One hundred eleven years of editorildfreedom 74TI a NEWS: 76-DAILY CLASSIFIED: 764-0557 wwwmlchlgandallycom Thursday March 14, 2002 # , ~I Profs. who sue & u 9 --_ a lege retaliation By David Enders Daily Staff Reporter Electrical Engineering Prof. Margaret Murnane left Michigan for the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1999 in lieu of filing a plagiarism complaint against another faculty member. Murnane, a MacArthur Foundation grant winner, said, she feared her reputation would be attacked in an effort to undermine her plagiarism claim. "I talked to other professors who tried even harder to remedy their situations and they all said 'leave while you can.' Our lawyer advised us to walk away. I am so thank- ful that I took that advice," she said. "We attempted to file a grievance, and we were discouraged by senior administrators. (The University of Michigan is) very good at discrediting people. They did call my previous institution looking to smear me. They want to create paranoia in your mind." Murnane's fears are consistent with the concerns of other professors who said they fear retribution from department chairs, other faculty or University adminis- trators if they file a grievance against the University. University math Prof. Emeritus Wilfred Kaplan, who handled complaints for the American Association of Uni- versity Professors' Ann Arbor chapter for more than 30 years, said filing a complaint creates a very negative atmosphere for a professor. "It's terrifying before and after," Kaplan said. When a complaint is filed "the University is a terrible place to work.... There was generally a fear of retaliation, espe- cially recently." Kaplan spoke of "behind-the-scenes battling" and counterclaims which made professors who filed com- plaints uncomfortable and said the University administra- tion has turned a deaf ear to the AAUP's concerns. "In one case, a tenured professor was confronted with a charge of harassment with a colleague. That did terrific damage to that person's health,"he said. . Kaplan said that in another case, a faculty member con- sidered suicide as the result of abuses by an administrator. "That was a case where the AAUP complained to the administrator and there was a meeting with the provost and the administration," Kaplan said. "It was very distin- "The defense of any employer to a whistleblower action is that you attempt to destroy the person." - Marian Faupel Ann Arbor lawyer guished faculty and they presented the case for that par- ticular unit and the provost said 'this is terrible, this must not be done,' and I know that nothing was done." Kaplan said that the University handles every com- plaint in a consistent manner. "Whenever a complaint is made against an administra- tor, (the administrator) is always backed up by the Uni- versity." Kaplan also served on the legal advisory committee of the Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs. "We had not a great number but a certain number that came to (SACUA) instead of coming to AAUP. They came to us often with very serious complaints. We wrote to the president (of the University) and our letters were usually not even acknowledged. This is the pattern. Any of the recent administrations have not wanted to change." Kaplan said the grievance procedures set out in the University Board of Regents' bylaws and by SACUA rarely solve problems. In the case of the regents' proce- dures it is because the University tends to maintain there is no wrongdoing, giving grievants no other option but litigation in pursuing a claim. In the case of the SACUA procedure (which involves a panel of other faculty) Kaplan said the problem is that the faculty panel can act only as an advisory committee to department chairs or administrators, who retain the final say in any grievance. SACUA is presently discussing changes to the grievance process with University administrators. "When (faculty) come to us, we warn them about how difficult it is to correct the problem. A lawsuit is very expensive, very time consuming and can go the wrong See PROFS, Page 10A ANN" r I AP PHOTO Peace activists attend beside coffins covered by Israeli and Palestinian flags among hundreds of coffins set up by an Israeli peace activist group In Tel Aviv yesterday. The coffins represent the Israelis (white coffins) and Palestinians (black coffins) killed In the second Intifada. UON.O votes in favor of Palestinian state By Ted Borden Daily Staff Reporter Seeking an end to escalating Mideast violence, the United States won approval for a U.N. Security Council resolution that endorsed the idea of a Palestinian state for the first time and demanded an immediate cease-fire. The United States introduced a reso- lution that avoided references to Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory and other terms critical of Israel. After years of Washington blocking meas- ures it considered biased against its close ally, the U.S. move surprised the council, which quickly passed it. "Passing such a resolution is a great first step to attempting to end the extremely vicious cycle of violence in the region," Paul Saba, president of the Ann Arbor chapter of the Arab-Ameri- can Anti-Discrimination Committee, said. "The Palestinians have suffered for too long for the international com- munity not to keep a blind eye." The 14-0 vote, cautiously welcomed by Israel and the Palestinians, came after See STATE, Page 9A MCard now required for student seats at stadium By Shannon Pettypiece Daily Staff Reporter dents tello in the stu Athletic D A new policy that would require student to make si ticket holders to present their University stu- tunity to dent ID before entering Michigan Stadium is everybody scheduled to go into effect next fall. While t The policy is designed to cut back on the said he ha amount of student tickets that fall into the cent of st hands of non-students. dents. "We want to make certain that students are "I've he in the student section, and we have had stu- don't have Harassment suit will go to court nextmXon By Jeremy Berkowitz Daily Staff Reporter our department that there are people dent section that aren't students," )irector Bill Martin said. "We want ure that every student has an oppor- buy tickets to football ahead of else." there are no exact figures, Martin s heard estimates that 10 to 20 per- udent tickets are sold to non-stu- eard students give me estimates, we one, but what we do is take a look at eBay and the other auction sites and look at the seat number and see where they are being offered," Martin said. Because of the ID policy, the ticket office agreed not to place a cap of 20,000 on the number of student tickets available for the next football season, Marty Bodnar, director of ticket services, said in the memo obtained by The Michigan Daily. According the memo, the idea of requiring student ticket holders to present an ID was See M-CARDS, Page 7A DAVID ROCHKIND/Daily Students crossing the Ambassador Bridge from Ontario to Detroit will be free from receiving a minor in possession offense if they can prove they were drinking in Canada. Students drinking in Canada free from MIPS By Samantha Wolf For the Daily Minors who drink legally in Canada and then return- to Michigan intoxicated can no longer be charged with a minor in possession. A decision last month by the Michigan Court -of Appeals grants those between the ages of 19 and 21 who travel to Canada an additional advan- tage while placing law officers in a compromis- ing position. "We conclude that minors who legally ingest alcohol in a jurisdiction outside Michigan and then return to Michigan (e.g. as passengers in a A yhve1hil) with the alcnhol in their bodies have not But the court's legislation on this matter left room for amendment. The primary logic behind this decision is that the definition of "alcoholic liquor" includes the words "which are fit for use for beverage purpos- es" and that once a person has ingested liquor, that liquor is not "fit for use for beverage purpos- es". and no longer fits under the definition of "alcoholic liquor." The court acknowledged this new legislation "may somewhat hinder police officers ... attempting to enforce the MIP statute" but contin- ues to state that "because the statute makes spe- cific conduct criminal, it must be strictly construed." After almost five years of aggravation, deliberation and delays, former Music student Maureen Johnson will be able to explain to a jury why she is suing the University on sexu- al harassment charges. Judge Melinda Morris rejected yes- terday the defendant's motion to dismiss the 1999 lawsuit in Washtenaw County Circuit Court. Both sides said they are optimistic about the trial, which starts on April 15. "I think it's going to be a really big step forward for women on this campus," Miranda Massie, Johnson's attor- ney said. The University said it is not concerned about the case even though Judge Morris rejected the motion for dismissal, University spokeswoman Julie Peterson said. "The University took swift and appropriate action when it learned of Ms. Johnson's complaints and we're confident that will become apparent when we have the chance to present our case before a jury," Peterson said in a written statement. Johnson alleges that she was sexually harassed by former DEBBIE MIZEL/Daily RC senior Shari Katz reads the names of some of the 6 million people who were killed during the Holocaust on the diag during the 23rd Annual Conference on the Holocaust. 24-hour vil honprsa victim of Holocaust- By Daniel Kim Daily StaffReporter Among the many students who con- gregated on the Diag yesterday - to distribute election fliers, to advertise for upcoming fine arts performances University students and community members who quietly read names of Holocaust victims. The 24-hour vigil, which began yes- terday at noon and ends today with a memorial service at noon, is a part of the 23rd Annual Conference on the t