The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Marine pleads
guilty to assault i n
civilian shooting
STADIUM
From page LA
Chuck Brown, who graduated
from the University in 1980, said
the luxury boxes would create the
need for premium parking spaces,
which could affect tailgating.
"I certainly hope it's not the
plan to create a VIP section of
parking in the blue lot," Brown
said. "I'm sure the University's
studies have shown that tailgating
in the blue lot is a strong tradition,
and I hope that tradition will not
be taken away."
Two audience members voiced
their support for the regents' deci-
sion and commended Martin for
the stadium plan.
"I would like to congratulate the
University on their conception of
a nice, classy stadium," Business
School Prof. Bob Kennedy said, cit-
ing the revenue the plan will bring
in.
The regents will vote on details
of the design Nov. 17, and the final
vote is expected in late spring. The
renovations will include elevat-
ed concourses, a new press box,
enhanced fan amenities, club seat-
ing and suites.
Martin said the construction will
cost an estimated $226 million and
the stadium will lose about 4,400 of
its bleacher seats, but club seats and
suites will make up for the loss.
Many audience members said
they hoped the regents will keep
the public abreast of the intended
changes from this point forward.
"I would like to see the Univer-
sity post pictures of the inside of
the proposed stadium on the web-
site," geology Prof. Henry Pollack
said. "I hope that these and other
proposed changes will be made
available to the public so they will
have an opportunity to comment
on them before the Nov. 17 regents
meeting."
Martin assured the audience
that the University understands the
importance of respecting the tradi-
tion and character of the Big House.
The University does not plan on
changing the name of the stadium,
and neither does it intend to allow
advertisements within the stadium
walls, he said.
"I know I wouldn't be the athlet-
ic director for long if the Big House
were not the Big House," Martin
said.
Martin said that during the
planning process, the University
Friday, October 27, 2006 - 7A
carefully considered the impact
the renovations would have on four
key constituencies: the fans, the
University community, the football
program and the Athletic Depart-
ment.
He said University Provost Tere-
sa Sullivan - as a former admin-
istrator at the University of Texas
- is familiar with using football to
raise money. He also said the plan
will likely increase the number of
private donations.
Martin asserted that building
skyboxes would benefit the football
team by providing new surfaces
that would reflect crowd noise back
into the stadium.
"If you ask any player, they will
tell you that the Michigan Stadi-
um will not give you an home field
advantage in its current state,"
Martin said. "It's too quiet."
CAMP PENDLETON, Calif.
(AP) - A Marine pleaded guilty
yesterday to charges of assault and
obstruction of justice in the death
of an Iraqi civilian last April.
Pfc. JohnJ. JodkaIII, 20, entered
the pleas through hislawyer Joseph
Casas after telling the judge at his
court-martial that he understood
his rights.
He was one of seven Marines and
a Navy corpsman initially charged
with murder, kidnapping, conspir-
acy, assault and housebreaking in
the killing of 52-year-old Hashim
Ibrahim Awad in the Iraqi town of
Hamdania.
Jodka - the squad's youngest
and lowest-ranked member - was
among five Marines who shot at
Awad, while others stood by then
helped cover up the killing, the gov-
ernment charge sheets allege.
"He was trained to follow his
leaders and do as they commanded
without questioning," said Jodka's
grandfather Joe Snodgrass, 71. "He
was trying to be the best Marine
possible."
He said his grandson had paid for
any wrongdoing: Jodka had been
locked in the brig since May and his
flak jacket had come back peppered
with bullet holes from when he had
been shot at on patrol.
The Navy corpsman charged in
the case, Petty Officer 3rd Class
Melson J. Bacos, pleaded guilty
earlier this month to kidnapping
and conspiracy.
At his court-martial, Bacos testi-
fied that he and the Marines were
searching for a known insurgent
who had been captured three
times and released. The group
approached a house where the
insurgent was believed to be hid-
ing, but when someone inside woke
up, the Marines instead went to
another home and grabbed Awad,
Bacos said.
The squad took Awad to a road-
side hole and shot him before plant-
ing a shovel and AK-47 to make it
appear he was an insurgent plant-
ing a bomb, he said.
Bacos was sentenced to a year's
confinement; murder and other
charges were dropped.
Former Army prosecutor Tom
Umberg said other Marines in the
case might follow Bacos' and Jod-
ka's lead and negotiate pleas.
"As the government's evidence
gets stronger, the defendants start
to look around," Umberg said.
But he acknowledged that decid-
ing to make a deal would be diffi-
cult.
"You are trained from day one to
supportyour buddy, and also taught
that there are certain values as a
soldier or Marine you are fighting
to uphold," he said. "The resolu-
tion for a young man can be heart-
wrenching."
Five other Marines face courts-
martial. A decision has not yet
been announced on whether
squad leader Sgt. Lawrence G.
Hutchins will be referred to a
court-martial.
FIRE ALARMS
From page LA
four times, again forcing residents
to flee their rooms.
Bursley residents are less than
thrilled with the unplanned drills.
"The alarms are really incon-
venient because you can't do your
homework," LSA freshman Ayumi
Ueda said. "They go off all the time,
so it's hard to get things done."
Most of the alarms have gone off
in the evening, which is when most
students say they are studying.
Others, like School of Music
freshman John Beresford, woke
from their sleep to the sound of
what Lugin described as a "piercing
whistle" when the alarms went off.
"Most of the time I've been
sleeping, but I know people who
have been in the shower," Beres-
ford said.
Inconvenience is not the only
issue. Some residents are so jaded
by the alarms that they are consid-
ering ignoring them in the future.
"Ridiculous is a good word for
the alarms," said LSA freshman
Austin Jenkins. "Pretty soon when
the fire alarms go off, people are
just goingto keep sleeping."
Although there is no set pun-
ishment for failing to evacuate, it
is dangerous to ignore the alarms,
University Housing spokesman
Alan Levy said.
"Every year, campuses around the
country experience real fires, so it
is critical that residents evacuate in
every instance where an alarm goes
off," Levy said in an e-mail interview.
Last week, housing officials
sent out an e-mail to all Bursley
residents, saying they should treat
every fire alarm as real until the
problem was solved. Technicians
have since fixed the problem, Stein-
man said.
"We're confident we have it
resolved," he said.
The problem, Steinman said, was
related to a malfunction in a control
module in the kitchen. When food
was being cooked in the kitchen,
temperature changes of only a few
degrees had been setting off the
alarms, Lugin said.
School of Music freshman
Michael Michelon said he is happy
that he will no longer be disturbed.
"I feel relieved knowing that I
will be able to sleep, take a shower
or watch 'Grey's Anatomy' without
anticipating a fire alarm going off,"
he said.
EPITHET
From page LA
not tolerated," said Christine Greg-
ory, the Law School's director of
student affairs.
Gregory said her co-workers
are not sure if the author of the
note is even affiliated with the
University. Nevertheless, the
student affairs office plans to
respond vigorously to the situa-
tion, she said.
"We are interested in meeting
with all students who want to talk
about this incident," Gregory said.
"We want to make sure our stu-
dents know the law community is a
safe space."
Law students conveyed their dis-
belief that one of their peers would
act in this way.
"My first reaction to the e-mail
was that this type of action is so
uncharacteristic of the commu-
nity," first-year Law student Jason
Hickey said.
The Law School does not have
a parking lot, and many of its stu-
dents do not believe a member of
their own community wrote the
note.
"When I first came here for ori-
entation, what I remember hearing
is that the asshole quotient is really
low at the Law School," first-year
Law student Mat Gordon said. "I
don't believe anyone I have met
thus far would have done a thing
like that."
The student reported the inci-
dent to the Law School student
affairs office the morning after
finding the note.
Gregory advised the student
to report it to the Department of
Public Safety, but the car was not
parked on University property and
DPS does not have jurisdiction over
the case. There are no leads on the
case thus far.
Exxon Mobil profit
climbs to $10.49 billion
DALLAS (AP)- After recording and growth in production," said
the second-largest quarterly profit Fadel Gheit, ananalystwith Oppen-
ever for a publicly traded company heimer & Co. "I would not rule out
yesterday - $10.49 billion from anything right now."
July to September - Exxon Mobil Another major international oil
Corp. is poised to deliver an even company, Royal Dutch Shell PLC,
better performance through the said Thursday that its third-quar-
remainder of this year. ter profit fell 34 percent to $5.94
The only caveat: The recent slide billion even as revenues rose 10
in energy prices must cease. percent to $84.3 billion. But the
"The thing you've got to under- Anglo-Dutch company's operat-
stand is this, everything that could ing profit rose as higher oil prices
work for Exxon this quarter did: outweighed worsening refining
high oil prices, lower down time margins.
the michigan daily
INSECTS
From page LA
shipments of produce, East Quad
chef Matthew Hall said.
Hall also said kitchen staff puts
all produce through their own
cleansing process, in most cases
eliminating sanitation problems
like dirt or bugs.
The locally grown lettuce was
treated specially, Meyer said, and
was often washed as many as four
times. An East Quad employee was
assigned to painstakingly pick out
bugs by hand, but evidently missed
a few. Because the lettuce was treat-
ed so thoroughly, it was a surprise
to the East Quad kitchen staff that
bugs made it to the serving trays.
The University's Department
of Occupational Safety and Envi-
ronment Health performs at least
one unannounced inspection of
each dining hall kitchen every six
months. Further inspections are
performed upon complaint or to
assure the violations are corrected.
Jennifer Harris, a sanitarian for
the department, said if bugs were
found in any produce during an
inspection, the whole shipment
would be thrown out.
During her three years of
inspecting campus kitchen facili-
ties, though, bugs in food supplies
has never been an issue, Harris
said.
Hall said the insects, while
repulsive to diners, pose virtually
no health risk.
East Quad dining services has
recently switched back to a combi-
nation of romaine and iceberg let-
tuce, procured through Simon and
Leeman Corp., because of the end
of the local Boston lettuce season.
Iceberg and romaine are used in the
other dining halls.
Other than a few shipments of
lettuce, Hyllested said, there have
been no problems with the produce
East Quad has brought in through
its new initiative, including locally
grown apples, honey and peaches.
The East Quad food service is
looking to expand the program to
locally produced tomatoes, beans
and grains, which are available into
the winter.
This year, Residential Din-
ing Services has been working on
revamping food services in several
dorms. East Quad's initiative to
support environmentally friendly
local growers coincided with the
creation of a burrito bar in West
Quad Residence Hall and the per-
manent addition of burgers and
pizza to the South Quad Residence
Hall menu.
is a Rubik's Cube-like problem. that include getting rid of poverty beginning of the year, the United
UNITED NATIONS "No one has figured out the exact and world hunger, combating dis- States is closer than it was before.
From page LA formula," he said. eases like HIV/AIDS and encour- The event was hosted by the
The body has had its fair share of aging gender equality. campus chapter of.Americans for
majorquestioniswhethertheyshould problems and failures. "We're not going to meet any Informed Democracy as part of a
remain the only ones, Davis said. The Millennium Development of the Millennium Development speaker series featuring promi-
He added that Security Council Goals, set in 2000 with a deadline Goals," Davis said. nent leaders. This is the University
reform needs to happen, but that it of 2015, are a set of ambitious tasks But he added that since the chapter's first semester on campus.
Patient's plastic surgery death in N.C. is
blamed on ajealous former classmate
For Friday, Oct. 27, 2006
ARIES
1March 21 to April 19)
Romantic situations are very warm
and affectionate today. You might
easily feel a heartfelt connection to
someone.
TAURUS
(April 20 to May 20)
Today is the time to mend broken
bridges with others. Both parties will
feel warm and loving. People are in a
forgiig, tolerant mood today.
(May 21 to June 20)
Co-workers are wonderfully support-
ive today. You enjoy interacting with
customers and anyone connected with
your daily activities. Buy something to
improve your health or aid your diges-
tion.
CANCER
(June 21 Io July 22)
Financial speculation is favored today.
This is also an excellent day to buy artis-
tic items for your own pleasure or for an
investment. New romance can blossom.
Existing relationships will sweeten.
LEO
(Jaly 23 to Aug. 22)
This is an excellent day for real estate
and also for family gatherings. Enjoy
entertaining at home. Family businesses
can flourish as well. Buy art for where
you live.
VIRGO
(Aug. 23 to Sept. 22)
Your sunny disposition and optimism
attract others to you today. People enjoy
your company today because they like
your positive attitude. (Laughter is like
sunshine in the house.)
LIBRA
(Sept. 23 to Oct. 22)
This is a good day to try to get a raise
or to boost your earnings in some way.
You might also want to spend money on
yourself or loved ones.
SCORPIO
(Oct. 23 to Nov. 21)
This is a great day to get out and
socialize! Youcan renew contacts and
friendships today. You easily attract oth-
ers to you because you're so warm and
friendly!
SAGITTARIUS
(Nov. 22to Dec. 21)
Make plans for your next move, be it
related to your career or your home situ-
ation. Solutions about the care of others
(especially aging parents) might occur to
you today.
CAPRICORN
(Dec. 22to Jan. 19)
Feelings of affection and warm appre-
ciation arise easily in all your dealings
with others, even if you're talking to
casual acquaintances or members of
groups. You appreciate what others have
to offer.
AQUARIUS
(Jan. 20to Feb. 18)
Now is the time to talk to the chief.
People in power are receptive to what
you have to say. Just be yourself.
Imagine your objective and visualize
achieving it.
PISCES
(Feb. 19 to March 20)
Travel plans and matters related to
schools and education will go well
today. Business connected with publish-
ing and the media will also be profitable
and positive.
YOU BORN TODAY You're bright,
mentally- astute and extremely lively.
You're also impulsive. You often have
strong reactions to events because your
emotions are intense. You like to encour-
age others. (But you often shock them.)
Sometimes you don't know how power-
ful and influential you actually are. This
year you will wrap up something you've
been involved with for about nine years.
Birthdate of John Cleese, actor; Iran
Leihowitz, writer; Theodore oosevel,
26th U.S. president.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - For
five years, the death of Sandra
Baker Joyner after a mini-facelift
was attributed to medical error. But
last month, investigators proposed
a more sinister explanation.
As she lay bandaged in the recov-
ery room, Joyner was poisoned by
a nurse anesthetist who believed
Joyner had stolen her boyfriend
back in high school some 30 years
ago, authorities say.
The nurse anesthetist, Sally Jor-
dan Hill, 50, is jailed without bail
on first-degree murder charges. On
Thursday, prosecutors announced
they would not seek the death pen-
alty.
Joyner, 45, had gone to the
office of Dr. Peter Tucker in 2001
for a facelift, fat grafts to her lips,
and laser therapy on her eyelids
and facial scars. But she went into
respiratory arrest in the recovery
room and was taken to a hospital,
where she died several days later
after being taken off life support.
An autopsy blamed her death on a
lack of oxygen to the brain caused
by respiratory arrest.
At a court hearing last month,
Chuck Henson, a Charlotte-Meck-
lenburg detective, said he believes
Hill poisoned the patient by inject-
ing her with fentanyl, a power-
ful painkiller. The detective said
he also believes Hill turned off an
alarm that could have alerted other
nurses to the patient's condition.
And he testified that two people
- the plastic surgeon and a tech-
nician - recall hearing Hill say
Joyner stole her high school boy-
friend. That comment was said to
have been made during Joyner's
initial visit to Tucker's plastic sur-
gery practice, in 1999.
In court last month, two weeks
after Hill's arrest, defense attorney
Jean Lawson disputed the allega-
tions.
"There is no evidence that Miss
Hill knowingly, deliberately select-
ed this person and killed her. The
suggestion that this is the product
of a 30-year grudge is outrageous,"
Lawson said.
Hill and Joyner were students
at Olympic High School in Char-
lotte in the early 1970s. Joyner was
a member of the Class of '73; Hill
graduated a year later.
During a 2003 deposition given
to the state medical board, Hill said
she knew Joyner in junior high and
high school.
"She was one of the judges of my
cheerleading experience when I
was in the eighth grade," Hill tes-
tified. Asked whether they were
friends, Hill said no, but "I would
see her and her then-boyfriend
... walk around school together
because he was in football and she
was a cheerleader or letter girl,
something like that."
Joyner later married John
Joyner; the two separated before
her death. Police said John Joyner
is not the boyfriend Hill believed
was stolen from her.
The medical board blamed Hill
for Joyner's death, calling her
"grossly negligent" in administer-
ing fentanyl without the plastic
surgeon's permission and for tak-
ing too long to alert the doctor that
Joyner was having problems. The
plastic surgeon took responsibility
for the death in a 2003 agreement
with the board but kept his license.
Hill gave hers up.
Joyner's family filed a malprac-
tice lawsuit against the plastic sur-
geon and Hill; the case was settled
in 2003 on confidential terms.
In his 2003 deposition before the
medical board, the plastic surgeon
blamed Hill for the patient's death,
calling her "a rogue nurse on her
own wild mustang, riding through
the West, you know, shooting who-
ever she wants."
Tucker described Hill's behavior
on the day of Joyner's surgery as
out of character: "She's flipped out.
She's going nuts. She snapped."
Tucker said he reported his sus-
picions to the district attorney's
office. It is not clear whyit took until
this year for Hill to be charged; Dis-
trict Attorney Peter Gilchrist has
said only that his office asked the
police department's cold case squad
to take a look at Joyner's death after
receiving new information.
Dow chemical posts lower 3Q profit
MIDLAND, Mich. (AP) - A
$579 million pretax charge related
to plant closings announced in
August sent Dow Chemical Co.'s
third-quarter earnings down 36
percent, although the world's sec-
ond-largest chemical company
beat Wall Street expectations
without the restructuring charge.
Dow also announced yesterday
that it will spend up to $2 billion
under a new stock-buyback effort
after the completion of a cur-
rent share-repurchasing program
announced in July 2005.
Net income declined to $512
million, or 53 cents per share, in
the July-September period from
$801 million, or 82 cents per
share, a year ago. Excluding the
restructuring charge of 45 cents
per share, the company earned 98
cents in the latest period, a new
quarterly record.
Sales totaled $12.36 billion, up
10 percent from last year's $11.26
billion.
On average, analysts surveyed
by Thomson Financial were look-
ing for profit of 92 cents per share
on sales of $11.99 billion.
"This was an excellent quarter
for Dow," Chief Financial Officer
Geoffery E. Merszei told indus-
try analysts during a conference
call. "It was a quarter in which
our commitment to a balanced
business portfolio, our broad geo-
graphic presence and our focus
on strategic joint ventures served
us very well and underscored the
value of our strategy."
Dow has maintained its focus on
financial discipline, with expenses
continuing to be closely watched
and inventories "well under con-
trol," he said.
The company said it is charg-
ing more for its products and an 11
percent price improvement drove
year-over-year margin recov-
ery despite an increase of almost
$750 million in raw material and
energy costs from last year's third
quarter.
Costs for raw materials and
energy during the most recent
quarter "were significantly
higher" than in the second quar-
ter, Merszei said. The company
expects the prices of oil and nat-
ural gas to remain both high and
volatile.
"The challenge we have this
year ... is the volatility on the
energy front, which makes it very
difficult to execute a consistent
and sustainable pricing policy," he
said.
Dow's performance segments,
which make specialty chemicals
and plastics, posted solid volume
growth, with combined growth in
all geographic regions and partic-
ular strength in Asia Pacific, where
volume increased 17 percent.
For the nine-month period that
ended Sept. 30, the Midland-based
company reported net income of
$2.75 billion, down from $3.42 bil-
lion in 2005. Excluding restruc-
turing charges of $579 million,
Dow earned $3.33 billion during
the first three quarters of 2006.
Net sales for the first nine
months of this year were $36.89
billion, compared with $34.39 bil-
lion during the year-ago period.
i2006 King Features Syndicate, Inc.
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