The Michigan Daily - Monday, July 15, 2002 - 3
Letter sent to judge alleges judicial misconduct
By Karen Schwartz
Daily News Editor
Although the Center for Individual Rights
plans to appeal the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals
5-4 decision on the University Law School's
admissions policies to the U.S. Supreme Court
soon, the May ruling regarding the use of race in
admissions is already in question.
U.S. House Judiciary committee chairman James
Sensenbrenner expressed his concern in a recent
letter regarding the way the appeal in the case was
handled and in procedures he said "may have
improperly influenced the outcome of the case."
In a June 26 letter to 6th Circuit Chief Judge
Boyce Martin, Sensenbrenner referred to Judge
Danny Bogg's dissenting opinion, in which
Boggs accused Martin of mishandling the case.
"According to the procedural appendix con-
tained in Judge Danny Boggs's dissent those pro-
cedures included (1) substituting yourself for
another judge on the panel when any substitution
for that judge was required to be accomplished at
random and (2) failing to circulate the appellee's
Petition for Initial Hearing En Banc until after
two judges had taken senior status, preventing
them from subsequently participating on the en
banc panel," Sensenbrenner wrote.
"The participation of those judges on the
panel could have reversed the outcome of the
case," he added.
Georgetown Law Prof. Susan Low Bloch said
she did not recall a past situation comparable to
this and that it is unusual on many levels.
"What started all this was Judge Boggs had an
angry dissent where he accused the majority of
manipulating the calendar. Its unusual for the
court to be that acrimonious - everybody was
surprised by that dissent," she said.
"The misconduct that's alleged is that the court
timed the scheduling of the case so that two of
the more conservative judges wouldn't partici-
pate. Normally you don't schedule a case with
that in mind - which judges will hear a case. If
they did time it that way, it'd be misconduct,"
Bloch added.
Sensenbrenner said he was "compelled to
review credible evidence of judicial misconduct"
and asked Martin for a copy of related documents
be handed over by July 12 for further investiga-
tion.
Though The Michigan Daily was unable to
confirm whether Martin turned over the materi-
als on time, Jeff Lungren, spokesman with the
House Judiciary Committee, said earlier that a
response was likely.
"We don't have any reason to believe that the
judge wouldn't respond," he said. "We are in
charge of overseeing the courts. The letter is an
over sight letter."
Hispanics not receiving proper care
By Matt Randall
For the Daily
At local health care centers around the nation, Hispanic
children and their parents are being faced with the ever grow-
ing dilemna of substandard or nonexistent care.
A paper released July 3 in the Journal of the American
Medical Association by the Center for Child Health Research
calls for reform in the way Hispanic children are dealt with by
the health care profession.
"The health care system isn't meeting the needs of the His-
panic community," said Antonia Villarruel, associate professor
of the University's School of Nursing and article co-author,
highlighting the lack of Hispanic professionals in the health
care field. "There aren't enough there, there aren't enough
doctors, nurses and dentists across the whole system"
Villarruel also talked about problems stemming from a lack
of professionals who have a linguistic or cultural understand-
ing of the Hispanic community. "There aren't enough health
care providers who have the necessary skills to deal with Lati-
no patients,"he said.
LSA junior Miguel Pineda said he feels Hispanic patients
"need different kinds of attention that they can't currently get."
Another issue of great concern is the lack of coverage for
Hispanic children because some believe it can have a deleteri-
ous impact on the quality of health care available.
"Some Hispanics go to clinics that ... don't have sufficient
services. They miss problems," Pineda said, adding that the
lack of resources means that necessary tests are not conducted
as they should be.
This is a part of a larger problem in the health care commu-
nity, said Social Work student Jose Melendrez, the community
outreach coordinator of the Student Organization for
Latina/Latino Social Workers. "There's no plan to provide cov-
erage to any low income children," he added.
Compounding the problem are large cutbacks in funding for
services that are needed by the Hispanic community. Melen-
drez said there is a "need to determine where our priorities
lie," and call for a unified effort to deal with the problems
involving the government, insurers and health care providers.
One issue of particular concern to Melendrez is that the sta-
tus of many immigrants is in limbo since Sept. 11. He said he
believes the medical profession and society as a whole should
focus more on the needs of Hispanics.
"This country has been able to supply a lot of things to a lot
of people. We can't forget them," Melendrez said.
TOss DING/Daily
Ten-year-old Alec Glanville sits In a vintage show car at the Ann Arbor Rolling
Sculpture Car Show Friday.
Haddad hopes to seek
asylum in United States
*1
P.:1
By Jeremy Berkowitz
Daily News Editor
Ann Arbor Muslim leader Rabih
Haddad's fourth public hearing last
week had a presence not seen in his
previous three - print and television
reporters. Due to an April decision by
U.S. District Court Judge Nancy
Edmunds that declared the closure of
immigration hearings unconstitutional,
Haddad had his first open hearing
since his Dec. 14 arrest for visa viola-
tion charges.
Lawyers from both sides were
present at Tuesday's 10-minute hear-
ing, as was Haddad via the presence
of a closed circuit television from the
Monroe County Jail. The main pur-
pose of the hearing was for Haddad's
attorneys to present an application
for asylum in the United States on
Haddad's behalf.
"(The Haddad family) has been
motivated to stay in America by the
vast and genuine outpouring of com-
munity support," Haddad's attorney
AshrafNubani said in court.
Phillis Englebert, an Ann Arbor
Adhoc Committee for Peace member
and a Haddad supporter, said she
thinks Haddad's lawyers feel his
returning to Lebanon might not be a
positive experience, considering what
he has gone through in the past seven
months. "The situation created by his
arrest could possibly cause him prob~ M EX I CAN C AF E New A els
lems (there) she said. lyE.uHehim.pAobAr Milkshakes $3.25 Everyday special of
setI a n JudgeEa g forAug 27.erStrawberry, Two Medium Cheese Pizzas $10.99
Until less than a month ago, Had- MeXican Style Food Caramel, Extra Items $1.20 each per Pizza
dad was in the custody of the federal Chocolate Chip,
government, being detained in the Vote nest:uCoffee, Only $7.99 Monday thru Thursday Special
Chicago Metropolitan Correctional MexicanResta ant Mint, One Large Pizza with
Center. Some believed he was wait- M l& Raspberry, Cheese & 1 Item
ing to be called in front of a grand Pineapple,
jury for questioning about the charity W D yand Banana Extra Items $1.30 Each
he co-founded, the Global Relief OPEN UNTIL 4 A.M.
Foundation. But four weeks ago, the 0P0r0 Porchaseromustipay sales tax for both specials
federal government transferred Had-......-.....t.-...-.....-...... mum Deliery $6.00 Price subject to change Corner of State and Packard
dad back into the custody of Immi-
gration and Naturalization Services
in Michigan. Yo Limited Delivery Area - COUPON -
At the end of January, a group
composed of the American CivilFR E D L RY 1 2 4 Pizzas
Liberties Union, U.S. House Rep. With any order over $7.00
John Conyers (D-Detroit) and two16 49
Detroit newspapers sued the federal $1.00 Delivery Charge
government to open Haddad's immi- For orders less than $7.00 additional toppings extra
gration hearings. After Edmunds' I subject to change
April ruling, the federal government rCATERING " EAT-In " TAKE-OBT
appealed to the 6th Circuit Court of Tax not included r --
Appeals, where a hearing is now set - COUPON
for Aug. 6. Asim Ghafoor, 605 East William
spokesman for the saite to 734-669-6973 Ann Arbor MI 481Lb4 $2 off any $15
Free Rabih Haddad, said the open 7 4- -973 We acct order or more
hearing was a partial relief for Had-rs.-66 -1Ic h We accept
dad and his supporters. -- ! -y 'iNtt ecobndwt subject to change
"It shows that our guy is not the Fax- VISA70 Not to be combined withi
super secret dangerous ... terrorist that Sorry, no personal checks any other offer
the government tries to make him
appear," Ghafoor said. daily Mond0y00tu10a..S 00d'y00