Judge delays action on Wood trial location
By DAVID STEIN MAN
Of the Emerald
The location of the criminal trial for
former Lane County Commissioner Bob
Wood remains uncertain despite the
conclusion Friday of change of venue
arguments.
Circuit Court Judge Edwin Allen spent
90 minutes listening to arguments, then
took the case under advisement, saying
only that he would deliver his decision in
the future.
“I’m inclined to agree with Disraeli
who said, 'Time is the great physician,’ ”
Allen said at the close of the hearing.
“Between now and July 8, other things
will happen, and intervening matters and
events will take the people’s mind off the
pre-trial publicity. They’ll be wondering
whether they can eat or make payments
on their houses.”
A county grand jury investigation led to
the indictment of Wood in November on
charges of official misconduct and per
jury. The charges stem from Wood’s
involvement in a 1978 land exchange
between the county and two real estate
developers, Mike Safley and the late Al
Phelps.
In the land exchange, the county trad
ed Safley and Phelps several land par
cels, one of which was later resold for
about $500,000 more than the county
had appraised its value.
One aspect that makes this change of
venue hearing different from others is the
constant repetition of facts, Allen said
Wood’s attorney, Don Diment, argued
Friday that Wood could not get a fair trial
in Lane County, because of the "great
volume of material," the Eugene media
have produced in covering the events
before and after Wood’s indictments.
"The court can see a great deal of
publicity has reached the community in
one form or another,” Diment said,
referring to media coverage by television
station KEZI, radio station KZEL, the
Willamette Valley Observer and the
Eugene Register-Guard.
“The whole case gets rehashed, and
even current articles go back and rehash
what was reproduced before,” Diment
said. “Improper reporting is not the is
sue. It is whether Mr. Wood can get a fair
trial. There are continued references to
various facts discovered by reporters.
Some of that may or may not be evidence
and may or may not be accurate."
For instance, Diment said, “It’s taken
as a given that Wood is a friend of Safley
and Phelps, but this is not certain. This
kind of publicity puts a preconceived
notion into the minds of the jurors.
“I can’t imagine how a case could cry
out more for a change of venue,” the
attorney continued "I think virtually
every citizen in Lane County knows
about this and has formed an opinion on
this case."
Doug Harcleroad, assistant prosecut
ing attorney for the district attorney’s
office, argued Diment is “asking the
court to make a quantum leap from pre
trial publicity to the fact that he (Wood)
can't get a fair trial."
A method for juror review and selec
tion, similar to that used in the Anthony
Charles murder trial, could be used,
Harcleroad said.
In that trial, in which Charles was
found guilty of murder in late 1979, jurors
were questioned and reviewed in
dividually, and Charles’ attorney was
allowed to disqualify a certain number of
jurors he believed could not judge the
defendant fairly.
When Allen asked where Diment would
want the trial moved if granted a change
of venue, the defense attorney said
Portland would be his choice “The
media coverage didn't reach the Port
land area to any large degree."
After the hearing, Harcleroad said he
was unsure when Allen would make a
decision on the venue change request
—making the news—
From Associated Press Reports
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica — Costa Rica told Cuba Sunday it
was willing to grant permanent asylum to all 10,000 Cubans
still trying to leave their communist-governed homeland, a
Foreign Ministry spokesman announced.
He said Costa Rica had made its offer known in a
message to Cuban Pres. Fidel Castro. The message also
appealed to Castro to let evacuation flights resume immedia
tely.
Cuba allowed 32 refugees to leave Havana on a Spanish
airliner bound for Madrid Sunday afternoon, but did not lift its
ban on flights to Costa Rica. About 700 of the Cubans packed
into the Peruvian Embassy compound in Havana were
evacuated last week before Castro cut off the flights Friday.
The Cuban leader said the refugees should be flown directly
to the countries accepting them instead of using Costa Rica
as a staging area.
Half of those flown here last week went on to Peru and the
others remained here.
NEW YORK — Pres. Carter’s Mideast peace negotiator
said Sunday he believes Egypt and Israel will extend their
discussions on Palestinian autonomy past the May 26 target
date if “they are convinced that progess is being made and
more progress can be made."
“What we are hoping for is that there will be sufficient
progress that they will want to continue the negotiations ...,”
special ambassador Sol Linowitz said. “I think that's exactly
what may evolve but both of them want to be sure that they are
on a course that promises success."
Linowitz, interviewed on the CBS program “Face the
Nation,” said he believed there had been progress in Carter’s
recent discussions with Egyptian Pres. Anwar Sadat and
Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin.
NEW YORK — An Air Force general was sent to Iran last
year to lay the groundwork for a military coup to keep
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini from coming to power, the New
York Times reported Sunday.
The plan never materialized because of the rapid dis
integration of Iran's military forces, the newspaper said,
quoting unidentified senior federal officials
The paper said Pres. Carter sent Gen. Robert Huyser, a
former Iranian military adviser, on a mission in early 1979 to
try to keep the military forces in Iran intact and loyal to the
government of Prime Minister Shahpur Bakhtiar. The Bakhtiar
government was established by Shah Mohammad Reza
Pahlavi as he left the country.
BELGRADE, Yugoslavia — In the grimmest medical
bulletin since Pres. Tito was hospitalized 100 days ago, his
doctors said Sunday that the 87-year-old leader’s condition
had worsened
Doctors not connected with the treatment of the Yugos
lav leader said he might not survive longer than a few more
days.
The team of eight physicians treating Tito in a medical
clinic in Ljubljana, some 400 miles northwest of here, said
bleeding to the stomach as well as liver damage — regarded
as his two gravest ailments — were both spreading
The team’s advisory said internal bleeding reported
earlier in Tito’s stomach had spread to his intestines and that
the unspecified damage to his liver, accompanied by jaun
dice, "is further deteriorating.”
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Four black women leaving a
tavern were wounded by shotgun blasts from a passing car,
and a black leader on Sunday praised police for the quick
action that led to the arrests of three Ku Klux Klan members.
Each of the three arrested were charged with four counts
of assault with intent to commit murder. All were in the city jail
Sunday in lieu of $40,000 bond awaiting a Monday arraign
ment.
Begin offers military facilities
WASHINGTON (AP) - Israeli
Prime Minister Menachem
Begin says the United States
should have conventional mili
tary forces in the Mideast and “if
you want facilities in our
country, we shall put them at
your disposal."
Begin, in a nationally
televised interview, declared
that in light of the hostage crisis
in Iran and the Soviet interven
tion in Afghanistan “I think the
United States must now con
sider very carefully to have
conventional forces on the spot,
not to bring them from afar in
time of crisis."
Begin appeared on ABC’s
‘‘Issues and Answers.” The
program was taped earlier in the
week at Blair House, the pre
sidential guest quarters, during
Begin’s state visit, and aired
Sunday.
Interviewer Barbara Walters
asked: “What about U S. forces
in Israel, based in Israel?"
Begin: “Well, I said always to
our American friends, we are
allies, and if you want facilities
in our country, we shall put them
at your disposal. I would
recommend it to the (Israeli)
government. I can only speak
on my own behalf.”
The prime minister fell far
short of recommending military
action to free the Americans
held at the U S. embassy in
Tehran, despite his own na
tion's record of using force in
hostage situations. “We feel so
deeply for the American peo
ple," he said. “I understand the
American people want the 50
men, with their loving mothers
and wives, to be back home. I
understand it perfectly well. If
force is used, maybe the major
ity of them, perhaps all of them,
will be killed ”
Begin, who returned to Israel
Friday, declined specific
comment on the criticism
leveled at him during his U S.
visit by Ezer Weizman, Israeli
Defense Minister, who called for
new elections and offered him
self as a new prime minister. But
Begin made it clear that while
Weizman may be a thorn in his
side, he has no immediate in
tention of trying to form a new
cabinet which excludes him.
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