Tuesday, January 14, 2003
Since 1900
University of Oregon
Eugene, Oregon
Volume 104, Issue 77
Questionable outcome
....
Adam Amato Emerald
Forensic scientist Casey Roberts runs tests on samples of drugs at the Oregon State Police Forensics Lab in Springfield. Roberts has already
received a letter warning that she stands to lose her job two years after being hired if Measure 28 does not pass.
Ready
to fire
Local police have already been given layoff
notices pending the outcome of Measure 28
Caron Alarab
Crime/Safety/Transportation Reporter
As votes trickle in on Measure 28. the Oregon State Po
lice can’t help but turn a pessimistic check to what the fail
ure of the proposed three-vear state income tax increase
could mean — less employees, less hours, but worst of all,
less money.
If voters don’t approve the 8300-million tax package for this
biennium, 86.33 million will be trimmed from Oregon’s state
police budget and 321 positions will be cut, Public Informa
tion Officer Lt. Glenn Chastain said. Many employees have
already been given notice of impending layoffs, and with Mea
sure 2S’s failure, the cuts will go into effect.
“Measure 28 has no chance of passing,” Lt. Russ Burger
said. “Right after the holidays and before tax season, nobody
wants an increase.”
As an area commander, Burger supervises operations in
Springfield, Florence and Oakridge. The Florence and
Oakridge justice courts are very dependent on state funding,
and Burger said Oakridge is presently operating at 25 percent
of its normal effectiveness.
“Even if (legislators) pull a rabbit out of the hat, the dam
age is done and no one is looking back,” he said.
Chastain said 380 letters were sent to employees; 205 of
which were sent to professional staff and 175 to sworn positions.
According to Tern’ Bekkedahl, director of the Oregon State
Police Forensics Lab in Springfield, the sworn positions are
uniformed officers who have been in the force since before
1090, the year the division turned to a non-sworn process.
Sworn officers are involved in patrol, criminal justice and fish
and wildlife, and make up 25 to 30 percent of the state patrol,
Bekkedahl said.
“We’re not anticipating any funding from that measure,”
he said.
The Springfield lab manages investigation evidence and
court requests from several cities across the state, including
Ontario, Pendleton, Bend, Central Point, Portland and
Salem. As the second largest lab in the Forensics division,
funding and employee retention are key to the effective pro
cessing of hundreds of criminal cases. Bekkedahl said the
lab covers a variety of crimes from shoplifting to homicide,
and added that the predicted loss of funding will significant
ly hinder performance.
“We serve the public,” he said, “but we do the leg work for
Turn to Police, page 8
Testimony
opposes pot
fine increase
Community members spoke out Monday about a
new city ordinance concerning marijuana possession
Jan Montry
City/State Politics Reporter
Eugene and Springfield citizens opposing a new city ordi
nance aimed at increasing the fine for possession of less than
an ounce of marijuana voiced their concerns Monday night
before the Eugene City Council.
The ordinance, which would increase the fine from S100
to 8250, is designed to give more incentive for people to join
a new, inexpensive diversion program that would cost about
890 tor any offender. The current state diversion program
costs between 8600 and 8900, according to Municipal Court
.fudge Wayne Allen.
But the public forum was ideologically imbalanced, with
nine people speaking against the ordinance and one speaking
in favor.
Todd Dalotto, president of the Eugene-based Compassion
Center, said many medical marijuana patients who can’t af
ford the fee for a medical marijuana card turn to street use,
and arc thus subject to ticketing even though they are not
feeding an addiction.
“There are a lot of people on the streets out there who are
in possession of under an ounce of marijuana to mitigate
symptoms or affects of their serious conditions,” he said.
“We need to look at removing all penalties for simple posses
sion of marijuana.”
Other detractors focused their debate around die unbalanced
affect that increased fines would have on marijuana users.
“I consider this as more of a ‘sin’ tax that is going to affect
the younger and the poor people the most.” Cindy Noblitt
said. “1 think students have incentive enough,“
Allen, who was the lone supporter of the ordinance during
the public forum, explained that the intent is to expand incen
tive for a diversion program similar to what was done when the
City Council increased MIP fines from 8100 to 8250 in 1999.
“We do this not to raise revenue, not to raise fines, but
simply to make a workable diversion program,” he said.
Allen added that students cited for less than an ounce and
who want to choose diversion have a hard time affording the
expensive and long state program.
Although councilors didn’t vote on the ordinance, many
responded to arguments the public gave and asked specific
questions for further study.
Ward l Councilor Bonny Bettman said she came prepared
to support the new diversion program.
“If people can afford to buy marijuana, they can afford to
pay the penalty,” she said.
But Bettman said the testimony at the meeting also gave her
pause, especially from detractors who argued marijuana smok
ers using the drug for health purposes could be harmed.
Councilor David Kelly, Ward 3, said the council should not
focus on the issue of legalization — which is what many
community members spoke out about — but instead on the
Turn to Council, page 8
Weather
Today: High 50,tow 30,
partly cloudy, chance of showers
Wednesday: High 43, Low 30,
clouds becoming fog late
Looking ahead
Wednesday
The EMU Board continues doling out
student fees to a variety of EMU programs
Thursday
When Hollywood comes to campus looking
for talent, what does it take to make the cut?
Photos show faces of Gulf War
“Children of the Gulf Waf will be on
display at the Aperture Gallery until
Jan. 18 before moving to OSU
Jacquelyn Lewis
Pulse Editor
This week, the Aperture Gallery in
the Erb Memorial Union plays host to
“Children of the Gulf War” — an art ex
hibit aimed at documenting the effects
war and economic sanctions have had
on the children of Iraq. The exhibit
does not include paintings or drawings;
real faces stare out of Japanese photo
journalist Takashi Morizumi’s black
and white images.
A woman clasps her dying child’s
hand. A small girl screams, belly dis
tended, as she is treated for kidney and
liver diseases in Baghdad’s Mansool
Children’s Hospital. Empty uranium
penetrators are scattered across a bar
ren landscape. The photograph’s cap
tion says reactors like this released
36,000 times the radioactive atoms re
leased by the Hiroshima bombing. But
other images show joy juxtaposed with
grief — smiling children and.adults,
hands outstretched.
“It’s basically images of the Gulf War
in 1991, of the children and the effects
of war,” exhibit coordinator Janice
Zagorin said. “This simply puts a face
to what war is.”
The display is sponsored by the UO
Cultural Forum, Students for Peace and
Lane County WAND (Women’s Action
for News Directions).
Zagorin said residents of Iraq are ex
periencing increased leukemia and
birth detects as a result of radioactive
materials from depleted uranium used
as missile hardeners during the Gulf
War. “It recently came to people’s un
derstanding that the Gulf War was a nu
clear war,” she said.
This is the exhibit’s second stop on
its national tour, and its first appear
ance in Oregon. The photographs were
recently displayed at the Berkelv Pub
lic Library. The next stop will be at
Oregon State University.
Zagorin also coordinated a discus
sion, “Health Effects of War & Alterna
tives to a War on Terrorism,” scheduled
for Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. at the
Sacred Heart Medical Center Auditori
um, located at 1255 Hilvard St. The
Turn to Art, page 8