miles, 14 miles. The pace was conservative and that was probably ideal for me.” A degenerative eye condition known as Stargardt’s disease limits her sight to about 15 feet, although she can’t read a watch, for example, while she is running. Organizers arranged for a cyclist to ride near Runyan, telling her split times and when turns were coming. During the race, the yells could be heard: “We’re approaching the bridge in 150 meters!” or “The pack is intact!” or “Your bottle is there at the end! ” Runyan did have a problem finding drinks along the route. It helped Runyan that the course was less crowded because of the ear lier start for women. A few times, she would fade behind the leaders, only to find an extra burst that would carry her back within range. “Had the men been there, I would n’t have been able to do that,” she said. “It did make it easier. I’ve run road races where everybody’s out there. It becomes annoying with men around you, because their stride and their cadence is so different.