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Friday
January 12, 2001
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Law
By Jon Fish
Daily Staff Reporter
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Three years of scrutinizing the
admissions system and piecing
tether the arguments for and
against affirmative action will come
down to 90 hours of courtroom time.
After the long wait, Barbara Grutter
v. Lee Bollinger et. al, will finally enter
the courtroom on Tuesday.
Set to begin at 9 a.m. in Judge
Bernard Friedman's Federal District
courtroom in Detroit, each side in
the dispute will have 30 hours to
pent evidence on the following
issues:
The extent to which the Law
School takes race into consideration
in its policies.
Olmos to
keynote
1MLK day
events
By Elizabeth Kassab
Daily Staff Reporter
The annual celebration of Martin
Luther King Jr.'s life takes on a new
dimension at the University this year
in light of the affirmative action case
against the Law School that goes to
trial on Tuesday.
The theme of the 14th Annual
Symposium in honor of King,
"Commitment and Renewal," is fit-
ting because the University remains
f' in its commitment to issues,
ituding affirmative action, said
Damon Williams, a Rackham gradu-
ate student and chair of the 2001
Martin Luther King, Jr. Symposium
planning committee.
The Symposium "represents the
opportunity for the campus communi-
ty to celebrate diversity," Williams
said. "It manifests itself in so many
d rent ways."
ongressman John Conyers (D-Det.),
who co-sponsored the bill in the U.S.
House of Representatives instituting a
federal holiday in honor of King in
See MLK, Page 2
MLK
events
l Edward James Comm'tmet
os on Monday, Renewal
.15 at 10 a.m. in Hill Auditorium
l Congressman John Conyers
(D-Det.) speaks on "Continuing the
Struggle for Equality: Why we Stand
for Affirmative Action" on Monday,
Jan. 15 at 2 p.m. in Hutchins Hall
Go to www.mlksymposium.org for
a full listing of events
Schoo
® Whether the Law School poli-
cies consist of a double standard that
favors less-qualified minority appli-
cants.
Whether race should be used to
offset the advantages
caucasian applicants
may have in evaluating
standardized test scores
and grade point aver-
ages.
Throughout this
process, the University
and Center for Individ-
ual Rights have clashed over the
constitutional question of whether
diversity is a "compelling govern-
ment interest" as outlined by U.S.
Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell
in the 1978 case University of Cali-
trial
begins
fornia Regents v Bakke.
Friedman indicated at a hearing
on two motions for summary judg-
ment last month he would take the
question of whether diversity is a
compelling government
interest under advise-
ment. However, the trial
will focus on how race
can be applied under the
current reading of Bakke.
The University's
defense, known as the
"diversity rationale," has
been joined by a coalition of Detroit
high school students and civil rights
advocates who successfully peti-
tioned to intervene in the case in
August 1999.
See ADMISSIONS, Page 7
Making an
argument
Each party in the law-
suit will have 30 hours to
present their case, likely
involving these witnesses:
ECIR
Alan Stillwagon: Dean of
Admissions until 1990.
University
Lee Bollinger: President of
the University, Law School
Dean from 198741994.
* Intervenors
Connie Escobar: Current
Law School student.
Inside: Compelling
government interest key
to case. Page 12.
Tuesday
By Jen Fish
Daily Staff Reporter
This is it.
After numerous delays and much legal
posturing on all sides, the lawsuits chal-
lenging the Law School's admissions
process will finally have its day in court.
Lawyers from the Center for Individual
Rights, the University and the coalition of
intervening defendants will gather to clash
over the extent to which race can be used
in admissions.
Many believe this case will be an his-
toric event, one that could be the first step
in a long journey culminating in a U.S.
Supreme Court decision on the fate of
affirmative action in higher education.
And maybe somewhat predictably,
everyone is optimistic their particular
argument will prevail, citing changes in
the legal and social landscape that has
occurred during the past three years as
signals to victory.
Perhaps University President Lee Bollinger
described the long journey of the lawsuits
best when he said that "the world certainly
looks different than it did three years
See TRIAL, Page 7
Case three years in making
Shining through
Researcher
kills self,
wife
in townhouse
By Kristen Beaumont
Daily Staff Reporter
Ann Arbor Police are investigating a
possible murder-suicide after the bod-
ies of a University researcher and his
wife were found in their townhouse at
Parkway Meadows on Sandalwood
Circle early yesterday morning.
A family member discovered the
bodies of Sergei Raygorodsky, a
research engineer at the University's
Space Physics Research Lab, and his
wife, Liana, this morning.
"We believe the shootings occurred
sometime between 4:30 and 5" a.m.,
AAPD Deputy Chief Craig Roderick
said. Roderick said "the male was the
perpetrator," adding that the investiga-
tion is ongoing.
"It's not definite, but it appears that
we're dealing with a homicide-suicide"
he said. "The investigation has indicated
that is most likely the case, though."
The couple's 8-year-old son, Misha,
was staying with grandparents in
Detroit, where he attends school dur-
ing the week.
Assistant Director of the Space
Physics Research Lab at the College of
Engineering Charles Edmonson issued
a written statement about Raygorod-
sky, who worked at the lab as an engi-
neer engineer and helped manufacture
space equipment.
"He worked with lots and lots of
people here, and he was one of the
most colorful people I have ever
met," the statement read. "He came
See MURDER, Page 7
NOBEL, CHAT
ABBY HOSENBAUM/Uaily
Evening sunlight peeks through the branches of a white pine in a parking lot off Thompson Street yesterday.
CCRB receives equipment money
By Carrie Thomson
Daily Staff Reporter
The University's three recreational
buildings are slated to receive a total of
$116,000 worth of new equipment to
r ce aging workout machines, free
wvIghts and anything else near the end
of its life span.
The Recreational Sports Advisory
Committee passed a proposal that will
revamp the equipment in the Central
Campus Recreation Building, North
Campus Recreation Building and Intra-
mural Sports Building at their meeting
last Friday.
" eople have been trying for
d des now to get new equipment for
the CCRB," said LSA senior Ryan
Norfolk, MSA-appointed chair of the
committee. "Historically this is some-
thing that hasn't*happened in a long
time."
Students such as Rackham student
LSA sophomore Harvard Parker
shared Wu's concern.
"They need it," Parker stated, "The
equipment is pretty crappy right now"
Other students, such as SNRE junior
Sarah Nelson, were more concerned
with the availability of equipment such
as exercise and weight machines.
"There usually aren't enough
machines at peak hours," Nelson said.
"It's obvious to any student who
goes into any of those buildings that
we need new equipment," said LSA
Rep. Jessica Cash, who worked on the
committee to present the proposal to
the University Office of the Provost.
"Almost every student uses one of
those buildings, so this will be noticed
immediately," she added.
Several different types of equipment
will be distributed among all three
recreation buildings on campus
depending on what each building
needs.
RACHEL FEIERMAN/ Daily
Biology Prof. Richard Hume speaks on three winners of the Nobel Prize for
the category of medicine or psychology yesterday at West Hail.
Professors celebrate
Nobel kno wledg
By James Restivo
Daily Staff Reporter
When University economics Prof.
Bob Willis went to Columbia Uni-
versity in 1971 to fill in for a profes-
sor working on his Ph.D., he knew
the man he was replacing, 2000
nobel laureate Jim Heckman, was
destined for greatness.
"I thought he was really quite an
exceptional person," Willis said. "It
was very clear he was a very ambi-
tious and would be incredibly suc-
cessful."
series by the Center for the Study of
Complex Studies.
Willis spoke about Heckman as
well as fellow 2000 recipient Dan
McFadden for their accomplish-
ments in the field of economics.
Willis said both men's work deals
with human welfare.
"We as humans have a strong
interest in economics," Willis
said.
"Work in this field can enhance
human welfare and have an
impact."
Heckman did extensive
RACHEL FEIERMAN/Daily
Central Campus Recreation Building Lockerroom Manager Robin Reeves sits
behind a counter stacked with weights that will soon be replaced.
"MSA presented a compelling case,
and we decided to give them the fund-
"It's great because we're bringing
our voice to them and they're making
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