Page T en
THE MICHtC-AN DAILY
ITuesday, June 7, 1977
Page Jen TI-IL MlCl'ItC~AN DAILY 'luesday, June '7, 1977
COURT RELAXES DEATH PENALTY:
Cop killers reprieved
WASHINGTON (.t-States
sma' not antomatically sentence
to death all persons convicted of
killing police officers, the Su-
preme Court said in a sharply
divided ruling yesterday.
By a 5-4 vote, the justices
threw out as uncunstitutional a
twLisinia law that made death
in the electric chair a manda-
tory penalty for murderers of
police.
MANY STATES had similar
laws before 1976, but only New
York Md Louisiana had such
statutes currently on their books.
Monday's raling presumably in-
validated New York's law as
well.
Matty states were expected to
draft mandatory death penalties
if the court had ruled they were
constitutional. California, now
without a valid death penalty
law, had urged the court to ap-
prove Louisiana's law.
A spokesman for the NAACP's
Legal Defense Fund, which op-
poses capital punishment, said
only three Deuth Row inmates
were affected by the court's rul-
ins.
THE RULING spared the lives
of convicted murderer Harry
Roberts, whose appeal the court
hbird, aid two condemned New
York men, the fund's spokesman
said.
Roberts had been sentenced to
die for the Feb. 26, 1974, shoot-
ing death of New Orleans police-
man Dennis McInerney, who
had rysponded to a neighborhood
disturbance on Mardis Gras
lany.
The court's majority noted
that Roberts was only 19 at the
time, which a jury could con-
sider a mitigating circumstance
that warranted life imprison-
ment instead of the death
penalty.
IN AN unsigned opinion, the
court's majority said, "It is es-
sential that the capital sentenc-
ing decision allow for considera-
Lion of whatever mitigating cir-
cumstances may be relevant to
the particular offender or the
particular offense.
"Becattse the Louisiana sta-
tute does not allow considera-
tion of particularized mitigating
factors, it is unconstitutional,"
the opinion said.
Justices William Brennan, Jr.,
Thurgood Marshall, Potter Ste-
wart, Louis Powell Jr., and
John Paul Stevens joined in the
decision-
CHIEF JUSTICE Warren Bur-
ger and Justices William Rehn-
quist, larry Blackmun and By-
ron White voted to uphold Loui-
siana's late.
Rehnquist, in dissent, said:
"The argument weighing in
favor of society's determination
to impose a mandatory sentence
for the murder of a polio, officer
in the line of duty are far
stronger than in the case of an
ordinary homicide."
The VA nurses' case: An analysis,
(ConIinued from Page 6)
ONE WITNESS testified that
Nacrisco had just put an exten-
sion tube onto patient John Mc-
Crery's IV apparatus, and that
Narcisco instritted the witness
to keep an eye on McCrery.
Minutes later, the patient stop-
ped breathing.
The doctor who found McCrery
PINBALL
BOWLING
BI LLIARDS
at the
UNION
Open 1 IA.M.
said there was a nurse standing
at th bedside who stood motion-
less even when the doctor or-
dered her to assist. The govern-
ment's witness fell short, how-
ever, when she said she could
not positively identify who it
was at the bedside.
In the case of patient William
Losch, testimony from Loesch's
mother put both VA defendants
in the patient's room before he
s t op p e d breathing. Christine
Loesch testified that she left
Narciso and Perez in her son's
room so that she could make a
phone call. Moments later, Mrs.
Loesch was informed that her
son had stopped breathing.
MRS. LOESCH said that when
she left the two alonetwith her
son, "the little one (Perez)" was
preparing an injection.
Mrs. Losch's testimony con-
flicted with her previous state-
ments to the FBI. Testifying in
court, the witness did not say
that she asked her son if some
stranger had given him the shot
and not one of the nurses, and
that Loesch nodded yes. She
also did not say she had bumped
into a man in a green scrub suit
who was entering the room as
she was leaving to make the
phone call. B o t h statements
were made to the FBI during
the investigation the week after
the A u g u a t 15th breathing
failures.
Defense attorneys indicated
last week that although they
don't expect a dismissal of the
case, they think some of the
government's weakest c o u n t s
will be dropped.
If Judge Philip Pratt does rule
that the case will go on, the de-
fense will begin its presentation
tomorrow.
New State lottery
big winner in city
By RON DeKETT
The Michigan lottery unleashed yet another money making
scheme yesterday with its new DAILY lottery game designed
to allow players to pick their own winning combination of
numbers and collect the same day.
Ann Arbor residents seemed to favor the new game, turn-
ing out to buy them in large numbers. People were lined up
at 6:00 a.m. at the Washenaw Milk & Ice Cream store in
order to purchase the new DAILY lottery tickets, employe
Douglas Raab said.
"LATER IN THE morning they were lined up to the wal
but they (generally) would come in spurts," Raab added
For a fee ranging from 55 cents to $6.00 the DAILY game
allows players to pick their own three-digit numbers. The
pay-off-if they are lucky-can be from $41 to $1,0Wt depend
ing on the game variations the player chooses at odds from
1 in 333 to 1 in 1000.
Washtenaw Milk and Ice Cream, 602 Ashley, is one of two
sites picked in Ann Arbor to sell the tickets through a com
puter-like terminal because of the number of regular lotter
tickets it has sold and because of its location.
BUT -DESPITE its relatively proximity to cmpus most
ticket buyers are working people and not students, manager
James Smith said.
"Students won't spend 50 cents or $1.00 on tickets evec
day because they've got something better to spend it on. But
somebody who works everyday doesn't mind spending a
little money on the lottery," Smith said.
Smith estimates the Dairy ;sold about 900 tickets the firt
day and he predicts the number of players will increase.
"WHEN THEY hear over the TV the winning numbers,
they are going to ask 'why didn't I pick that number?' When
they hear it six times a week they will go out and try it,"
Smith said.
A man munching down on a double decker ice cream cone,
in response to his pre-kindergarten son's query about the
game said,.-"It's called the numbers racket where I come
from."
The child examined the lottery form for a few seconds and
replied, "But what if I win?"
Chicago calm after
weekend of rioting
CHICAGO W) - Police enforced beefed-up security for the
second day in a Puerto Rican neighborhood where weekend riots
resulted in the shooting deaths of two persons, injuries to at least
133 persons and extensive property damage.
Violence erupted for a second time Sunday night after si
hours of rioting in the Humboldt Park area Saturday night had left
two men dead, and 116 persons, including 38 policemen, injured.
IN SUNDAY'S aftermath, bands made up mostly of hispanc
youths threw debris at police and hurled several Molotov cocktails
at squad cars.
The explosives missed the cars and burst into flame in the
streets. Thirteen officers and at least four civilians were injured
There were conflicting versions of the initial shootings that
touched off Saturday's riot. Police said they did not intentionally
fire into the crowd. But Hispanic leaders said police had over-
reacted.
IN ONE exchange Sunday, about 300 youths and police clad in
riot gear threw rocks and bottles at each other. In another inci-
dent, a motorist fired a shot at a police car and sped away as
police returned the gunfire. One officer was injured, apparently
by shattered glass, and a suspect later was arrested.
SALE
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PILLOWS & COMFORTERS --
At Rockbottom Prices
Ripstop Jacketsr
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Ripstop Vests
$19.95
SAVINGS on many more styles
213S. MAIN ST
Oren 10 til 5:30 P.M.
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310 MAYNARD
HOURS
uesday - pace on beer U
7-11 P.M.
W1/z price on all
Wednes ua drinks 7-10 P.M.
Friday -15c hot dogs
3 A2-5 P.M.
NO COVER
310 AYNARD
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