VOLUME 114, ISSUE 137
Taheri-Azar pleads not guilty
BY JESSICA SCHONBERG
SENIOR WRITER
HILLSBOROUGH The UNC alumnus charged with
driving a rented SUV through the Pit in March striking
nine people pleaded not guilty to 18 felony charges in
Superior Court in Hillsborough on Wednesday.
Mohammad Taheri-Azar, 23, entered the pleas on nine
counts of attempted first-degree murder and nine counts
of felonious assault.
He is being held in Central Prison in Raleigh in lieu of
$5.5 million bail.
Public defender James Williams spoke on behalf of
Taheri-Azar, who wore a dark gray suit and seemed well
collected during the three-minute proceeding. Williams
declined to make a statement after the hearing.
Taheri-Azar walked calmly in and out of the courthouse
—a shift from his first appearances when he seemed to
revel in the media attention often waving and smiling.
Taheri-Azar turned himself in to police minutes after
the March 3 incident. He since has said he committed the
crimes to avenge the deaths of Muslims around the world.
N.C. LEADERS ASSEMBLE
BY ERIN FRANCE
STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR
RALEIGH The normally austere N.C.
General Assembly was packed for the first day
of session Wednesday.
Families, friends, lobbyists and politicians
looked on as Rep. Joe Hackney, D-Orange,
assumed his post as the newly elected House
Speaker.
Instead of using the usual electronic tabu
lation, the members of the House were called
to name their candidate for speaker, with
Hackney garnering 68 votes and Rep. Paul
Stam, R-Wake, earning 52 votes. The tallies
reflect the party lines in the chamber.
After his election and escort to the podium,
UNC graduate Hackney, who was first elected
to the House in 1980, expressed his optimism
for the upcoming session.
“There is a great collection of wisdom in this
body,” he said. “We must pledge ourselves to
civility.” ,
Rep. William Wainwright, D-Lenoir, was
voted speaker pro tem and temporary operat
ing rules were voted on for both chambers of
the General Assembly.
Legislators use these tf-eommit
tee submits its suggestions for how they can be
improved. After a vote on the amendments, the
SEE ASSEMBLY, PAGE 4
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William Russler, 2, grandson of Rep. William
Current R-Gaston, was one of the many children
who came to the opening of the legislature.
Committee supports hikes
BY ERIN ZUREICK
UNIVERSITY EDITOR
The Board of Trustees inched closer
to approving across-the-board tuition
hikes Wednesday.
At the meeting of the board’s audit
and finance committee, members unan
imously recommended increases of
$1,250 for nonresident undergraduate
students, $250 for residents and SSOO
for graduate students.
The full 13-member board will con
vene at 8 a.m. today at the Carolina
Inn’s Chancellor’s Ballroom East and
West to vote on the proposal, which
would generate $5.9 million.
Student Body President James Allred,
inside
A WAY WITH WORDS Renowned
poet graces Memorial Hall stage, PAGE 5
HOT DOG! VENDORS Downtown
leaders discuss street vendors, PAGE 6
TAR HEEL ACES Women's tennis team
dominates Tennessee at home, PAGE 13
Serving the students and the University community since 1893
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The short arraignment came after months of specula
tion about how Taheri-Azar would plead.
In June Taheri-Azar told a judge he would plead guilty.
But in earlier letters to The Daily Tar Heel, he stated he
would plead not guilty.
In the letters he used the Quran to justify his actions.
District Attorney Jim Woodall said he expected the not
guilty plea.
“That’s what I’ve said he would do,” he said. “It just took
him four months longer than I thought.”
Woodall estimated that 95 percent of defendants plead
not guilty within the first two to three months.
If the case goes to trial and Taheri-Azar is convicted on
all counts, he could face about 150 years in prison.
Woodall said that he can’t be certain the case will go to
trial but that Williams did mention a possible trial date
to him.
In a letter to The Daily Tar Heel dated Sunday, Taheri-
Azar said he had been offered a plea bargain. Woodall said
SEE TAHERI-AZAR, PAGE 4
gSB .
DTH PHOTOS/COURTNEY POTTER
Rep. Joe Hackney, D-Orange, introduces legislators as the new speaker of the House on Wednesday. Hackney said he
hopes both parties can work together. Both the House and Senate also used the first day to pass operating rules.
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TUIJION
did not commit to any certain level.
“Students are reasonable,” Allred said
earlier this week. “We want to grow, but
in a reasonable and fair way.”
Provost Bernadette Gray-Little pre
sented the recommendation, which was
put forward by Chancellor James Moeser,
to the committee. The proposal was simi
lar to the one Moeser initially brought to
| www.dailytarheel.com |
an ex-officio trustee
who is not a mem
ber of audit and
finance, said he
plans to advocate a
lower figure today
for out-of-state
students, though he
ATTEND THE BOT MEETING
Time: 8 a.m. today
Location: Carolina Inn, Chancellor's
Ballroom East and West
Info: www.unc.edu/depts/trustees
the board’s November meeting —with the
exception that his out-of-state tuition rec
ommendation then was SSOO.
The jump in nonresident tuition is nec
essary to close the gap between UNC and
its peers when it comes to tuition levels
and faculty salaries, some trustees said.
The board’s tuition policy mandates
SEE TUITION, PAGE 4
dive | page 7
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A comprehensive look at the
numerous art galleries the area
has to offer, as well as a variety
of reviews of the latest music .
and movies released.
OK:
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DTH/BETH ELY
Mohammad Taheri-Azar is led into the Orange County Courthouse
in Hillsborough on Wednesday. He appeared stoic and kept silent.
Tuition to support needs
Revenue targeted for
salaries, student aid
BY WHITNEY KISLING
ASSISTANT UNIVERSITY EDITOR
Every semester students and parents shell
out thousands of dollars to UNC. But after
checking accounts have been emptied and
credit card bills racked up, some find them
selves wondering where all that money went.
This year tuition dollars will be divided
into three main groups faculty salaries,
student aid and teaching assistant stipends
priorities recommended by the tuition
and fee advisory task force.
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THURSDAY, JANUARY 25, 2007
Assault
strains
relations
Guilford officials called on
to label incident hate crime
BY BRENDAN BROWN
ASSISTANT STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR
GREENSBORO The alleged assault of three
Palestinian students at Guilford College on Saturday
has left painful rifts between students and the
administration in the school’s Quaker community.
The alleged victims two were hospitalized for
concussions filed criminal charges Sunday that
led to the arrest of three Guilford football players
in connection with the event.
Osama Sabbah, Faris Khader and Omar Awartani
reportedly were attacked first by racial slurs, then by
at least three brass-knuckled, brick-wielding students,
though as many as 20 were present.
The school administration’s caution against nam
ing the action a “hate crime,” has many students,
alumni and parents troubled.
“Hate crime. Those are very strong words that
have a precise legal definition,” Guilford President
Kent Chabotar said at a packed community meeting
Wednesday.
The arrested players, Christopher Barnette, Michael
Six and Michael Bates, have been charged with mis
demeanor assault and ethnic intimidation. They were
released Monday on $2,000 bail.
Both the alleged victims and charged students
were forced off campus and security was increased,
Chabotar said, adding that further action will not be
taken until an investigation brings out the truth.
A cohort of concerned students, who have orga
nized a class walkout for today, spoke against what
they said was the school’s refusal to address the inci
dent as a hate crime.
“It is obvious that it is a hate crime, and you cannot
deny that it is a hate crime,” student Raji Ward said.
The school’s press release, issued Tuesday, makes
no mention of racial slurs and states that the stu
dents involved were acquaintances.
The alleged victims had no acquaintance with
their attackers before the incident, said Ghada
Jakbeer, Sabbah’s cousin who spoke on his behalf.
Sabbah, who was in attendance, was advised
against commenting to the press.
SEE ASSAULT, PAGE 4
Task force members spent the past semes
ter researching recommendations for tuition
increases and campus needs. The Board of
Thistees will meet today to vote on the hikes.
Provost Bernadette Gray-Little, who led the
task force with Student Body President James
Allred, presented its findings Wednesday to
the board’s audit and finance committee.
If the proposal goes through, 64 percent
will be set aside for faculty salaries, 35 per
cent for student aid and the remainder to
increase the minimum TA stipend by S4OO.
The amount dedicated to salaries is an
increase from the 43 percent for the 2006-07
academic year, reflecting a priority to put UNC
SEE REVENUE, PAGE 4
this day in history
JAN. 25,1996...
Calling himself the "original beer
patriot," a UNC graduate student
goes to court to protest Chapel
Hill's ban on open containers of
alcohol on public property.
Aftermath of the
Pit attack
March 3 A man in a silver Jeep
Grand Cherokee drives through
the Pit, striking nine people. No
one suffers life threatening
injuries. Minutes later
Mohammad Taheri-Azar calls
police to turn himself in.
March 6 Taheri-Azar makes his
first appearance in court, asking
to represent himself.
March 10Taheri-Azar makes
his second appearance in court
with public defender James
Williams representing him.
March 24 A judge finds
probable cause to pursue nine
charges of attempted first
degree murder and nine charges
of felonious assault.
Wednesday Taheri-Azar
pleads not guilty to all charges.
weather
Partly cloudy
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games n
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opinion 14