The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Friday, February 15, 2013 - 3
The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Friday, February 15, 2013 - 3
NEWS BRIEFS
LANSING, Mich.
Senate passes
bill to let public
handle bear cubs
An Upper Peninsula bear ranch
could legally let visitors touch
and pose for photos with bear
cubs under legislation approved
Thursday by the Michigan Sen-
ate, as lawmakers disagreed over
the wisdom of having dangerous
animals at roadside attractions.
* The bill headed to the House
also would free up other facilities
to allow public contact with bears
under 9 months old or weighing
no more than 90 pounds, though
the sponsor is unsure if similar
places exist in Michigan.
Oswald's Bear Ranch, which
claims to be the largest bear ranch
in the U.S. with 29 roaming black
bears, is near Newberry - about
20 minutes south of popular U.P.
tourism spot Tahquamenon Falls.
CHICAGO
Cartel boss moves
up to become city's
" Public Enemy No.1
Three A drug kingpin in Mex-
ico who has never set foot in Chi-
cago has been named the city's
new Public Enemy No. 1 - the
same notorious label assigned
" to Al Capone at the height of the
Prohibition-era gang wars.
The Chicago Crime Commis-
sion announced the move Thurs-
day, saying it considers Joaquin
"El Chapo" Guzman even more
menacing than Capone because
he's the leader of the Sinaloa car-
tel, which supplies most of the
narcotics sold in the city.
"What Al Capone was to beer
and whiskey during Prohibition,
Guzman is to narcotics," said Art
Bilek, the commission's executive
vice president. "Of the two, Guz-
man is by far the greater threat.
... And he has more power and
financial capability than Capone
ever dreamed of."
CAIRO
Egyptian military
apologizes for
" child's death
Egypt's military made a rare
admission and apology on Thurs-
day for mistakenly shooting and
killing a 12-year-old street ven-
dor in Cairo, a day after activists
accused the government of try-
ing to cover up the death.
The boy, Omar Salah, was
killed on Feb.3 near the U.S.
Embassy and Tahrir Square dur-
ing clashes in the area. Activists
discovered his death coinciden-
tally as they were searching for
missing protesters in hospitals.
"The Armed Forces apologizes
for the mistaken killing of the
child and pledges to take all legal
" measures against the culprit,"
military spokesman Ahmed
Mohammed Ali said on his offi-
cial Facebook page.
PARIS
French company
implicated in
horsemeat scandal
The price, smell and color
should have been clear tipoffs
something was wrong with ship-
ments of horsemeat that were
fraudulently labeled as beef,
French authorities said Thursday.
The government pinned the bulk
of the blame on a French whole-
saler at the heart of a growing
scandal in Europe.
Police in the U.K., meanwhile,
announced the arrests Thursday
of three men on suspicion of fraud
at two meat plants inspected ear-
lier this week by the country's
Food Standards Agency.
The two separate develop-
ments were part of an escalating
scare that has raised questions
about food controls in the Euro-
pean Union - and highlighted
how little consumers know about
the complex trading operations
that get food from producers
to wholesalers to processers to
stores and onto their dinner table.
-Compiled from
Daily wire reports
JOKE
From Page 1
sitivity about gun violence, and
when these things happen people
are using new media to kind of
crowdsource the story."
In light of the armed response,
DeFluri said he believes Thursday's
incidentwas blownout ofproportion.
"I honestly think it's an over-
reaction," DeFluri said. "It's kind
of sad recent events made people
somewhat paranoid about it."
LSA freshman Nicholas
Vaneck said he was exiting Angell
Hall, at the entrance nearest to
State Street, at about 12:05 p.m.
when he saw two police SUVs
"flying through" the sidewalks in
front of the University Museum
of Modern Art. An officer came
out from each vehicle, Vaneck
said, adding that they grabbed
rifles and ran into Angell Hall.
LSA freshman Marissa Allegra
said she was sitting in front of the
Fishbowl waiting for class when
she saw UMPD officers roaming
the hallways.
"I was still unsure of what was
going on," Allegra said. "Initially,
I was extremely frightened and
concerned that I would be in
one of the rare cases of a school
shooting or violence."
Institutions of higher edu-
cation across the country have
tightened security and have re-
examined emergency response
plans in the wake of a series of
high-profile mass shootings. The
ADIDAS
From Page 1
records. Financial statements for
2012 are notyet available.
Formersweatshop worker Heni,
who only disclosed her first name,
added that without the severance
money, she will notbe able to afford
food and housingfor her family and
schooling for her children.
After the rally, the group
marched to the Fleming Adminis-
tration Building, with choruses of
"Wolverine pride, Adidas shame!"
and"Coleman, stepoffit,putpeople
overprofits!"echoingalongtheway.
Once at president's office reception
area, they presented a valentine for
Coleman, signed by the attendees of
the Wednesday night's panel discus-
MOTT
From Page 1
evolved to where we are today
with all teams."
From the Heart volunteer
Curtis Schuster said the pro-
gram aims to bring a smile to
the patient faces in the midst of a
challengingtime in their health.
"Our whole mission is about
bringing a little bitcof fun and a lit-
tle relief to kids and families who
are having a really hard time,"
Schuster said. "It's no fun to be a
kid in the hospital or the parent
with kid in the hospital. When
we come to visit we don't want
anything. Usually, when a doc-
tor comes in they need questions
answered or tests done. We're just
there to brighten their day."
One week, field hockey play-
ers were dancing to the song
"Gangam Style" and tennis play-
ers were singing along to Justin
Bieber on the 12th floor, while
the seventh floor pediatric inten-
sive care unit received decorated
valentines pictures with the
patients.
Dan Fischer, director of Child
and Family Life at Mott, said the
organization has immeasurable
benefits for the patients and their
families. He said they look for-
ward to the visits every week.
"It's fun for them; it's distract-
ing for them and it really helps
them through a' difficult time,"
Fischer said.
The relationship between
the student athlete volunteers
and the patients exists beyond
Thursday nights. Brian Griese,
a '97 alum and football player,
took one of the patients he met
2007 incident at Virginia Poly-
technic Institute and State Uni-
versity was the second-largest
mass shooting at a school in U.S.
history, taking the lives of 32 peo-
ple and wounding 17 others..
Tony Holt, Wayne State Uni-
versity police chief, outlined the
factors that go into making tacti-
cal decisions similar to UMPD's
armed response.
"In a University setting, you
have to be very proactive," Holt
said. "At Wayne State, there are
no weapons allowed, (so) if we got
a call, with even the suspicion of
someone having a weapon on Uni-
versity property, we would prob-
ably first send out a text alert to
the campus community and then
launch a full tactical operation."
Like WSU, the University pro-
hibits weapons on campus.
Holt said that whenever there
is even the possibility of danger
in a campus setting, immediate
action must be taken to ensure
student safety and minimize dis-
placement, even if the presence of
a weapon cannot be confirmed.
"Whenever a gun is even a pos-
sibility, we have to err on the side
of caution and safety because you
don't get second chances in situa-
tions like this," Holt said.
Though an armed police
response may have scared some
students, Holt said it's better to
be safe than sorry, comparing it to
sending officers to investigate ifa
fire exists instead of a fire truck.
"We don't take anythingas a
joke. A lot of people may think it's
sion on the same topic.
Though a receptionist notified
the group that Coleman was not in;
the office, they presented the val-
entine and their statementsto Cole-
man's executive assistant, Erika
Hrabec,who agreedto pass bothon.1
In an interview after the event,1
Hidayat said he and Heni made
the journey to the United States
as part of a national tour to raise
awareness for their situation.
"(The) University of Michigan1
has a large contract with Adidas,"i
Hidayat said. "We need their sup-
port now more than ever to help
make Adidas take responsibility
for our severance pay. If Adidas
refuses to do that, we hope that
the University of Michigan will
take further action and cut their
contract with Adidas."
through this organization to
her high school prom. Although
the patient was paralyzed from4
the chest down, Griese held her
while the couple danced. Another
patient, a 15-year-old girl, joined
the volleyball team, to cheer from4
the benchinuniform,justlike the1
players.
Boullion told the story of one
young patient who, after being1
told he wouldn't be in the hospital1
on Thursdays, said he didn't want
to come to the hospital at all.
"This little boy would come1
in on Monday and go home on;
Friday morning," Boullion said.1
"One day the doctor says 'Okay,
Brad, we're going to change your
protocol so you can go to school
more. So, now you come in oni
Friday and get to go home on
Tuesday.' (The boy) says, 'I guess
I won't be coming back. If I'm not
here on Thursday nights, I'm not
coming back anymore."' 1
Typically, there are some-
where from 30 to 40 student
athletes participating in the pro-
gram, but in January, Schuster
said there were a record 107 stu-
dent athlete volunteers.
Swimmer Angie Chokran, a
LSA junior, has been volunteer-
ing regularly on Thursday nights
since she was a freshman.
"This is something I look
forward to during the week,"
Chokran said. "This program
means a lot more to me than I
can put into a couple of sentences.
Being here and having the oppor-
tunity to brighten someone's day
is huge, but they don't realize
they're brightening our day too."
Soccer player Tyler Leppek,
a LSA junior, said the Thursday
night visits offer a much-needed
overkill for cops to come in full
tactical gear, but student and cam-
pus safety has to be our number
one priority at all times," Holtosaid.
The proximity and credibility
of incident reports is crucial in
determining the course of action
to be taken, said Ronald Haddad,
chief of police in Dearborn, Mich.
"You can always scale back
the investigation when it's deter-
mined that he's not a threat, but
when you don't know what you're
dealing with, you have to error on
the side of caution," Haddad said.
"Obviously it would have been
unacceptable if the tip had been
discredited and then the suspect
turned around and shot up a
bunch of young people."
Haddad said UMPD's imme-
diate, armed response was nec-
essary because the DeFluri was
in a campus environment with a
large, dense population.
"I understand the validity of
the first amendment and this
young man's right to express
himself, but imagine if he'd gone
to an airport (in camouflage and
a gas mask)," Haddad said. "He
would have been immediately
met by police, Department of
Homeland Security, Transporta-
tion Security Administration and
everyone else, because you can't
take those kind of risks."
The 2007 Virginia Tech shoot-
ing and last year's incidents in
Aurora, Colo., and Newtown,
Conn., were all perpetrated by
people under the age of 25. There
has been speculation that the
Heni added that the severance t
money would undoubtedly makew
a difference in the lives of her
family members. p
"It would mean a lot for us," f
Heni said. "I was in the sewing c
business, so I could open a small I
tailor shop and be able to fulfill o
my family's dailyneeds." p
Both mentioned the "code of con-a
duct" between Adidas and the Uni-
versity, which they believe has been v
broken. Heni and Hidayat believe o
that if they continue business rela- r
tions despite their breach ofcontract;
thecontract"mightaswellnotexist." d
Arielle Wisbaum, LSA fresh- o
man and USAS member, said u
she felt the demonstration - the l
result of months of planning - i
was a success. USAS raised funds t
in conjunction with the organiza- tl
distraction for the patients. d
"I feel like it takes their mind o
off what's going on in the hospital
and gives them a new face to see," a
Leppek said. "Taking pictures F
with them makes (the patients) i
the center of attention in a posi- t
tive light." e
Swimmer Roman Willets, an
education senior, said the volun- k
teering experience impacts both t
the patients and athletes in a t
meaningful way. S
"First and foremost it keeps s
things in perspective for us as a
athletes. Sometimes people get d
bogged down by a tough practice l
or balancing school and working l
out," Willets said. "It gives us all t
a lot of energy for the week. This
is a very motivating place to come a
and humbling as well." n
Eaton Rapids, Mich. resident A
Devin Gauna, an 18-year-old seek- v
ing treatment for Hodgkin's Lym-
phoma, was visited by redshirt ti
sophomore football players Jake r
Ryan and Joey Burzynski. He said. A
the visit kept his spirits up. g
"Today was good because I s
feel a lot better than I have been," t
Gauna said. "The athletes made
me laugh a little, a lot. I noticed c
them through the window a little r
bit, these big ole football players." a
Grand Blanc resident Jennifer
Witten's 3-year-old son Cohen is p
being treated at Mott for pineo-,
blastoma, a type of brain tumor. b
Witten said she enjoyed the fresh d
faces that brought a smile to her b
son's face. l
"It really brightens our day; it's s
alotoffun. Itgiveshimsomebody
else to talk to and see besides his t
mom and dad all day long," Wit- t
ten said. "I think it's awesome iL
that they come, period. They r
shooters in these cases were all
suffering from some form of men-
tal disease.
According to a Jan. 22 video
report by CBS News, police units
across the country are retrain-
ing officers to better confront
uncertain situations, especially
when there is an active shooter
is involved. In a training exercise
at George Mason University, offi-
cers moved in without waitingfor
backup and swept the hallways
searching to find the "shooter."
At the University of Michigan,
police appeared to respond in a
similar manner. Regular, uni-
formedofficerssweptthehallways
as a plainclothes commanding
officer coordinated units around
the buildingfrom outside.
In September, the Univer-
sity of Texas and North Dakota
State University both responded
quickly to bomb threats on their
campuses, forcingthe evacuation
of tens of thousands of students.
No suspicious items were found
in both cases, but administrators
acted quickly to warn students
via text, e-mail, and website post-
ings. No such warning or commu-
nication was issued immediately
at the University of Michigan on
Thursday, though UMPD's web-
site was updated. periodically
with information.
UMPD alerts the University
community through the Emergen-
cy Alert System when it feels a situ-
ation poses a campus-widethreat.
Brown said the system was not
activated in responseto Thursday's
ion's national branch to bringthe
workers to the University.
"Yesterday, the room for our
'anel discussion was completely
illed; we even had to get more
hairs,"Wisbaumsaid."Today,Ifeel
ikewe werethe mostnoticed group
n the Diag, and so many more
'eople areinformedofthisissueina
way that they weren't before."
Wisbaumsaidshebelievesthe Uni-
ersity's decision will have influenee
nAdidas,becausetheywon'twantto
isklosingacontractofthissize.
"We've been in contact with Presi-
ent Coleman several times previ-
'usly," Wisbaum said. "She showed
slettersthatshe'swrittentoAdidas
etting them know that she's watch-
ng what they do and expects them
o honor the promise they've madeto
heir workers."
lon't have to do that. They're not
bligated to do that."
On top of the Thursday night
thlete visits, Michigan From the
Heart hosts a charity golf outing
n the spring and special trips
o different University sporting
vents.
"Thursday night visits are a
ey componentlto Michigan From
he Heart, but we take families
o athletic events all year long,"
chuster, one of the volunteers,
aid. "We try to aid the family in
ny way that we.can. This is all
lone in conjunction with the ath-
etic department. They give us a
ot of help and support in getting
he athletes trained."
Fischer said the organization
iso represents a connection of two
najor University affiliates - the
thletic Department and the Uni-
ersity of Michigan Health System.
"It's really a three prong rela-
ionship; there's been a really nice
elationship between Mott, the
thletic Departments and Michi-
an From the Heart," Fischer
aid. "It's ultimately a benefit for
he patients and their families."
Athletic department offi-
ials did not respond to several
equests for comment for this
rticle.
The relationship between the
thletic Department, Mott and
Michigan From the Heart has
been crucial to sustaining Thurs-
lay night athlete visits, but it has
been the athletes' dedication that
ivens the organization, Boullion
aid.
"The most important part of
he program has been the volun-
eers through the years," Boul-
ion said. "You've got dedicated
eople."
event because reports of DeFluri
were limited to one building.
"The Emergency Alert System
is to used when there is a con-
firmed, imminent threaf that the
majority of people need to take
cover," Brown said. "Our campus
is different for one single build-
ing. It was one building, so offi-
cers were doing their best to deal
with that one building."
Universities and colleges
across the country have also
faced false alarm situations from
internal miscommunication. Last
year, Tulane University errone-
ously sent an emergency text
message to students warning of
a shooter at an unspecified loca-
tion. Officials later retracted the
message and wrote that it was
accidentally released during a
training session for the emergen-
cy rsponse system.
In 2011, U.S. Capitol Police in
Washington, D.C. responded to
reports that a gunman had been
spotted near the Georgetown
University Law Center. Officers
later found a gun nearby, but
determined it was unrelated to
the incident and Georgetown
released an "all-clear" message
to its campus community within
a few hours.
-Editor in Chief Andrew
Weiner, Managing News Editor
Adam Rubenfire; Daily News
Editor Peter Shahin; and Daily
Staf f Reporters Giacomo Bolgona,
Matt Jackonen and Stephanie
Shenouda contributed reporting.
LAND
From Page 1
istrators.
They aim for "a policy that
will govern these issues and
that would ensure that the
city would not see continually
diminishing revenues from the
University's land purchases,"
Hieftje said.
Hieftje added that he and
Councilmember Sally Hart
Petersen (D-Ward 2) have
been working on a proposal to
ease the issue. While he would
not specify what the proposal
will entail, Hieftje said he and
Petersen would be "putting it
into a formal request" in about
a month.
Councilmember Christopher
Taylor (D-Ward 3) said even
though the University is vital to
the city's economy, he advocates
a settlement on standards that
would stop the city's increasing
revenue losses.
"There is no question that
the University is the primary
economic driver in the city and
the region, and that the Univer-
sity's growth is important to the
city," Taylor said. "That said,
the University's growth in the
city clearly reduces the tax base
and reduces the city's ability to
provide services to its residents
and the University, and it's my
hope a reasonable accommoda-
tion will be made."
Jim Kosteva, the University's
director of community rela-
tions, said the conflict over the
University's tax-exempt sta-
tus resurfaces every four-to-
six years in a "cyclical nature,"
often after the University pur-
chases a cluster of properties.
"Some folks get a little anx-
ious about the properties that
are removed from the tax rolls
and what the impact (will be),"
Kosteva said.
Recently, the University
purchased the site of Blimpy
Burger and a nearby property
for $1.5 million. Since 1999, the
University has purchased, 29
pieces of land in total around
the city. When the University
bought the former Pfizer build-
ing - now the North Campus
Research Complex - in 2009,
the city's revenue from prop-
erty taxes decreased by 4.8 per-
cent.
According to Kosteva, the
University has added 9,000
jobs to Ann Arbor's economy
over the past 10 years. He said
the University brings immense
value to the city.
"Nevertheless, the Univer-
sity feels convinced that it does
add a very substantial value to
the community, and that our
growth, our expansion, our ful-
fillment of our public mission
does provide a very substantial
value," Rosteva said.
Koteva added that the Uni-
versity would not necessarily be
opposed to a proposal, should
one be on the table.
"Our door is always open to our
conversations."
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