LOCAL/S TATE
The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, October 10, 2001- 3
Bill would allow jail time for fake ID use
Cause unknown
in U. Minnesota
freshman's death
MINNEAPOLIS - For the second
time in less than a year, a University
of Minnesota freshman died in a cam-
pus residence hall.
Aaron M. Minor, a 19-year-old
College of Agricultural, Food and
Environmental Sciences student, was
found dead in his Pioneer Hall suite
Saturday afternoon.
The Hennepin County medical
examiner said an autopsy on Minor
was complete Sunday and
"couldn't find anything wrong with
anything in his body (or) any of his,
organs."
The medical examiner did not
release an official cause of death. Tox-
icology results will take five to seven
days.
University police dispatch said
"there was no visible signs of suspi-
cious circumstances" - such as alco-
hol use, drug use or foul play - at the
scene.
Last February, University freshman
Jonathan Thielen was discovered dead
in a Bailey Hall room. He died of
blunt head trauma after falling from a
bunk bed.
At an all-resident meeting Sunday
night in Pioneer, University police
Officer Josh Betts said there was noth-
ing he or his partner could do when
they arrived. Minor was pronounced
dead at the scene.
U. Nebraska may
ban cell phones
from classrooms
LINCOLN, Neb. - The beeping
of familiar classical music tunes
during class has caused the Univer-
sity of Nebraska's Residence Hall
Association to take notice.
After several students put cards
in RHA's comment boxes com-
plaining about the noise in their
classes, the Residence Hall Associ-
ation's executive board wrote a bill
asking the Associated Students of
the University of Nebraska to ban
cellular phones in all classrooms.
RHA members passed the bill Sun-
day night 12-8, with two absten-
tions.
ASUN can write its own bill how-
ever it wants.
Senators debated the bill during the
meeting.
Some said students might need to
bring their phones into class if they
were waiting to hear an update about a
family emergency or a hospitalized
relative.
Some said if ASUN banned cellular
phone use, it should ban beepers, too.
Security assaults
students rushing
field after game
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Uni-
versity of Maryland students who
stormed their way onto the field at
Byrd Stadium following Saturday's
game against Virginia found the
day's hardest hits came after the
game.
As the final seconds of the game
ticked away, students began running
onto the field, only to find them-
selves in the middle of a security
frenzy, with students, both female
and male, being tackled and
punched by ushers.
Two ushers were fired immediately
following the game after responding
"inappropriately" to student celebra-
tions, according to an apology issued
by Contemporary Services, the secu-
rity firm that handles campus athlet-
ics.
"I couldn't even sleep [Saturday]
night," said Lenny Lambert, Contem-
porary Services branch manager and a
campus alumnus. "I was sick to my
stomach."
The athletic department also
released an apology regarding the
behavior of Contemporary Services
ushers.
According to the statement, ushers
were "overly aggressive" in attempts
to stop students from running onto the
field, something the athletic depart-
ment allows fans to do.
- Compiled from U-WIRE reports by
Daily Staff Reporter Lizzie Ehrle.
By Louie Meizlish
Daily StaffTReporter
People who use fake identification could face
harsher sentences under a bill approved yester-
day by a state House committee.
The legislation would increase the maximum
penalties for possessing a fake ID from 30 days
to up to one year in jail. In addition, a fine of up
to S 10,000 could be imposed on violators of the
proposed law.
The bill, which was introduced by Rep. Jen-
nifer Faunce (R-Warren), chair of the House
Criminal Justice Committee, was approved
unanimously by the committee yesterday and
now heads to the full House for consideration.
Backers of the bill, such as committee vice
chair Mike Kowall, said the bill is really intend-
ed to punish those who use fake licenses for the
purposes of getting credit cards and then not
paying the bills or for people who drive haz-
ardous who are not qualified to drive.
"It's not geared at your one-time offender
that's buying beer with a fake ID," said Kowall
(R-White Lake).
Kowall cited an incident that occurred at the
Great Lakes Crossing shopping center in
Auburn Hills, where a shopper used a fake dri-
ver's license in order to receive a store credit
card and then used the card to purchase $1.5
million in goods over two days that he never
paid for.
"You don't wantto lock up half of the kids at
Michigan State," said Rep. Bill McConico (D-
Detroit), a member of the House committee.
Instead, McConico said he supported the bill
mostly as a deterrent so students will not try to
use fake IDs. The bill also gives harsher penal-
ties to those who produce fake IDs.
"It's a good preventive action but it's a little
bit harsh. I could understand why they'd want to
do it but a year in jail for some kid wanting to
get alcohol is a little bit harsh," said one LSA
freshman who has a fake driver's license but did
not want to be identified.
Two other University students said they do
not think the bill is a good idea, noting that
there still remains the possibility that a judge
could sentence a student to jail for using a fake
ID to purchase alcohol.
"For serious offenses, like credit card fraud,
I'd say jail time could be appropriate depending
on the case, but imprisoning people for buying
alcohol with a fake ID is extreme," said an LSA
sophomore.
An LSA senior who said she has used two
fake IDs while in college --- replacing one that
got taken away with another - said she was
unfazed.
"Am I fearful that I could get arrested? I've
had a fake ID for two and a half to three years
and I've never had a problem," she said.
"I don't think it would deter college age kids
because we're going to go out and drink any-
way.
Drummin' fun
Proposal would cut pay of
legislators to boost budget
LANSING (AP) - State Rep.
Doug Spade wants his colleagues in
the Legislature to take a pay cut to
help the state's budget shortfall.
Spade, a Democrat from Adrian,
has proposed measures that would
trim legislative salaries at year's end
from S77,400 to $73,530 -- a 5 per-
cent cut -- and keep a 2.9 percent
increase from taking effect Yan. 1.
One legislator said lawmakers may
not be able to trim their salaries,
which are recommended every two
years by the State Officers Compensa-
tion Commission. The recommenda-
tions take effect unless voted down by
two-thirds of the House and Senate,
and there doesn't seem to be a provi-
sion for changing them once they're in
place.
Spade said his measure would mean
an additional $ million for the state's
$9.6 billion general fund, which faces
$450 million to $550 in cuts.
Lawmakers have asked state
departments to trim their budgets by
5 percent to 10 percent for the budget
year that began last week because
state revenues have fallen below
expectations.
"In the end a million dollars won't
save us, but it will help," Spade said.
In February, lawmakers received a
35.8 percent increase, lifting their
salaries to $77,400 a year. They're
scheduled to receive the 2.9 percent
increase on Jan. 1, raising their
salaries to 579,650.
Spade said that's not justified giving
the slowing state economy and uncer-
tain economic outlook in the wake of
the Sept. I I terrorist attacks.
His measures were referred to the
House Oversight and Operations
Committee.
"Constitutionally speaking, I don't
think there's a mechanism for this to
happen," said committee Chairman
Bruce Patterson (R-Canton). "And it
wouldn't even begin to address the
significant downturn in the economy."
But Rep. Mickey Mortimer, who's
already reviewing the budget for the
Department of Community Health in
anticipation of decreases, said he
would cut his salary if it would help
the state budget.
"There's always something out there
that could use the help," the Horton
Republican said. "We're getting to a
place where these budget cuts are
affecting people's lives."
Rep. Ken Bradstreet has been work-
ing on a measure to reduce lawmak-
ers' pay 15 percent. But the resolution
would be tied to another that prohibits
the Legislature from holding a lame-
duck session between the Nov. 5,
2002, election and Dec. 31, 2002.
Bradstreet, a Republican from Gay-
lord, said he doesn't think it's right to
cut lawmakers' pay without reducing
their workload. He said he suspects
Spade's bill may be a way of getting
attention.
"I'm not a real big fan of attention-
getting political gimmigks that aren't
going anywhere," he said.
LAURIE BRESCOLL/Daily
Titos Sompa teaches his "Introduction to Ngmoa" class at the Residential
College at East Quad yesterday afternoon.
Head of National
Guard vis-1ts five
Michigan :airports
I immer
Study
Tibet
This exceptional Summer Study Abroad program in Tibet provides a
comprehensive nine-week, six credit program for the study of Tibetan language,
history and culture, run entirely in Tibet. It combines two weeks in Tibet's capital
Lhasa and neighboring urban areas, three weeks in various rural areas on the
high plateau of Central Tibet (the Tibetan Autonomous Region), and three weeks
across the rolling mountains of the Eastern Tibetan region of Kham (Qinghai
Province).
INFORMATION SESSION
Friday, October 12, 2001, 3:00 pm
3050 Frieze Building
May 9, 2002 - July 9, 2002
FREELAND, Mich. (AP) - The
head of Michigan's Army -and Air
National Guard visited troops at five
Michigan airports yesterday, the first
review since guard members began pro-
tecting the airports last week.
Maj. Gen. E. Gordon Stump said he
had been concerned about power strug-
gles or hard feelings between guard
members, local law enforcement and
airport security employees.
But he said yesterday that the 160
guard members in Michigan's 16 air-
ports are fitting in well.
"It's increasing confidence in the fly-
ing public and I think it's great to have
the extra measure of security," Stump
said. "It shows that we do mean busi-
ness."
Stump and Col. John Leatherman,
who is overseeing the airport mission,
flew to Detroit Metropolitan Airport in
Romulus, Bishop International Airport
in Flint, MBS International Airport in
Freeland, Gerald R. Ford International
Airport in Grand Rapids and Capital
City Airport in Lansing.
"We just can't put them out here and
let them think we forgot them," Stump
said of the troops guarding the airports.
Stump said there are about 700
Michigan National Guard members on
active duty now, including 250 troops at
bases in Germany, Hungary and Saudi
Arabia. All soldiers stationed overseas
are on missions scheduled before the
Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, he said.
At each airport yesterday, Stump and
Leatherman talked to soldiers stationed
at security checkpoints. All are armed
with 9 mm pistols.
Soldiers said passengers and staff
generally have been pleased with the
presence of the National Guard.
"Ninety-nine percent of the passen-
gers say they're really glad to see us,"
said Staff Sgt. Wilson Tang, 32, of War-
ren, a contractor who volunteered to
guard the Detroit airport.
In Flint, Sgt. First Class Bill Richards
said airport staff applauded when sol-
diers arrived last Friday. Richards, a
cable splicer from Oxford and a 21-year
veteran of the National Guard, said he
was happy to volunteer.
"The nation called and needed me,"
he said. "I felt like I had to do some-
thing.
Because they are under the command
of Stump and Gov. John Engler, the
National Guard soldiers have arrest
authority and other regular law enforce-
ment powers. Troops under federal
command have more limited powers.
The soldiers have made no arrests at
Michigan airports, but they have had
some minor mishaps. At Bishop Air-
port, a passenger angry about a security
check of his clothing was restrained
after he started taking off all his clothes.
Stump said he's not sure how long the
mission will last or what it will cost.
The federal government is footing the
bill and has asked governors to keep the
troops in place until the federal govern-
ment can gain oversight of airport secu-
rity in four to six months.
"I think they're going to be here for a
while," Stump said. "I don't think this is
going to go away tomorrow."
THE CALENDAR
What's happening in Ann Arbor today
EVENTS
"Dinner, Sex, and a
Movie;" Sponsored by
the Office nf I chbian
2250 East Stadium
"The Disability Rights
Movement in Michigan;"
Sponsored by University
of Michigan Human
Mapping of Alaska and
the Aleutian Islands;"
Brown Bag Lecture spon-
sored by the University
Center for Russian and
SERVICES
Campus Information
Centers, 764-INFO,
info@umich. edu, or
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