One hundred eleven years ofeditoridlfreedom Unt1 NEWS: 76-DAILY CLASSIFIED: 764-0557 wwwmichigandally.com Wednesday February 20, 2002 x1 Motive in o kilg of professors revealed HAVERHILL, N.H. (AP) - The teens accused of stabbing two Dart- mouth College professors to death talked their way into the couple's home and killed them in a plot to steal their ATM cards and PIN numbers, an indictment unsealed yesterday charges. In the six months before the murders in Hanover on Jan. 27, 2001, Robert Tul- loch and James Parker went to four other randomly chosen homes but did not get in, the indictment says. It says they finally succeeded by telling professor Half Zantop they were students conducting an environmental survey. Zantop and his wife, Susanne, were found slain later that day. Their four alleged previous attempts, two near their homes in Chelsea, Vt., and two in Hanover near the Zantop home, failed because no one was home or the people who answered the door would not let them in, the indictment says. The last of those failed attempts was the same day the Zantops were mur- dered, the indictment alleged. Tulloch, 18, is charged with first- degree murder. He has indicated he will use an insanity defense at his trial, which is scheduled to start in April. Parker, 17, has pleaded guilty to reduced charges and agreed to testify against Tulloch. The Grafton County Superior Court indictment dated Friday and unsealed yesterday does not say *whether the details came from Parker. It is the first time authorities have clearly stated a theory for the killings, which rocked Hanover. Previously, authorities had said only that the motive was robbery. The new indictment charges Tulloch with murder conspiracy. The penalty for each of the multiple murder indictments he still faces is mandatory life in prison without parole. The Zantops' bodies were found in their study by an arriving dinner guest the evening of Jan. 27,2001. The indictment alleges that Tulloch and Parker came up with the robbery- murder plan in June 2000. It says their first attempt was in July at a home in Vershire, Vt., near Chelsea, where they cut the phone line before Tul- loch knocked on the door as Parker hid nearby. Tulloch allegedly told the person who answered the door his car had bro- ken down. The person refused to let him in and the two left, the indictment says. Watergirl GSIs across the to By Maria Sprow Daily Staff Reporter U.S. try unionize The University's administration and Graduate Employee Organization are not alone in experiencing problems with contract negotiations. Though the trend for graduate student union organization is gaining momentum around the coun- try, some unions say they are still experi- encing problems gaining recognition that they exist. Colleges such as Michigan State Uni- versity and Temple University in Philadelphia, Pa. are currently in the same boat as the University of Michigan as they are in the midst of negotiations and working without a contract. A few, such as instructors at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, who are holding a rally tomorrow to support child care causes, have just begun to work under new contracts but are already working to ensure the success of future negotiations. Childcare has been a hot topic for Amherst students since their negotia- tions in 1998, which took two years to settle. Michigan State graduate student Scott Hinkle, a member of the Graduate Employee Union's steering committee, said Michigan State's GEU feels espe- cially frustrated with the way their nego- tiations are going. "(Michigan State's) chief negotiator is in Barbados for vacation," Hinkle said, adding that negotiations have been suspended until his return. "Though we do support people's rights to go on vacation, we think it's a little dubious for them to suspend negotia- tions while the chief negotiator is gone, and while we are waiting for our con- tract to be ratified." Because the union was officially organized in April 2001, this is the first attempt at negotiations between Michigan State administrators and the university's GEU. The two par- ties have been bargaining since October. Michigan State students are plan- ning to hold an informational picket today and tomorrow to gain support for the GEU. "We are going to be telling people that this is not technically a picket, not technically a strike, but we are holding See GEO, Page 7 LAURIE BRESCOLL/Daily Michigan's athletic trainers incorporate Impersonations of Michigan's athletic teams into their skit to earn perfect scores from the judges. Inside: Every sports team participated in the third annual Mock Rock. Page 3. Debt threatens economic recovery By Ted Borden Daily Staff Reporter LSA sophomore Samantha Gewertz does not have a credit card and said she does not want one. "I'd rather deal with cash - it's easier," she said. "I see with my friends that when you have a credit card you can make a purchase without seeing the consequences of it." In the past year, consumer credit, or the money that people owe for purchases other than houses, has steadily increased. Accord- ing to Federal Reserve statistics, consumer debt rose 6.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2001 to a current level of $1.6 trillion. This trend has many economists questioning the impact this issue may have on the forecasted economic recovery. "When consumers borrow more, it leads to more spending. In the short run, consumer debt helps because it provides stimulus," said Business School Prof. Anjan Thakor. "If it doesn't end up providing enough stimulus, consumer debt can be a tremendous negative." "Whether it's a plus or minus depends on how long we remain in a recession," he said. James Russell, director of equity research and products at Fifth Third Bank in Cincin- nati, agreed, stating that throughout the reces- sion, "the consumer has been the bright spot. There have been record auto purchases." But Russell noted that this year there will not be large tax cuts or a boom in home refi- nancing, which provided $85 billion to con- sumers last year. "People are not being cautious about their spending. There has been no slowdown in the last several months, and this makes consumer debt potentially worrisome," he said, adding that he would not go so far as to consider cur- rent debt levels a "crisis." Russell added that a key determinant of consumer debt will be unemployment. "If unemployment goes up, that's where consumers pull back," he said. Business School Prof. Richard Sloan said he shared the same attitude. "People have been accelerating their spend- ing," he said. "You're borrowing from the future for the present. It's a case of hoping consumer sentiment remains high, but I'm not sure if it will." Thakor noted that "when these (debt) amounts show up on the bank balance sheets, it hurts." As Sloan pointed out, this may have nega- tive implications. "There are now a lot of loans to people with low credit quality and it may be difficult to collect this money," he said. "If a recovery doesn't come soon, consumer debt could get worse." EMMA FOSDICK/Daily Freshman nursing student Rachel Andeer uses her credit card at the Michigan Union Bookstore. Requirements for welfare emphasize work over school President's House to undergo extensive renovation this year By Leslie Ward For the Daily State and Family Independency Agency policies discourage welfare recipients from obtaining an associ- ate's or bachelor's degree, despite research indicating that post-second- ary education is the most effective way to stay off welfare on a lifelong basis, according to a report released by the University's Center for the Education of Women last week. "We believe that Michigan is miss- ing a great opportunity to get people who are receiving public assistance into permanent jobs that pay enough . so that they can actually support their fmilies," Elizabeth Sullivan, pro- gram manager for policy and advoca- cy for CEW, said. The report, researched and written by the Coalition for Independence Through Education, focuses on the refusal of FIA to count class time as a fulfillment of work requirements, lack of agency-provided child care for stu- dents with children and the economic benefits to the state that would be gamed through the increase of income "I feel like I am being penalized for going to school. No matter how I try to better my situation all they care about is the number of hours I work" - Survey respondent By Kara Wenzel Daily Staff Reporter The President's House is expected to undergo a $975,000 renovation project that should be completed by December, just after a new president is scheduled to move in. "It's a historic structure and a visi- ble symbol of leadership at the Uni- versity," Chief Financial Officer Robert Kasdin told the University Board of Regents last Thursday. Regent Larry Deitch (D-Bingham Farms) requested the Facilities and Operations Department compile a report on the types of renovations the house needs, and the regents approved the renovations at last week's meeting. Julia Truettner, University building historian, said the President's House is important to the University com- munity because "it is the only one of the original buildings to survive. The original buildings built around the Diag served as professors' hous- es, dormitories, main buildings and the University Hospital, and all but the president's house were torn down "to give way for newer and more modern buildings," she added. The renovations will update some See HOUSE, Page 7 LAURIE BRESACLL/ aily The fifth-floor stacks in the Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library afford a view of the President's House, which will be renovated later this year. in Michigan, 45 percent of those sur- veyed responded that the general message from FIA representatives was that education was not impor- tant, encouraged or supported. But six different studies of welfare recip- ients have shown that after recipients complete post-secondary education, they work more steadily, find jobs related to their degrees and earn higher wages. "I feel like I am being penalized P-- -;--+- -%^n A~n moffr . xv Term limits will remain unchanged By Loule Meizlish Daily Staff Reporter Despite a persistent movement to repeal the state's term limits law, elected officials will see no changes in the length of time they are eligible to serve - at least for now. The term limits law, tacked on the state Constitu- tion by Michigan's voters in 1992, limits the governor, &- - .-iiann nvrn err nvofcnt nn-v Pennr- terms, one of which began before 1992 and thus did not apply under the law. Secretary of State Candice Miller is finishing her final term in office after two terms. Miller is running for a seat in the U.S. House while Engler's future remains uncertain. The term limits have also forced many legislators to take risky shots at higher posts. Washtenaw County's Sen. Alma Wheeler Smith (D-Salem Twp.), for exam- ple, is making what some see as a longshot bid for goverorwhileS Anate Minrity Teader Dan DeGrow which leads to ineffective legislatures. "It created a lot of havoc that people on the outside have no idea of," said Sen. Joanne Emmons (R-Big Rapids). Many term-limited state representatives, like Dex- ter Democrat John Hansen, are sacrificing their last term in the House for a chance to run for a four-year term in the Senate. Kevin Kelly, managing director of the Michigan State Medical Society and one of the leaders of an I