tTltc littly ®ar itol
Volume 101, Issue 143
JL A century ofeditorial Jmdan
H Saving the students and theUnivmity community since 1893
IN THE NEWS
Top stories from the state, nation and world
Harding's Ex-Husband
Pleads Guilty for Attack
PORTLAND, Ore.—Tonya Harding’s
ex-husband pleaded guilty today to talring
part in the attack that knocked Nancy
Kerrigan out of the U.S. Figure Skating
Championships.
JeffGillooly struck a plea bargain under
which he confessed to a racketeering charge
in exchange for his testimony. He impli
cated Harding in the Jan. 6 clubbing of
Kerrigan, Harding’s chief American rival.
Prosecutors said they would recommend
a two-year sentence and a SIOO,OOO fine.
Gillooly’s lawyer, Ron Hoevet, told the
court that he participated in a conspiracy
“that included Tonya Harding” and three
other men who have already been charged.
Clinton Appoints Lawyer
As Civil Rights Prosecutor
WASHINGTON—President Clinton
Tuesday named Boston lawyer Deval
Patrick to be the nation’s chief civil rights
enforcer, filling a spot left vacant formonths
after the withdrawal of Lani Guinier.
Wasting no time, conservatives called
Patrick “a stealth Guinier.”
Qintonheatedlysuggestedthat Patrick’s
conservative critics “don’t give a rip about
civil rights.”
In an Oval Office announcement with
Attorney General Janet Reno and Vice
President A1 Gore, Clinton said Patrick
“understands the law is a tool to help real
people with real problems.”
Conservatives denounced the choice
even before Clinton’s announcement.
Congress Kills New Funds
For Impoverished Schools
WASHINGTON The Clinton ad
ministration narrowly lost its first legisla
tive bid Tuesday to target federal funds for
disadvantaged students to the nation’spoor
est school districts and counties. The de
feat came at the hands ofHouse Education
and Labor subcommittee members con
cerned that their districts would lose their
share of the $6 billion program.
With its 14-12 vote against the Clinton
plan, the subcommittee on elementary,
secondary and vocational education re
jected arguments that the funds for the
disadvantaged known as Chapter l—
are spread too thin and that hundreds of
high-poverty schools are not being served.
The Chapter I votes came during debate
on reauthorization of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act.
Cable Networks Institute
Voluntary Rating System
WASHINGTON The cable televi
sion industry agreed Tuesday to begin rat
ing its programs for violence and endorsed
technology that would permit parents to
block violent shows from their homes.
An independent monitoring committee
will be set up to report on the violent
content of television, cable officials said.
Broadcasters are expected to endorse
the plan for a monitoring panel but have
not joined in the effort to rate shows. “This
is the dawning of anew era... they are to
be congratulated," said Rep. Edward J.
Markey, D-Mass., chairman of the House
telecommunications subcommittee.
Winston H. Cox, president of the
Showtime network, said the cable industry
planned the rating system to give parents
more information on the shows.
Witness Says Defendant
Dragged of Evers' Murder
JACKSON, Miss. Two years after
the death of civil rights leader Medgar
Evers, an unrepentant Byron De La
Beckwith told Ku Klux Klan leaders he
had killed “that nigger, ” an FBI informant
testified Tuesday.
The informant, Delmar Dennis, was
one of several witnesses at Beckwith’s
murder trial who recounted chilling—and
sometimes incriminating remarks he
said Beckwith had made.
The witnesses testified over the vehe
ment objections of defense attorneys, who
complained that the remarks were prejudi
cial or did not bear directly on the case
against Beckwith.
Dennis, whose career as a Klan infiltra
tor for the FBI from 1964 to 1967hasbeen
widely chronicled, said he heard Beckwith
speak to a meeting of Klan leaders in rural
Byram, Miss., on Aug. 8,1965.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Weather
TODAY: Partly sunny, cold; high mid
30s.
THURSDAY: Partly cloudy; high
upper 30s.
Students to Vote on DTH Referendum
BYKELLYNEWTON
STAFF WRITER
Students will be able to vote on Feb. 8
whether to terminate student government’s
right to make appointments to The Daily
Tar Heel Board of Directors.
DTH editor Yi-Hsin Chang turned in a
petition for the referendum toStudentßody
Vice President Dacia Toll on Tuesday.
Student Body President Jim Copland
said he would place the referendum on the
general campus elections ballot.
Die DTH collected more than 2,791
signatures, according to Elections Board
Chairwoman Melinda Manning. Ten per
cent of the student body, 2,288 students,
had to sign the petition in order to get the
referendum on the ballot.
Copland said he was impressed with the
amount of effort the DTH staff put into the
Candlelight Vigil Spotlights Bosnian Suffering
Community Hears Woman’s
Story of Horror and Flight
BYWARDCONVILLE
STAFF WRITER
In an effort to bring attention to those
who have died in the ongoing war in the
former Yugoslavia, the Coalition Against
Genocide sponsored a candlelight vigil,
which attracted about 30 people, in front of
the Chapel Hill post office Tuesday night.
Dr. Nina Elshiekh, a member of CAGe,
said the vigil was designed to commemo
rate those who have died in the war-tom
former Yugoslavia and also to call atten
tion to the lack of U.S. action to end the
violence in Bosnia.
CAGe is a UNC group committed to
ending the current ethnic cleansing in
Bosnia and to eliminating genocide.
Elshiekh compared the slaughtering of
innocent victims in Bosnia to the atrocities
committed by Nazi Germany.
“We are stressing the fact that 50 years
ago genocide occurred in Europe, not by
the German people, but by the German
government,” she said. “Today, genocide
is occurring in Europe, not by the Serbian
people, but by the Serbian government.”
Dr. Ankica Petrovic, a Bosnian refugee
and a fellow at the National Humanities
Center in the Research Triangle Park, spoke
in support of ending the conflicts in Bosnia
and restoring peace to the area.
“I was a professor in Sarajevo and spent
six months under the siege before leaving, ”
she said. “I saw a lot of shooting from the
Serbian side from the mountains, while the
Moslem army was almost nonexistent.”
Petrovic said she was able to leave
Sarajevo before her husband could, and
that from outside Bosnia she was able to
help her family leave.
“We did not want to leave Sarajevo
Newspapers Sue for Access to Records
BYPHUONGLY
ASSISTANT UNIVERSITY EDITOR
When a student is charged with cheat
ing, sexual assault, harassment or other
honor code violations, the public is in
formed of the charge, the plea, the verdict
and the sanction.
But don’t bother looking for details.
Administrators from UNC and other
public universities justify withholding
honor court records, citing a federal law
that prevents them from releasing students’
records. Schools say that what happens
behind the honor court’s closed doors is
nobody’s business but those involved.
Newspapers call these star-chamber pro
ceedings a slap to freedom of the press.
And they are working on opening the doors.
Georgia Court Opens Records
The Red and Black, an independent
student newspaper at the University of
Georgia, has sued and won access to honor
court records for
Georgia’spublic
colleges.
Last month
SPECIAL
■nssmammaßrnmam
ASSIGNMENTS
the newspaper received the judiciary
records of a UGa. student who was found
guilty of setting fire to a homosexual
student’s door. In December, the Georgia
Supreme Court ruled in the “John Doe”
case that disciplinary records of individual
students were not education records.
Education records are confidential un
der the Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act.
Earlier last year, the Georgia Supreme
Court ruled that The Red and Black had a
right to campus court records about orga
nizations. The newspaper sued the univer
sity in 1991 after its reporters were denied
access to judiciary records about a case
involving hazing charges. In a closed trial,
the prosecutors contended that a fraternity
pledge was encouraged to drink enough
Not a shred of evidence exists in favor of the idea that life is serious.
Brendan Gill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
WEDNESDAY,FEBRUARY 2,1994
petition drive. “They really got a lot of
names; they put great deal of effort into it, ”
he said.
Copland said he thought the students
would realize that the ties between the
Daily Tar □ A
rjP
Referendum
DTH and govem
mentshouldbe sev
ered. “When the
paper received
funds, there was a
need for that ac
countability, but it
doesn’t receive
funds now,” he
said.
Chang said she
was pleased with the way the staff worked
to get the needed names. “Considering
how much time the staff spends in the
office, it’s amazing that we were able to get
so many signatures,” Chang said.
the A,Rr\S I ** '
■ a H3i|k if
yU I ife *% . 1 >B* . ...
S , ..
9 4 s Jjjjj
DTH/JUDrTH SMGLIA
Members of the Coalition Against Genocide hold a candlelight vigil Tuesday night in front of the post office
on East Franklin Street. The vigil was held to remember victims of the ethnic conflict in Bosnia.
until we saw that there was no chance to
survive, so when I got the opportunity to
leave Sarajevo, I left.” she said.
Petrovic said she supported increased
U.S. involvement and that U.S. military
leadership in Bosnia would be imperative
to stop the fighting. “I think the Serbs are
afraid ofU.S. action. They have found that
Europe is unwilling to befriend the
Bosnians. They found that they can do
fte Changing Fact
whiskey to suffer alcohol poisoning and
require hospitalization.
Meanwhile, officials in the U.S. De
partment of Education say they have al
ways considered student disciplinary
records protected under FERPA. The de
partment is accepting comments about the
matter through Feb. 14, and might write
disciplinary records clearly into the amend
ment, according to a December issue of the
Federal Register.
UNC Court* Remain Closed
So far, administrators from UNC-CH
and other universities located outside Geor
gia say they still are acting under FERPA.
They say the rules of opening criminal
court records do not apply to a university
disciplinary system, which deals with stu
dent conduct. They say they also worry
that students would be hesitant about re
porting incidents if records were public.
“The nature of the University disciplin
ary system is confidential and private un
derlaw," said Margaret Barrett, UNC-CH
judicial programs officer. “It protects the
privacy of the individual students in
volved.”
A confidential system allows students
to go on with their academic careers once
the proceedings and sanctions are over,
The petition drive is a result of a failed
bill presented in December by Student
Congress Rep. Andrew Cohen, Dist. 6, a
member of the DTH board of directors.
Congress defeated the resolution, which
proposed a referendum for the separation
of student government and the newspaper,
in a 17-10 vote.
Some congress members said they voted
against the resolution because they felt that
if the DTH cut ties with student govern
ment the newspaper would no longer be
held accountable for what it printed.
In 1974, the 100-year-old student publi
cation became constitutionally funded,
which guaranteed a certain percentage of
student fees each year. Because the news
paperwas supported through student funds,
the DTH Board ofDirectors included three
student government appointments, which
allowed government some authority in the
whatever they want without European in
terference,” Petrovic said.
Elshiekh said the U.N. arms embargo
against all of the former Yugoslavia was
keeping Bosnians from defending them
selves and prolonging the war. “If (the
Bosnians) were allowed to defend them
selves, (the Serbs) would see that they are
no longer fighting an unarmed enemy.”
Elshiekh said she was concerned that
she said.
And a closed system doesn’t mean a
corrupt system, Barrett said.
“I think the system is under a great deal
of scrutiny already,” she said. “While it is
closed in terms of general access, there are
many people involved in the hearing to
protect the rights of the accused.”
Newspapers Fight for Access
But many members of the press say they
would rather see for themselves.
“You can see if it’s fair and accurate,”
said Johnathan Bums, former editor of
The Red and Black. “What kind of justice
is being administered?”
News organizations say they also want
access to trials.
UNC-CH judicial policy states that an
open hearing may be held only at the
written request of the defendant, except in
cases involving sexual offenses. In sexual
assault cases, the alleged victim can re
quest that the hearing be closed.
Mark Goodman, executive director of
the Student Press Law Center in Washing
ton, said many judicial cases had a direct
impact on public safety and interest be
cause universities now were trying serious
charges such as physical and sexual as
sault.
“Schools want people to have confi
dence in their system of justice,” he said.
“They need to open it up so people can
know.”
The Student Press Law Center is look
ing for possible cases to contest the idea
that disciplinary records are off-limits,
Goodman said.
A reporter from the Sentinel of Louisi
ana State University at Shreveport and the
local chapter of the Society of Professional
Journalists are suing LSU. They want ac
cess to disciplinary records of students who
allegedly embezzled student funds.
Please See COURT, Page 7
board’s decisions.
Last May, the newspaper became com
pletely independent of constitutional fund
ing. It is now being funded by revenue
generated by the sale of advertisements.
“The reason for the appointments to the
Board of Directors was because of the
money,” said Kevin Schwartz, general
manager of the DTH.
“It’s no longer necessary. Government
should not be involved in the free press.”
Chang said she thought that if the refer
endum passed, it would be the final step in
the DTH becoming totally independent.
The board of directors serves as the
DTH publisher and meets once a month to
establish noneditorial policies and approve
the DTH budget.
The board also chooses the eight at
large members of the Editor Selection
Board.
the lack of information about Bosnia had
kept people from realizing how serious the
situation was. “In the past two years over
300,000 people have died in Bosnia, and
there are three million Bosnian refugees,”
she said.
Petrovic said her main concern was
ending the war before more people were
killed. “The Bosnians are suffering, and
they are exhausted.”
School Board Campaign
Spending Doesn’t Pay
BYDANIEL FELDMAN
STAFF WRITER
Seekers of political office beware
spending the most money does not win an
election, according to the recent campaign
spending publication for the Chapel Hill-
Carrboro Board of Education election.
The Orange County Board of Elections
released a series of
reports this week
outlining the cam
paign spending of
the eight school
board candidates.
The report itemizes
the candidates’ ex
penditures, along
with the amounts
local residents con
tributed.
Of the top three
spenders, only
Mark Royster was
successful in attain
ing one of the three
School board member
MARK ROYSTER
spent the most in the
field of school board
candidates.
highly coveted school board seats.
But Billy Bevill, who finished sixth in
theNovemberelection.saidhedidn’tthink
there was a correlation between spending
and votes received.
“Obviously not, by looking at the dol
lars spent and who spent it,” Bevill said.
“There were a lot of new people running
for the board this year. Mark (Royster),
Bea(Hughes-Wemer)and I were relatively
unknown politically.”
Bevill spent $4,791, the second-highest
amount, and raised $4,842. He added that
he spent everything that he could accumu
late. •
“Originally, I had no idea how much
money we could raise, probably around a
News/Features/Aits/Sports 962-0245
Busmess/Advenismg 962-1163
C 1994 DTH Publishing Coip. All rights reserved.
Council
Winners
Spend Big
Four Political Newcomers
Top Other Candidates
BY KRISTEN MIN
STAFF WRITER
Anyone interested in running for a seat
on the Chapel Hill Town Council should
begin fund raising for the campaign as
early as possible.
Unlike the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Board
of Education race, the town council’s four
newcomer candidates who spent the most
money won seats on the board.
The candidates filed their contributions
and expenditures
Friday with the Or
ange County Board
of Elections.
Town council
newcomers Pat
Evans, Lee Pavao,
Rosemary Waldorf
and Jim Protzman
spent the most. The
two incumbent win
ners in the election
were Barbara
Powell and Joyce
Brown.
Pavao, the sec-
New town council
member PAT EVANS
spent the most of the
11 vying for council.
ond-highest spender, received $4,324 in
contributions and $4,352 in loans, and he
spent $7,102. About half of his total spend
ing was for printed campaign material and
advertising.
Pavao said he
thought spending a
lot had been neces
sary because he
wasn’t well-known.
“The advertising
was quite effective,”
he said. “Ihad quite
a few responses. I
value the effective
ness of advertising,
since I did spend all
of my professional
life in advertising.”
Protzman, who
came in fifth in the
Council newcomer LEE
PAVAO says he spent
a lot on his campaign
because residents
didn't know him.
November election, saidextensive mailing
and campaigning was important to let vot
ers know him and his issue stances.
“Obviously, I’m not a known politi
cian, and I needed a way to communicate
to Chapel Hill to tell them who I was,” he
said. “It’sveryclearthatmymailingcaused
the voters to see my standing for candi
dacy.”
Protzman, the fourth-highest spender,
Please See COUNCIL, Page 4
“If the issues hadn't been quite
so heated, then 1 wouldn’t
have spent so much money.
People do pay attention to the
issues here more often than
publicity or the individual.”
MARY RUSHREII
School board member
couple thousand dollars,” he said. “We
received a big response to the community
off a simple mailing list, which impressed
me.”
Incumbent Mary Bushnell, who won
for the third time and only spent $2,125,
said the high level of competition between
candidates raised everyone’s anxiety lev
els.
“In the summer, I was not going to
spend any money really, just run on my
record,” Bushnell said. “Ifthe issues hadn't
been quite so heated, then I wouldn’t have
spent so much money. People do pay at
tention to the issues here more often than
publicity or the individual.”
J3ushnell added that the bulk of her
spending went toward what she called “ef
fective” endorsement advertisements,
which name the candidate’s supporters.
Royster, the leading vote-getter in the
election, spent and raised $5,265. Although
he received the most money in the election,
most of his donations were less than SIOO.
Royster could not be reached for comment
Tuesday afternoon.
LaVonda Burnette, the third-place vote-
Please See SCHOOL, Page 7