QJljp laily (Ear Heel
Red Light
Cameras
'Orwellian'
On Oct. 22, 2000, at 2:48 a.m., a
Fayetteville traffic camera
installed to catch red-light run
ners snapped a picture of a deviant
driver’s license plate. A citation was
issued to 77-year-old Chapel Hill resi
dent Lucille Moorefield.
Was this anoth
er case of a late
night senior citi
zen joyrider? No.
This was a case of
mistaken identity.
Moorefield
wasn’t in
Fayetteville -and
she wasn’t driving
in the middle of
the night.
Apparendy,
the picture
snapped at the
j|ji|
\ *
JONATHAN
CHANEY
CITY
COLUMNIST
red light camera was so fuzzy, a prop
er identification could not be made
and the private company running the
ticketing system sent her a citation
erroneously.
She fought to appeal the ticket, but
eventually had to complain to U.S. Rep.
David Price to strong-arm Fayetteville’s
mayor to get her money back.
Chapel Hill is still considering
installing such traffic cameras at inter
sections. Last spring, the Town
Council gave the town manager the
go-ahead to seek bids from private
companies to operate the cameras. But
because of a heavy workload, those
bids have not happened yet.
It would be best to table the entire
project. Cameras are not needed at
Chapel Hill intersections -and their
legality is most questionable.
In San Diego last week, Superior
Court Judge Ronald Styn ruled that
because a private corporation issues the
tickets, the business has a strong motive
to give more tickets to make more profit
Thus, the pictures are considered
suspect evidence and not admissible in
court. That ruling only applies to the
nearly 300 tickets being disputed in
San Diego - it has no legal conse
quence in North Carolina.
Already, red-light camera programs
are in Charlotte, Greensboro,
Wilmington and Fayetteville.
However, though Styn’s ruling does
not affect these programs, more peo
ple are questioning the legality and
fairness of red-light cameras - includ
ing officials in Chapel Hill.
Is it fair? No. This is the municipal
government contracting out its respon
sibility to provide law enforcement.
While a citation from a red-light cam
era does not add points to your insur
ance or driving record, it does rip SSO
from your wallet.
And consider this. Most of these cam
eras will be placed at busy intersections.
But if a cop catches you running a red
light at a smaller intersection, you can
face added points and much harsher
penalties than the civil penalty issued by
the private ticketing company.
We’re treating the same criminal
offense differently - giving a lighter
penalty to someone running a red light
at a more dangerous intersection!
The problem with red-light running
in Chapel Hill does not outweigh the
Orwellian loss of privacy or the inher
ent unfairness of this system.
Human judgement in the application
of the law makes me feel a lot more
comfortable than a camera operated by
a for-profit company. Chapel Hill should
not buy into this program.
Columnist Jonathan Chaney can be
reached at jhchaney@email.unc.edu.
9 RESUME MARATHON Thursday, Sept. 13
™ ™ Bring a draft of your resume to be critiqued by a UCS counselor. 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
I f w-m-m S -y— Jf attend 205 Student Union
rn rn rn rn rn m WWA HOWTO PREPARE FOR A JOB FAIR
University Career Services ' entS Prepareyourselffor interacting with employers / Mon., Sept. 17
Technology &. ® ve i Topics include appropriate dress, materials to bring to 5:00 pm
g SCiCnCG to career fairs, developing an effective introduction, and more. 205 Student Union
Division of Student Affairs Career Fair . A
Nash*Hsrii September 19th, 1-5 pm . %/
Dean Smith Center ACO YfllJ |I“W '
rttheS eetc, tine Minority Career Night H|C Hpjii*
, about September 19th, 6-9 pm * 1
Great Hall, Student Union
Carolina Career Fair
Pea" Smith Center ATTEND!
Under \SSMEN ENCO1 KA
Schools Offer Services to Stranded Students
Bv Metoka Welch
Staff Writer
Triangle college students wanting to
rejoin their families in light of Tuesday’s
terrorist attacks will find their short-term
travel options limited.
The Federal Aviation Administration
grounded commercial flights after
hijacked airplanes crashed into the
World Trade Center, the Pentagon and
in Pennsylvania on Tuesday morning.
But the FAA began to allow limited
■/ ■ Cllar if
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Brenda Nielsen, an employee of the UNC School of Medicine, watches news updates on a television screen in Berryhill Hall while
donating blood to aid victims of Tuesday's tragedies. Wednesday's drive exceeded the Red Cross' goal of 40 units before 2 p.m.
UNC Blood Drive Attracts Masses
By Stephanie Flrr
Staff Writer
Wednesday’s blood drive at Berryhill Hall
was scheduled to run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.,
but by 2 p.m. signs were posted that read,
“Blood drive full for today.”
But American Red Cross volunteers are still
encouraging people to donate. The drive
acquired 65 units of blood by 2 p.m., exceeding
the Orange County Red Cross’ original goal of
40 units. The Red Cross is collecting blood to
help meet needs in New York and Washington,
D.C., the sites of two of Tuesday’s three terror
ist attacks.
About 500 people came to the collection site
Wednesday, but most were told to come back
Officials Address State's Safety Concerns
By Ben Giillett
and Jennifer samuels
Staff Writers
Local and state agencies in North Carolina
were largely unaffected by Tuesday’s terrorist
attacks, but some officials say not everything is
business as usual.
All exits to and from Fort Bragg were blocked
Wednesday. Personnel entering the base had their
cars and belongings searched before admittance.
Vicki Bailey, a transfusion supervisor at
Womack Army Medical Center in Fort Bragg,
said she spent four hours in traffic to get to
work.
“I agree with everything being done, but it’s
just unreal,” she said.
air travel Wednesday for flights forced to
land prematurely Tuesday morning.
According to CNN, senior FAA offi
cials say the flight restrictions will start to
be lifted sometime today.
Greyhound buses and Amtrak trains
have suspended service to Washington,
D.C., and New York until further notice.
Sue Kitchen, vice chancellor for stu
dent affairs at UNC, said that because
students facing family emergencies are
unable to travel, the most important
thing for them to do right now is seek
in a few days or weeks. “It’s been heartening,
really heartening, but we’ve been turning peo
ple away since I got here at 10:45 a.m.,” said
Amy Jewett, a Red Cross volunteer.
The drive was organized by the Student
National Medical Association before the start of
the school year with the expectation of a moder
ate turnout
But after Tuesday’s tragedies, concerned
UNC students and Orange County residents
came out in droves to donate. Casey Copp,
director of blood services for Orange County,
said other local drives have had similar success.
“My understanding is that 600 people turned
up (Tuesday) at a drive in Durham, and (the vol
unteers) worked until 11 p.m. at night” she said.
At Berryhill, students, faculty and residents
Schools statewide did not change schedules.
Vanessa Jeter, a public information officer
for the N.C. Department of Public Instruction,
said most school districts chose again not to
cancel classes Wednesday. She said DPI has
suggested local school systems implement their
own crisis plans.
“Our main concern at this point is that
(schools) be sensitive to the emotional needs of
students,” she said.
Local schools followed this trend, with
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools and Orange
County Schools operating on regular schedules.
Chapel Hill Town Manager Cal Horton
said town government was not slowed by the
attack. Carrboro Town Manager Bob Morgan
echoed the sentiment for Carrboro. A Board
News
counseling. “If a student is anxious or has
a family member who has been killed,
and they want to get home or need coun
seling, they should either go to counsel
ing services, the Office of the Dean of
Students or my office,” she said.
Kitchen said the volatile nature of the
situation makes it hard for school officials
to take concrete measures to assist stu
dents in traveling home. “The reason
why we can’t stock something together is
because the situation is always changing.”
Officials announced Tuesday that
waited in line to give blood, keeping track of the
latest news while their blood was being collected.
Laura Desch, a junior English major, said she
waited for more than an hour. “I was watching
yesterday, and, as soon as it went across the
screen that the Red Cross needed blood, I
wanted to do this,” she said.
Other donors said they felt a personal con
nection to the tragedy in New York.
“I know there’s a huge need, and I’m actu
ally from New York,” said Mike Steiner, a 2000
UNC graduate.
Copp said the local Red Cross also has sent
units to hospitals in Baltimore, which is less
than an hour from Washington, to help aid vic-
See BLOOD, Page 11
of Aldermen meeting canceled Tuesday has
not yet been rescheduled.
Chapel Hill Chamber of Commerce President
Aaron Nelson said the national airline shutdown
prevented operation of long-distance mail and
package delivery services. He added that the local
community has not felt an impact
“Nobody has called us to complain about their
business being disrupted,” Nelson said.
But Bailey said despite the inconvenience,
she is glad for precautions.
“There’s a part of me that doesn’t want to be
inconvenienced, but in today’s atmosphere,
thank you.”
The State & National Editor can be reached
atstntdesk@unc.edu.
Student Health Service’s Counseling and
Psychological Service is offering walk-in
assistance for students who need imme
diate guidance. CAPS also is sending
counselors throughout campus to talk to
students identified as needing assistance.
Keith Lawrence, assistant director for
the Duke News Service, said Duke stu
dents also are being offered assistance in
coping with the shock of Tuesday’s
attack. “Counseling and psychological
services have been offered, as well as
telephones to those students trying to
Officials Confirm
Safety of Students
In D.C., Abroad
UNC students away from campus have been
contacted by University officials, who are
encouraging those students to call home.
By Lizzie Breyer
University Editor
For the past two days the UNC community has banded
together in displays of unity, but several members of the
University family experienced Tuesday’s tragedies from else
where in the world.
Most students watched the events on television, but some
students studying in Washington, D.C., literally watched the
attacks unfold. And students abroad are far away from their
country while leaders emphasize national unity.
UNC has 12 students with the Washington Policy Seminar,
sponsored by the Burch Field Research Seminar Program.
Some were blocks from the Pentagon when a hijacked plane
hit the building.
“We saw the plane go down - saw it hit, saw the smoke,”
said junior Stephanie Scott, an intern at the Progressive Policy
Institute. “We heard it hit, and we heard the fighter jets and
helicopters come across.”
Scott said she went to her Washington apartment as quickly as
possible, where program directors were keeping tabs on UNC
students. “When you came back, they checked your name off -
she’s alive, she’s OK,” she said. “It was a strange experience.”
Senior Tola Atewologun said he saw massive disruption after
the explosion. “It was total chaos - you would walk down the
street, see a police line and an area blocked off, and you would
have to figure out a way around.”
When UNC officials heard about the attacks, they said they
rushed to contact the students. Mary Woytowich, assistant to
the chairman of the public policy department, which sponsors
the Burch program, said she immediately began calling and e
mailing until all the students were located. “The kids e-mailed
me, let me know they were safe and would take care of each
other,” she said. “I told them to call their parents.”
Michael Stegman, chairman of the public policy depart
ment, said he had been in touch with all the students. “It was
a visceral, emotional experience, having a profound effect -
some of them even felt the explosion,” he said. “We have a
great deal of security where they’re living -1 feel we’re doing
right by them, but it was a very frightening experience.”
While Woytowich and Stegman scrambled to find students
in Washington, other officials checked to see if there were any
students in New York City.
Marcia Harris, director of University Career Services, said
she doesn’t know of any students there. “There are no formal
programs (in New York City) - we may have a student with
a fall internship at CBS or something like that, but there are
none we know or have heard about”
Bob Miles, director of the Study Abroad Office, spent
Tuesday contacting students in foreign areas. “We had a list
of all students abroad with their parental addresses and were
able to determine, within a certain degree of risk, a list of stu
dents who might be direcdy affected,” he said.
Miles said Wednesday he had heard from all the schools
where UNC students are abroad and that, as far as he knew,
all students were safe. He also said Tuesday’s attacks should
not lead to problems where UNC students are located. The
University has no students in the Middle East.
Miles said he reminded UNC’s international students to tell
their families they’re safe. Tuesday’s events will not affect the
immediate safety of students abroad or the study abroad pro
gram’s future, Miles said. “We are always, always concerned
about the safety and security of students. What has changed is
that the need for international understanding is more impor
tant now than it was 24 hours ago.”
The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.
Thursday, September 13, 2001
call in the more stricken areas of New
York and D.C.,” Lawrence said.
Lawrence said he sympathized with
affected students but cited governmental
requests to limit travel as obstacles to
students getting home. “Government
officials are strongly discouraging any
one to travel to New York or D.C. at this
time,” he said. “They’re not looking for
people to add to traffic congestion.”
Thomas Stafford, vice chancellor for
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