Thursday
November 4,1999
Volume 101, Issue 48
Weather
Today
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University of Oregon
Eugene, Oregon
An independent newspaper
www.dailyemerald.com
Caesar transcending time
A updated version of Shakespeare’s play about the politics
of war starts this weekend at the University theater season
starts up. Pulse
Award winning documentary
University student Brian Hinderberger wins a 1999Aegis
Award for his documentary on the development of
journalism. PAGE 4A
Kristen Kinkel leaves the courtroom Wednesday after giving an hour of testimony.
Psycholoaist testifies Kinkel is mentally ill
Kinkel’s sister recalled during an hour of
testimony how she remembered her
brother’s personality before the shooting
BySaraLiebeith
Oregon Daily Emerald
During the second day of Kip Kinkel’s sentenc
ing hearing in Lane County Circuit Court, defense
attorneys presented the first phase of their witness
list, including a child psychologist and a com
Iptsuing uuui ui testimony
from the defendant’s sister,
Kristin Kinkel. On Sept. 24,
Kinkel pleadED guilty to four
counts of murder and 26
counts of attempted murder.
Lane County Circuit Judge
Jack Mattison will decide
whether or not Kinkel will
serve his sentences consecu
iiveiy — zo years or zzo years.
KINKEL Kinkel killed his parents,
^ 1 Bill and Faith, on May 20,
1998, before going to Thurston High School the fol
lowing day and opening fire in the cafeteria, killing
two students and wounding 25 others.
The morning began with a cross-examination of
Lane County Sheriffs Detective Pamelia McCo
mas, who testified on Tuesday. McComas was
asked to read aloud the letter found on the coffee
table of the family home when investigators arrived
at the scene May 21,1998.
In part, the letter read, “I have just killed my par
ents, I am so sorry. I am a horrible son. I wish I had
been aborted. I destroy everything I touch. My head
just doesn’t work right...but I have to kill people. I
have never been happy. I hate everything. ”
The defense then called Kristin Kinkel, 22, to the
stand. She testified about memories of her 17-year
old brother when they were growing up and the na
ture of his relationship with their parents.
“He was fun, funny, really sensitive, really
sweet, a hard worker,” she said. “I remember him
just being a regular old kid.”
Later she read from a letter she’d addressed to
Mattison on her brother’s behalf.
Through quiet tears, Kristen Kinkel detailed how
for several weeks following the tragedies, visits
with her brother were characterized by lots of cry
ing, but that he didn’t speak to her, and usually
placed his head on the table to avoid looking di
rectly at her.
“It took weeks for him to make eye contact with
me, and even longer to say something,” she said.
“When he finally did, it was, ‘I’m so sorry.’”
As during the proceedings the day before, Kinkel
spent much of Wednesday with his head resting
face-down on the table before him, intermittently
straightening up to stare plaintively at the court
Turn to Kinkel, Page 6A
College students
reach a new age
■ There are about 3,600
students over the age of 25
attending the University
By Simone Ripke
Oregon Daily Emerald
Chuck Whittington, 42, is
married and the father of a 10
year-old boy. Whittington takes
care of his 98-year-old grandfa
ther, his house and his five-acre
yard. He is also a junior apply
ing for the integrated licensure
program at the College of Educa
tion and one of about 3,600 non
traditional students currently
attending the University.
According to the ASUO
Women’s Center office assistant
Kristina Armenakis, graduate
and undergraduate students
over the age of 25 are classified
as non-traditional students. The
Women’s Center acts as a re
source for non-traditional fe
male students.
Whittington enjoys being a
student and interacting with
younger peers, but he also feels
there are aspects that set him
apart from the younger student
population.
“I have a lot more responsibil
ities,” he said.
Whittington decided to pur
sue a higher education after he
was laid-off four years ago, due
to budget cuts at his job for Lane
County.
“I feel like I have been given
an opportunity,” he said.
The Springfield native did
not consider college after gradu
ating from high school because
higher education had never
been a topic in his family.
Now, being a student gives
him the opportunity to learn
while tailoring his schedule to
his family’s needs.
After achieving a comfortable
Who are non-traditional
students?
Non-traditional students are
graduate and undergraduate stu
dents over the age of 25.
How many non-traditional
students are there?
Last spring there were 3591 non
traditional students enrolled in
classes at the University.
life, he said he wants to give
back to the community by be
coming a teacher.
“I’m here to learn. It’s a desire
that’s within me,” Whittington
said. He said he takes his stud
ies seriously and tries to be effi
cient.
He said non-traditional stu
dents generally look for each
other and “pick each other out.”
According to statistics pub
lished by the University Office
of the Registrar, the non-tradi
tional student population, con
tradictory to popular belief, has
been declining slightly over in
the past few years. While there
were 3,869 non-traditional stu
dents fall term of 1994, there
were only 3,591 last spring.
Michele Rutheiser, 42, is a ju
nior majoring in journalism and
said she feels that the University
does not particularly welcome
older students. She hopes the
University will become more
accepting to non-traditional stu
dents and accommodate their
needs better in the future, espe
cially when it comes to scholar
ships. Rutheiser, who has a 4.3
GPA said she has applied for
numerous scholarships without
success.
Rutheiser held an administra
tive position with an oil compa
ny in California for many years.
Turn to Students, Page 6A
Frohnmayer returns
to Eugene
University
President
Dave
Frohnmay
er will re
turn home
from
Bethesda,
Md., to
day.
Frohnmay
FROHNMAYER er left Sub
urban
Health Care Systems in
Bethesda Wednesday morn
ing after being hospitalized
for a heart arrhythmia, which
he suffered while attending a
National Institutes for Health
conference Oct. 22.
“He is grateful for the extra
ordinary care, pleased to know
that there is no permanent
damage of any kind, grateful
for the ‘little paramedic’ that
has been implanted in his
chest and is looking forward to
his return with great enthusi
asm,” according to a statement
from the Frohnmayer family.
On Monday, doctors im
planted a cardio-defibrillator
in Frohnmayer’s chest that will
monitor the heart’s rhythm and
deliver an electric shock if an
other arrhythmia occurs.
It is still unclear when
Frohnmayer will return to his
post at the University.
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