Oregon daily _ _
emerald
Thursday, January 6, 1982
Eugene. Oregon
Volume 84, Number 73
Anacin-3 capsules were found in the home of a 31-year-old Hillsboro woman killed by cyanide Tuesday
Toxic capsules kill Hillsboro woman
From Em#rnkt and Assockatad Ptsss Raporis
HILLSBORO, Ore. — Cyanide-laced capsules
killed a 31-year-old Hillsboro woman, state Medical
Examiner William Brady said Wednesday, and auth
orities say an over-the-counter pain reliever may be
implicated
Further testing was being conducted to determine
what type of capsules contained the poison, Brady
said, adding that results might not be available until
today
In Lane County, health officials said Wednesday
they had not been notified of the poisoning by state
authorities So far, no orders have been issued to
remove pain killers from local stores
A representative of the United States Food and
Drug Administration — the agency that has the auth
ority to make such an order — said his office would not
be involved unless a positive connection to an over
the-counter drug is established
Washington County Sheriff's Capt Harold Kleve
said family members reported Patricia F Bennett took
Anacin-3 a couple of hours before she became ill and
was rushed to the hospital She died early Tuesday
"We re working as fast and furious as we can to
isolate the source" of the contamination, said Scott
Upham, Washington County district attorney
Kleve said both capsule fragments and cyanide
were found in Bennett's stomach Both he and Brady
said Bennett showed no sign of mouth or throat burns,
further implicating capsules as the form of inges
tion
Various pain-relief medications, including
Anacin-3, were taken from her home and were being
examined, Brady said The maker of the pain killer,
American Whitehall, was sending Dr Barry Nash of its
staff to assist in the investigation, he said
Oh, yes We re certain the capsules contained
cyanide,' Brady said. "This lady ingested cyanide
filled capsules "
He said he believed she ingested one or two
capsules
Upham said the public should check all over-the
counter medications carefully for tampering, ‘ the
same precautions they have been advised to utilize
since the Tylenol matter."
Bennett died about 5'/2 hours after her husband
rushed her to Tuality Community Hospital in Hillsboro
We re investigating it as a homicide because we
want a thorough investigation," said Washington
County Deputy John Armstrong. "It could be it was
taken by her in a suicidal-type situation We don't
know."
Bennett died in the intensive care unit at about 4
a m Tuesday, the nursing supervisor said
“She was healthy a couple days before," Wa
shington County Sheriff Warren ' Bud” Barnes said
Tuesday. "Then she ends up in the hospital.
"It is an unusual death, let me put it that way," he
said
Faculty Senate
still pondering
honors motion
By Frank Shaw
O* the Emerald
The Faculty Senate appointed an investigatory
committee to continue work on a motion proposing
graduation with honors at the University
The proposition, if adopted, will establish the
awards based on percentages, with the top 10 percent
awarded Cum Laude, top five percent awarded Magna
Cum Laude and top two percent awarded Summa Cum
Laude honors
Discussion of the motion centered on the ques
tionable fairness of an honors system which would not
take into account differing degrees of difficulty in
departments
The committee, comprised of both faculty
members and members of the Student University Affairs
Board, which introduced the motion, will study prob
lems raised during the meeting and prepare a report for
the next meeting
A straw vote called during the debate showed a
majority in favor of the idea of some type of graduation
with honors, but a later straw vote showed many people
thought the current motion has some type of flaw
It was suggested that had the motion been ad
vanced to the University Assembly it would have
provoked the same debate and problems that were
raised at the Senate meeting
In other business, the Senate heard a short report
by Provost Richard Hill on the enrollment results for
winter term, which showed the University “holding our
own,” in total numbers.
Hill pointed out that the data used to generate the
numbers was suspect because of the storm which
interfered with registration last winter term, making a
comparison between years difficult
Aaron Novick presented a report by the Faculty
Advisory Council on University Governance, giving
some of the problems with the current system, including
the committee structure and the lack of the authority in
the Senate.
Gerald Bogen, Senate president, announced some
of the items on the next meeting's agenda, including a
motion and discussion sponsored by Bogen on man
datory faculty retirement and a report on the strategic
plan compiled by the chancellor's office.
The Senate also reviewed and approved with only a
few changes the Report of the Committee on the
Curriculum on the course changes which will take
effect during the 1983-84 school year.
Reagan vows to stay out of Social Security reform
WASHINGTON (AP) - President
Reagan said Wednesday night he will not
intervene or otter guidance to his stalled
Social Security reform commission "no
matter how much they ask for it"
because to do so would turn the whole
issue back into a political football
He said if the commission can’t come
up with a consensus on changes to put
Social Security on a sound financial
footing, it should send him proposed
alternatives, "and then I think that is the
time that we should join together and
seek to work out a compromise ”
At his first news conference of the new
year, Reagan said he intends to act to
curb unacceptably high federal deficits
in the years ahead, although he did not
say how He denied the administration
has gone overboard on defense spend
ing, and declared anew that "we re on
the road to the kind of recovery we have
been talking about."
The dominant topic of his question
and-answer session was familiar: the
economic slump and the deficit-plagued
federal budget.
Reagan, despite complaints a day ear
lier that his spending program was
headed for what Sen. Paul Laxalt,
R-Nev., called "terrifying” levels, said he
would not discuss budget details
because "there are no decisions that
have been made.”
But he did say that "clearly, we re
facing very big deficits unless we take
action.” Reagan’s own team of econ
omic advisers has warned that red ink
could hit $300 billion by 1988 without
defense cuts and tax increases.
Reagan acknowledged congressional
and public concern over his insistence
on increases in defense spending. He
said that stems from a drumbeat of
claims that "we are overboard” on the
military budget. But he said his program
is not out of line with past spending as a
percentage of the gross national
product.
Reagan opened his nationally broad
cast and televised news conference by
announcing the nomination of Elizabeth
Hanford Dole to become secretary of
transportation. He chose Dole to suc
ceed Drew Lewis, who resigned to
become head of a cable television firm.
Dole, wife of Sen. Robert Dole, R-Kan.,
has been White House assistant for pub
lic liaison. Reagan said she will be suc
ceeded in that post by Faith Ryan
Whittlesey, now ambassador to Switzer
land
On other topics, Reagan:
Said that he favors in principle a sum
mit conference with Yuri Andropov, new
leader of the Soviet Union, but first "you
have to plan, you have to know you can
accomplish something."
Said a proposal by the Warsaw Pact
countries of the Soviet sphere for a non
aggression pact with the West "is
certainly something that has to be con
sidered.”
Declined to comment on allegations
that Bulgaria and the Soviet Union may
have been involved in the assassination
attempt last year against Pope John Paul
II. He said he knows the Italian
President Reagan
government is investigating. But Reagan
did say that if the Bulgarians or Soviets
were found to be involved "it certainly
would have an effect and it would be an
effect worldwide."