IC I tq *Wt One hundred four years of editorial freedom . _ > A2police search suspect's jesidences3 0 Women's underwear, crack cocaine, and tennis shoes are confiscated By FRANK C. LEE Daily Staff Reporter Police searched four residences of spected serial rapist Ervin D. Mitchell Jr. in an effort to collect potentially incriminating evidence,, according to published reports. According to the search warrants issued by the 15th District Court in Ann Arbor, investigators confiscated a pair of black "army" boots, a pair of Reebok tennis shoes, four pairs of women's underwear, pieces of crack Acaine, an adult videocassette, three .Tir pieces, a towel and white cotton gloves, The Ann Arbor News reported yesterday. Wednesday, police reportedly searched the premises of Mitchell's girlfriend and her mother on Carolina Avenue and his friend's apartment on Broadway in Ann Arbor, as well as Mitchell's mother's house in Inkster and his aunt's house. * The court records did not indicate which items came from which resi- dences. Investigators are trying to match the shoe prints from the boots and tennis shoes with footprints left at the scene of an Oct. 13 rape of a 42-year- old Ann Arbor woman near Commu- nity High School. Police are looking for underwear &at may have been taken by the serial apist after assaulting a woman in her Ann Arbor apartment on Nov. 2, the News reported. Police refused to comment yester- day on the searches pending formal See SEARCH, Page 2 U.S. soldier killed in Haiti Death could undermine mission JUDIT H PERKINS/Daily Group protests firing of dental school employees Delano Isabell leads a march in protest of the racism he and two co-workers believe led to their firing. University spokeswoman Lisa Baker said the University has no evidence of racism in the case. See story, Page 5. 'U'will no lose money in investment in Calif. county The Washington Post WASHINGTON - American forces in Haiti yesterday suffered their first death from hostile fire since in- tervening there in September when a U.S. soldier was killed after a gun battle near a checkpoint on the out- skirts of the town of Gonaives. A second U.S. soldier was wounded and one Haitain also was killed in the shootout, which was trig- gered when a white Ford pickup truck carrying three people tried to pass the checkpoint without stopping and one person in the truck opened fire on the Americans who chased after it, ac- cording to U.S. officials. The shootout was likely to rein- force callsaby congressional Republi- cans for an accelerated U.S. with- drawal from Haiti, but it also could undermine administration claims that the situation in Haiti is safe enough to permit the handover of peacekeeping duties to a United Nations force as planned in March. The incident also is likely to aggravate tensions be- tween U.S. and Haitian authorities over whether American forces are doing enough to disarm the support- ers of Haiti's former military regime. Thursday's trouble began when the two U.S. Special Forces soldiers, who were observing operations at what the Pentagon termed a "tollbooth," were asked to chase a truck that had just run past without stopping. Pentagon offi- cials could not explain if tolls were actually being collected at the station or by whom. A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince referred to the site as a "checkpoint." After catching up with the truck and getting it to stop, one soldier approached on the driver's side of the truck, while the other approached on the passenger's By CATHY BOGUSLASKI Daily Staff Reporter The University will not lose an estimated $256,000 that had been invested in now-bankrupt Orange County, Calif., said Norman Herbert, University treasurer. The bank handling the University's investment has agreed to absorb any possible loss. The University has more than $2 billion invested in a diverse array of holdings. Some of that money was placed in a trust fund administered by Mellon Bank of Pittsburgh. The trust fund, with money from the University and other investors, totaled about $975 million. Mellon then used about $25 million of the trust fund monies to purchase bonds from Orange County. After Orange County declared bankruptcy, Mellon informed the University that it could not guarantee its investment. If the Orange County bonds were a complete loss, the University stood to lose about $256,000. But the University will see a full return on its invest- ment, Herbert said. "Mellon has informed us that they will buy the notes from us, so we will incur no further risk." Since Mellon is buying the bonds back from the University, the bank will absorb any monetary loss. Herbert said he had expected Mellon to give the University a full return on its investment. "This has developed in the way I had hoped and anticipated," he said. The University's policy of investing with Mellon will be reviewed, Herbert said. "That's a review only because something happened," he said. "It's nothing unusual." Mellon Bank officials could not be reached for com- ment. Jussian troops vow to conquer Chechen capital Rebels retreat as tanks, troops move into Grozny i In Washington U. U. Rep. Lynn ivers (D-Ann Arbor) and other freshmen lawmakers meet with President Clinon. Page 2. Rivers House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) met with C HarperCollins Publishers n owner Rupert Murdoch before signing a book deal. Page 2. Gingrich side in what the Pentagon described as standard operating procedure. The driver got out of the vehicle, then one passenger drew a revolver from the glove compartment and opened fire on the soldiers, hitting one in the chest and the other in the arm, according to the Pentagon. The soldier on the passenger's side re- turned fire, killing the passenger. The third person in the vehicle escaped, according to the Pentagon account. An angry crowd pursued and cap- tured the driver of the truck, who tried to flee on foot, according to Gerarde Elysse, a spokesman for the local In terior Ministry office, quoted by the Associated Press. New GOP regents attend 'U' orientation By RONNIE GLASSBERG Daily Staff Reporter New students aren't the only ones who need an orientation to familiar- ize themselves with the complex Uni- versity. The two newest members on the Board of Regents also have an orien- tation of their own. And for them, the deal includes a meeting with the presi- dent. Since their election in No- vember, Republi- can Regents An- drea Fischer of R Birmingham and Daniel Horning of Grand Rapids have been attend- ing meetings to learn about vari- Fischer ous facets of the University. "I think it's been a wonderful, comprehensive overview of the massive scope of the University, Horning said. "It's been important and I think it's been very worth- Horning while. It will help bring us up to speed than if we did not go through this." Fischer said she and Horning have GROZNY, Russia (AP) - Russian forces bombarded the capital of Chechnya on yester- day with their fiercest attack yet, showering the iisintegrating city with waves of artillery and ckets as rebel resistance neared collapse. Demoralized bands of haggard Chechen fighters resisted the ferocious new onslaught. Incoming Russian troops vowed to take the capital and end the month-long fighting in the secessionist republic. Rebels retreated house by house from Rus- sian forces closing relentlessly on the battered presidential palace in the city's heart. Russian helicopters sounded overhead for the first time. Plumes of black smoke spiraled hundreds of feet over the city while shells slammed into buildings. Machine-gun and small-arms fire echoed as Moscow's troops attacked. Chechen fighters, who had talked in recent days of defeating the Russian army, were vis- ibly worried and exhausted. Large units had dwindled to a few men, and some groups were seen moving out of the city. Among the latest refugees were members of resident Dzhokhar Dudayev's government, ho continued to arrive in neighboring Ingushetia, the Russian government press ser- vice said. They planned to fly abroad, it said. Dudayev's whereabouts were not clear. Russian troops poured into Chechyna, a mostly Muslim republic of 1.2 million in the Caucasus Mountain, on Dec. 11 to crush its independence movement. They encountered re- sistance, but Chechen zeal has flagged this week. Chechyna .RUSSIA - yUKRAINE I Grozny S Black Sea TURKEY "Caspian ARMENIA Sea Autonomous regions Daily Graphic edged the fight was not going well. Associated Press correspondents got to within about 500 yards of the devastated building, but furious shelling kept them from seeing who held it. Rebels were short of ammunition. Several men in their 60s, armed with pistols and dag- gers, helped fill positions. Russian tanks, armored personnel carriers and troop trucks were moving on several roads toward Grozny. In villages along the route, Chechens tried desperately to organize defense units but had only rifles and no heavy weapons. Some Russian soldiers who would not give their names said they would take Grozny with the latest offensive. Russia clearly has interpreted as a sign of weakness Dudayev's admission that his fight- ers could not defeat the Russian army. On Wednesday, the war's one-month mark, Dudayev said he was ready for peace talks. Overnight, the Russian air force dropped doz- ens of bombs on Grozny, which was nearly de- serted Thursday except for small bands of rebel soldiers. Dazed dogs wandered through the rubble. JUDITH PERKINS/Daily University Press publishes scholarly works Stacks of packaged books line the warehouse walls of the University press. Press publishes about 135 titles a year. See story, Page 5. The University Education reform tops list of issues state Legislature to tackle By ZACHARY M. RAIMI Daily Staff Reporter A new era of Michigan politics began Wednesday, as the 88th session of the state Legislature opened. For the first time since 1968, Republicans control the House, Senate and governor's man- sion. "It's a wonderful opportunity for us to con- tinue what we're doing," said Patricia Masserant, Gov. John Engler's media affairs director. In his Jan. 2 inaugural address, the governor outlined his plans for a "Michigan Renaissance"o - a vision of a smaller, more efficient state government that imposes fewer tax burdens. bills will come out of both chambers almost synchronized," said Craig Ruff, president of Public Sector Consultants, a Lansing-based public policy-research firm. "The point of origin is not very consistent. Bills don't have to start in one or the other (chambers)," he added. William Fuller, associate director of the Legislative Service Bureau, a non-partisan ser- vice, said about 4,500 bill requests have been submitted for floor action. Many of the issues expected to be taken up in- this year's Legislature include: K to 12 Education Reform School choice is expected to be considered. Rennli arn favouiv~ in f fln tnc irercho~ice Rebel officers claimed Thursday *rces retained the palace, but they that their acknowl- 'U' observes MLK day INSIDE ARTS Monday marks the eighth year the University has ,I I