The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Friday, March 11, 2011- 3
The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Friday, March 11, 2011 - 3
NEWS BRIEFS
LANSING
New law calls for
changes in state
sex registry list
Manyteenagers cited for having
consensual sex with minors would
no longer be listed on Michigan's
sex offender registry under legis-
lation passed by the state Senate.
A package of bills related to the
offenders' list passed unanimous-
ly yesterday and are headed to the
House.
Offenders would not be listed
for having consensual sex with
partners who were between the
ages of 13 and 16, provided the
offender was not more than four
years older than the victim.
The legislation calls for a peti-
tion process to allow those young
offenders currently on the regis-
try to be taken off if a court deter-
mined the sex was consensual.
SANTA FE, N.M.
State senate rejects
proposal to stop
issuing licenses
The Senate has rejected a
Republican-backed proposal to
stop New Mexico from issuing
driver's licenses to illegal immi-
grants.
The Senate voted 24-17
Wednesday night against a pro-
posal that would have ended the
practice of granting licenses to
foreign nationals without a Social
Security number.
Sen. John Ryan, R-Albuquer-
que, said it's a public safety risk
to issue licenses to those living in
this country illegally. But Demo-
crats said the move was politically
motivated and targeted Mexican
immigrants.
Under a 2003 law, more than
80,000 driver's licenses have gone
to foreign nationals.
LOUNGE
From Page 1
tively new initiative that has
been offered for the past two
years, according to Amanda
Peters, associate librarian at the
UGLi. In the past, the library has
hosted diverse events such as a
graphic novel panel of Univer-
sity professors and a talk about
healthy eating in residence halls.
LSA sophomore Christina
Hornback said she was sur-
prised that her professor nomi-
nated her to read at Cafe Shapiro
because she didn't know about
the event, but added that she was
glad she read her story in front of
an audience.
"This was definitely a confi-
dence booster. I think it's really
nice to hear other students'
work too. It's like a community
amongst other writers," Horn-
back said.
Peters said students chosen
for the event should be proud of
their selection.
"It's considered a little bit
of an honor for students to be
nominated by their instructors,"
Peters said.
For LSA senior Mark Knapp,
last night was not the first time
he had shared his work with an
audience. He said his short story
developed from an assignment
he was given last semester for
one of his classes.
"I couldn't stop writing once
I started. I liked where it was
going so I kind of let it grow out
of the assignment," Knapp said.
Knapp, who was the last pre-
senter of the night, said his short
story was about "a neurotic
lady's trouble with letting her
younger brother grow up and
dealing with her own problems
because her parents were killed
by a moose."
Some of the student readers
at the event expressed mixed
feelings about the library's ren-
ovations and the possibility of
holding future readings at the
location.
"A lot of the time I thought
the sound was drowned out. It
was really hard to hear people,"
Knapp said. "A lot of the space
is kind of superfluous anyway -
it's too much."
Kiesel also described the new
space as "a little noisy" but said
she felt that it was an enjoyable
atmosphere for the readings.
Peters said she is excited
about the new space and called
last night's event a "guinea pig"
for future events and programs
that she hopes the new lobby can
accommodate.
KENNEDY
From Page 1
abuses against refuges from El
Salvador. At the time, she said,
she realized she was "in a world
full of Goliaths (and) that there
were a handful of Davids."
Grassroots movements and the
work of individuals are instru-
mental in promoting change in
the fight against greater powers,
Kennedy said.
"If you look back over the last
40 years about the major changes
on human rights and civil rights,
they've all come about because
of that grasping for freedom by
small groups of people," she said.
Kennedy had the opportunity
to interview fellow human rights
activists, including Nobel Laure-
ate and author Elie Wiesel and
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, for
her book called "Speak Truth to
Power: Human Rights Defenders
Who Are Changing Our World."
Wiesel's and Tutu's philoso-
phies make up two ends of a
spectrum, with Wiesel fighting
against extreme human rights
violations and Tutu maintaining
the idea that "good can triumph
even under the worst of circum-
stances," Kennedy said.
In an interview after the lec-
ture, Kennedy said she feels her
famous last name is an advantage
in her line of work and has helped
her to enact change through
human rights activism.
"The people who are working
on human rights are more likely
to be more open with me more
quickly because it's a name that
they trust, and the government
is more likely to work with us
because they know and admire
my family," she said.
On a recent trip to Cambodia,
Kennedy and her foundation
introduced a course on human
rights into the country's school
system. Kennedy said she also
plans to do work in Haiti, tackle
health care issues in the Gulf
Coast region and document
human rights abuses in Guer-
rero, Mexico. In the near future,
Kennedy will be working to tie
U.S. military aid to human rights
improvements.
John Chamberlin, director of
the University's Center for Eth-
ics in Public Life and a University
professor, said Kennedy became
the top speaker choice for the
event speaker early in the pro-
cess of organizing the lecture
series.
"We (wanted) someone who
actually is doing some good in
the world and someone who
has something to say and some-
one who would be well known,"
Chamberlin said.
University alum Megan
McKeown said in an interview
after the lecture that she was
motivated by Kennedy's speech
and the work she has done.
"It's kind of upsetting to think
that we can't necessarily do all
that we want to, but it's definitely
inspiring," McKeown said. "It
makes me want to get up and try
and fight for something."
OXFORD
From Page 1
may be convicted with a felony
- rather than the usual misde-
meanor charge - for a count of
indecent exposure.
DPS spokeswoman Diane
Brown said yesterday that evi-
dence from the investigation
implies that Filipek "indicated
disregard for the consequences
or the rights of others."
The enhanced sentencing
would qualify him as a "sexu-
ally delinquent person," Brown
said, and may put him in prison
for life.
AAPD Lt. Angela Abrams
confirmed Filipek was arrested
Wednesday but said the detec-
tives weren't available for fur-
ther comment at that time.
The arrest was the result of
a three-month investigation,
which involved intensive mea-
sures including surveillance,
accordingto Brown.
Filipek was initially a per-
son of interest in the inves-
tigation at the end of 2010,
according to Brown. But Brown
said he became a suspect in the
case when AAPD officers arrest-
ed him on Jan.14 for prowling in
the Oxford area.
A specific piece of evidence
against Filipek was photos he
took of peoplethrough their win-
dows while they were in their
homes, according to Brown. She
added that she does not know if
the photos depict students.
There are no reports of Fili-
pek coming into physical contact
with other people while lurking
outside residences, Brown said.
"It's difficult to determine if it
might have escalated into other"
behavior, but we're pleasedto get
him off the street and have him
deal with the consequences,"
Brown said.
MALL
From Page 1
the area would be transferred
from the city to the University.
Preliminary negotiations
between the city and the Uni-
versity revealed potential water
main issues with the construc-
tion of a pedestrian mall. The
pending construction would
cut off the water supply to
some city buildings surround-
ing Monroe Street, but the
University has agreed to install
another water main to fix this
potential problem.
Connie Pulcipher, a systems
planner for the city of Ann
Arbor, said the city and Uni-
versity are working to solve the
issues involved with the use of
the property.
"It's mostly discussions
between the city and the Uni-
versity involving the legal issues
right now," Pulcipher said.
Construction on the pedes-
trian mall won't begin until
these issues have been resolved,
Pulcipher said. She added that
she isn't sure how long it will
take for the city and the Univer-
sity to come to an agreement but
said this mutual understanding
must be attained before pro-
ceeding.
"We need to reach some sort
of consensus," Pulcipher said.
"We don't know where the Uni-
versity stands on that, and they
probably don't know where we
stand, and so we're working
together on those issues."
Elimination of Ill. death
penalty stirs mixed reaction
JOLO, Philippines
Bomb blast kills
SIG EP
three, wounds 9 From Page 1
pedestrians
Suspected Abu Sayyaf militants
detonated a powerful bomb near
a school on a southern Philippine
island yesterday, killing at least
three people and wounding nine
others, officials said.
The homemade bomb went off
shortly after avanofpolice special
forces passed by, hitting instead
pedestrians and motorists dur-
ing rush hour on Jolo island in the
predominantly Muslim province
of Sulu. Police beefed up security
two days ago after receiving intel-
ligence of a possible Abu Sayyaf
attack, Jolo town Mayor Hussin
Amin said.
The explosion killed three men
and wounded at least nine others,
including two who were undergo-
ing surgery in a hospital. The blast
dug a crater on the concrete road
and damaged the metal roof of a
nearby school, Amin said.
DHARMSALA, India
Dalai Lama to
cease political role
in Tibetan gov't
The Dalai Lama said yesterday
that he will give up his political
role in the Tibetan government-
in-exile and shift that power to
an elected representative, as the
76-year-old Tibetan Buddhist
spiritual leader struggles with
growing worries about who will
succeed him when he dies.
Speaking on the anniversary
of the failed 1959 uprising against
Chinese rule in his Himalayan
homeland that sent him into exile,
the Dalai Lama said the time
had come "to devolve my formal
authority to the elected leader."
While he has long said that he
wants the exile government to
take on some of his powers, yes-
terday's announcement appeared
to mark the beginning of a count-
down. The Dalai Lama said he
would propose amendments to
the exile constitution during the
parliament's next session, which
begins March14 in this Indian hill
town where the exiles are based.
-Compiled from
Daily mire reports
The fraternity is currently
negotiating four contracts at
different properties, Mangona
said. These include the option
to re-sign the lease for the fra-
ternity's current house on the
corner of State Street and Hill
Street.
Mangona added that one of
the main reasons the church is
being considered is that its lay-
out is conducive for a fraternity.
However, he said substantial
modifications would be needed
if Sig Ep chose this location. The
chapter would alter the current
structure to create spaces for
common study areas, a museum
for alumni memorabilia and
computer labs.
"It's not a perfect fit by any
means," Mangona said. "It
would involve a considerable
amount of construction and
adaptive reuse."
Despite potential renova-
tions, Mangona said the frater-
nity would attempt to preserve
the historic quality of the
church, which was built in the
late 1800s. In doing so, the exte-
rior of the church would remain
intact, he said.
"The church is a beautiful
historic building," Mangona
said. "Whatever we do ... we
would want to maintain the his-
toric integrity and the architec-
tural character of the church."
He added that the prospect
of transforming a church into
a fraternity house hasn't been
contested in the community.
"Not only (have) there been
no voiced concerns, (but) we've
taken a proactive measure of
contacting some of the lead-
ers in neighboring historic dis-
tricts, and all of them have been
receptive," Mangona said.
. Jane Cooper, president of
the House Corporation of Delta
Delta Delta, has also been work-
ing with Sig Ep to discuss any
logistical concerns regard-
ing the potential move to the
church. Cooper said the collab-
orative effort between Sig Ep
and Delta Delta Delta has been
positive.
"(Sig Ep has) been very good
about working with us and
being aware of our concerns and
(we) are trying to do the same
with them," Cooper said. "We
realize that they need a place
to live and ... there's already a
sorority on the street."
Among the concerns that are
being addressed include noise
issues, which Cooper said is a
common problemwith residenc-
es - not just fraternities - that
house large groups of people on
campus. Cooper added that Sig
Ep's housing group is taking
steps to address these issues in
its planning stages.
"Certainly their house corpo-
ration has been very conscious
of that in the way that they're
planningthe design of the reno-
vation inside," Cooper said.
Mangona reiterated the
importance of working with Tri
Delt throughout the process of
deciding whether to relocate to
the Memorial Christian Church
and resolving any of the soror-
ity's worries about the move.
"We intend to work with the
sorority to find a solution that
respects their concerns and
doesn't inconvenience them in
anyway," Mangona said. "That's
all going to be a part of our
continued deliberation about
whether or not we can even go
forward."
Despite any potential appre-
hensions, Cooper emphasized
the positive aspects of Sig Ep
establishing a residence at the
church.
"They're a good fraternity,"
Cooper said. "They want to be
good neighbors, as we do."
Sean Jackson, vice president
of public relations for the Uni-
versity's Interfraternity Coun-
cil, wrote in an e-mail interview
last night that the IFC supports
Sig Ep in its search for aperma-
nent residence.
"Everyone is always happy
for other chapters that are able
to establish a more permanent
chapter house, as it strengthens
and benefits Greek Life on the
whole," Jackson wrote. "There-
fore, there are no concerns from
the Greek community."
Illinois to become
16th state without
death penalty
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - For
a mother who lost her son to vio-
lence, Illinois' decision to abolish
the death penalty is a betrayal.
But to a father who lost two
daughters and a grandson, it's
simply the Christian thingto do.
And to a man-who was sen-.
tenced to die for a crime he
didn't commit, it's a civilized
step that may inspire other
states to halt executions.
Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn's sig-
nature on legislation getting rid
of the death penalty provoked an
extraordinary array of emotions
Wednesday - almost all of them
intense.
A Chicago woman whose
teenage son was gunned down
in 2006 said the killer, who has
never been caught, should not be
allowed to breathe the same air
she breathes.
"I am a Christian. I never
believed in killing nobody else,"
Pam Bosley said, explaining her
change of heart after her son
was shot outside a church. "But
the pain you suffer every single
day, I say take them out."
Charles Simmons knows that
pain. The Peoria resident lost
three relatives in a house fire
that prosecutors say was arson.
But Simmons said his religious
beliefs argue against executing
the killer - plus, he considers
life in prison a harsher punish-
ment.
"He knows he's notcgetting off
easy immons said. "He's not
going to leave us, you know. He's
got to walk every day in jail, eat,
face people in there."
When the abolition law takes
effect July 1, Illinois becomes
the 16th state without a death
penalty.
Most nations, including vir-
tually all of Europe, have aban-
doned the death penalty. Among
the 58 that still use it, accord-
ing to Amnesty International,
are the United States, China,
Thailand, Egypt, Iran, Iraq and
Japan.
Quinn's action capped two
decades of argument and soul-
searching over the possibility
that Illinois would wind up exe-
cuting an innocent person.
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