Possible jurors questioned
!/)S ANGELES (AP) — lawyers in O.J Simpson's
Irinl questioned prospective jurors in c ourt Wodnes
day for the first time and the judge warn ad he will
be "very suspicious of a Rip van Winkle" claiming
to know nothing about the case
Superior Court Judge l.anc o Ho said possible
jurors' exposure to the case doesn't bother him The
goal, he said, is to find jurors who can sot aside their
opinions and judge Simpson on evidenc e prevent
ed In court
None of the H-t prospective jurors called into court
said they have missed the intense publicity sine e
Simpson's ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her
friend, Ronald Goldman. were found stabbed to
death June 12.
Many of the potential jurors said in written ones
tionnmres they were glued to televisions watt hing
a white Ford Bronc o carrying Simpson meander
along Southern California freeways followed bv
police cars on June 17.
Jury prospects were questioned about their beliefs,
backgrounds and knowledge of the c ase Some of
the 79-page questionnaires they Filled out Inst month
were released, providing an in-depth look into their
lives.
"I am not looking for hermits." Ito told the group
"We would be very suspicious of a Rip van Winkle
that awoke yesterday and just learned of this cast- "
Prosecutors and defense attomevs agreed to dis
miss one man after it was disclosed on his ques
tinnnaire that he is an accountant for the Sheriffs
Department and is in charge of tallying the depart
ment's costs for the Simpson case He was the
third juror dismissed Wednesday
One man wrote in his questionnaire that he
believed Simpson was "probably guilty" but would
put that aside and consider the evidence fairly
A woman quizzed by Ito and attorneys said she
tried to avoid discussing the case since she was
call»d for jury duty but. "When you turn on the TV.
you can't avoid seeing loimthiag."
The cashier in a county tax office said she
believed she could be fair Asked by lto if she
could put out of her mind portions of« frantic ’ll 1
call made by Simpson's ex-wife, the woman
replied. "I guess so "
I-ater. under extensive questioning from a
defense attorney, the woman insisted she could
judge the case on the fact*
She said she hadn't beard of Simpson tiefore the
)une 12 killings outside Ms Simpson's < ondo
minium
At first, she said, "I didn't know who he was
until someone told me he was that sport player
that was on TV sometimes broadcasting a football
game."
I he prospective jurors questioned individually
in court were the first of about too people who
passed initial jury soles lion Inst month They will
be questioned until 12 jurors and eight alternates
are found
Hy law, the judge is the only person who may
question jurors, but lto said bixauiti of the "unusu
al nature of the case and intense media coverage
that be would allow lawyers to query panelists
lto took a hard line Tuesday against the prose
i ution, threatening to dismiss key evidenc e
because prosecutors waitcnl too long to send some
items to labs for DNA tests Among evidence pros
editors risk losing are the genetic test results from
the bloody glove found behind Simpson's guest
house the morning after the murders.
Also in limbo are numerous other blood samples
lifted from Simpson's Bronco, blood on Simpson's
driveway and walkway and fillers from the carpel
ing ill the Bronco The samples were sent for test
ing in early September, about three months after
the slayings lto said he will rule on Friday
Eye surgery results please patients
CHICAGO (AP) — Many peo
ple who undergo surgery called
radial keratotomy to correct
nearsightedness will Ik? pleased
with the results, but some may
need reading glasses as they age,
a study found.
Researchers discovered that
70 percent of people who
underwent radial keratotomy in
the early 1980s did not need
glasses or contact lenses for
nearsightedness It) years after
ward.
Nearsighted people i an see
close-up objects clearly but not
ones far away. Farsighted peo
ple can see objects at a distant e
but have trouble focusing on
close-up objects
Radiol keratotomy corret ts
nearsightedness by flattening the
cornea, the clear tissue covering
the eye's iris and pupil. The
cornea flattens on its own as
people age. however, which is
what causes farsightedness in
people over 40.
I'he survey found some evi
dence that radial keratotomy
ni<i v make farsightedness occur
more quickly in some people
"Based on these findings, it
may be that some people will
he pleased with their vision
shortly after having Rk. but
their opinions may change 5.
10 or 1!) years down the road."
said the study’s co-chairman,
Dr Peter J McDonnell of the
Doheny Eye Institute at the
University of Southern Califor
nia
Forty-three percent of the |>eo
ple who had their corneas flat
tened by surgery saw the
corneas continue to flattun to
varying degrees in the years after
tfii) surgery. Some of them mu Id
eventuflily need reading glasses
sooner, rtfseon;hent said.
About 250.000 Americans
undergo radial keratotomy
annually The study, sjxmsored
by the National Eye Institute,
was the longest-running follow
up of people who have bad the
procedure
Complications were few
among the 347 patients operat
ed on at nine eye centers nation
wide in tfie early HIKlis, and no
one lost eyesight entirely,
according to tfie study But three
percent of operated -on eyes had
|HKirer distant e vision after the
surgery than before, researchers
reported in the October issue of
the An hives of Ophthalmology
City council unanimously bans cursing
RARITAN, N.J. (AIM A utr with Florida plates
pulled slowly onto Raritan's main thoroughfare
Wednesday An elderly couple looked around curi
ously.
"Is this the town that just banned cursing'’" 1 lur
ry Stiles, 75, asked a passerby. When the lam pa
resident was told yes. Stiles replied, "Oh good.
Because we want to move here."
Stiles isn't the only person who likes the cursing
ban the borough council passed unanimously Tues
day night. A Montville man is offuring $10,000 to
any state or federal legislator who can make c urs
mg in public a crime,
“I’m not saying 1 want a cop on every street cor
ner with a bar of soap in his pocket to wash your
mouth out with soap," Brad floiiigshurg said of his
offer "But 1 do think cursing in public should lie
banned. People can't seem to do it voluntarily, so
it's up to lawmakers.”
Other residents and visitors interviewed Wednes
day in this two-square-mile borough oppose the
ban, saying it infringes on free speech
Brea Dougherty. 21. said she couldn't believe the
council passed it.
"What are they thinking?" said Dougherty, who
recently moved here from Philadelphia. "The days
of Lnavt? It to Beaver and American Bandstand are
long gone. The council should be more worried
about how to protect citizens from crime and how
to keep property taxes low.”
The cursing ban makes it illegal for people to
behave in a disorderly manner by using "noisy, rude
or indecent behavior, by using profane, vulgar or
inch** uni language, by making insulting remarks or
comments to others” in public.
Violators will In- issued a summons, and could
get as much as a $500 fine and 90 days in tail
The American Civil Liberties Union's New |er
sey chapter has deemed the Iran unconstitutional
Ld Martonu. the chapter's executive direr tor. said
the organization would not take action unless police
enforce the Iran Raritan Police Chief Joseph Sfer
ra has said that doing so would only invite u law
suit.
Martone has said the ACLl! will probably step
in and help if someone wants to challenge the ban.
That didn't scare Mayor Anthony DeCicco from
going ahead with Tuesday night's vote, and it isn't
scaring the twin's supporters.
Houigsherg made the same S10.00U offer in ltIHH
— after being angered in a Point Pleasant restau
rant when a group of men were cursing loudly,
bothering not only him. but an elderly couple
nearby.
"When the elderly man asked them to stop curs
ing. one of the men said. 'Sit down, you bleeping
old man.' " Houigsherg recalled. “So then I stood
up and told them to stop."
The men took one look at Honigsberg. a 45-year
old with the build of a football player, and decid
ed to knock it off. Honigsberg laughed.
"Foul language is like a symptom," he said. "It's
a defiance of accepted social morays and decorum
and authority."
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