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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 31, 1977)
» Mr« Francos Sehoèn-Rewspaper Roos U n iv e rs ity of Oregon L ib rary ru g an e, Dragon 97403 PORTLAND OBSERVER Votum« 7 M . 1ft Thursday, Mach 31, 1977 lf e per &L buys Williams property by Gregory L. Gudger Killer gets manslaughter verdict Ronnie Keyland, a white man who shot and killed two young Black men, was convicted of first degree manslaughter Tuesday. The all white jury deliberated for five hours before reaching their verdict, (.ailing the killings a "conscious" decision to kill", the District Attorneys office had asked for two counts of first degree murder. Testimony indicated that Keyland was angry with Glenn Thomas because Key- land's girl friend had been living with Thomas and he had been told that Thomas had struck the girl. He went to the apartment that he rented to Thomas and Daryl Jackson, shot Jackson several times at close range, then walked over and shot Thomas, who was lying on a couch. One of the prosecution witnesses alleg Pacific Power and Light may be pur chasing some property in the North/ Northeast Portland area at 160 percent of the assessed value of the property. PP&L has an option to purchase a block bordered on the North and South by N. The Portland Board of Education will Skidmore and N. Mason, and on the East discuss a possible policy change with and West by North Williams and North regard to funds for disadvantaged child Vancouver and a 10,000 square-foot plot ren in connection with its budget hearing on the Northwest corner of Skidmore and Monday, April 4th. Williams Streets. The $116 million budget presented to Sources inside PP&L say that the company may purchase the two proper the Board by Superintendent Robert Blanchard excedes the current budget by ties for an estimated $650,000. Assessed 9 million, an increase of 8.5 percent. The value of the properties--the larger of the Board plans to trim approximately $1 two currently occupied by Atlas Hotel million from the budget. Supply and Sheet Metal and the other by Among the issues that will be addres a parking lot-is $490,000. PP&L is also sed is the disbursement of federal and said to have, put down $100,000 in earnest state funds designated for the education on the proper-ties. of “disadvantaged" children. Title I According to Robert Oberst, property ESEA funds must go to schools that have manager of PP&L, the company does concentrations of disadvantaged children. have an option to buy the property but Title VII funds and state funds can go to has not exercised that option. Vice President Mike Selleck of Atlas con those schools or to schools which are receiving schools for disadvantaged child- firmed that PP&L had the option to buy dren who are transferred from their local the property and concurred with Oberst schools. that no action had been taken to date on State disadvantaged funds totaled the option. Neither representative would $1,100,000 during the current year and give any definite price figures. will be increased seven percent from the According to Oberst, if and when the 1977-78 fiscal year. This year $761,790 property is purchased, it will be used potentially for a service center. In the meantime. Atlas Hotel Supply, though Mr. Selleck did not mention it, is moving to a* new location on N.E. 87th Street. ed that Keyland had discussed hiring him to “off' someone and had talked about “offing” some one and disposing of the body. Keyland testified that he was plaster ing the shower in the apartment, when he noticed that Jackson carried a gun in a shoulder holster. He was afraid, so he said he was going to his car to get a putty knife, but also got a gun. He shot Jackson several times at close range - a few inches Darryl was standing there . . . and I just pointed the gun and started firing. . . and then I went over to Glenn .. and it seemed like he looked up and I started firing." He then returned to Jackson and fired at him again and again. Jackson was shot nine or ten times and Thomas four times. A young woman who was in the apartment was not injured. Dr. Janz. psychiatrist testifying for the defense said Keyland's mental condition during the shooting was such that he was unable to conduct himself according to the law. Dr. Edward Colbach, testifying for the prosecution, said “There was no evidence of any mental defects...! found Keyland to be normal...But then if shoot - .ng somebody is crazy, then everyone who shoots someone is crazy.” Although the defense attempted to establish Keyland as a reputable young man, with good character and no previous offenses, testimoney showed that he was a herion user and that he had introduced his girl friend to drugs. Keyland will be sentenced by Judge Clifford B. Olson this Friday. School Board considers 'disadvantaged’ funds < CAROL MORRISON PSU graduate flies TWA by l l y —« Miss Carol Morrison, a native of Portland, is a flight attendant for TWA. She attended Cleveland High School and graduated from Portland State University. Before becoming a flight attendant she was a bookkeeper for the First National Bank in Portland. She is the daughter of Mr. & Mrs. Earl Morrison. Miss Morrison had six weeks of training at Breech Academy in Overland Park, Kansas, before becoming a Stewardess. She is based in New York and flies anywhere nationally. However, in June she will fly internationally. goes to schools in the Albina area and Buckman in Southeast Portland, and $415,886 goes to other schools in the district. The federal Title I money will be increased by 12 percent. In addition, there is $500,000 in local matching money. It is possible that this $500,000 which has also gone to the jnner-city schools could be transferred to the receiving schools. The question that faces the board is, should the $500,000 in local money be taken from the disadvantaged local schools and transferred to receiving schools - thereby reducing the overall cost to the taxpayer by $500,000? Will the removal of this money detract from the progress of the inner city schools, even though the schools will receive some additional federal funds? The board will consider whether - in light of the growing number of students transferring out of the inner city schools - a larger percentage of the disadvantaged funds should follow them to assist them in the receiving schools. Dr. Blanchard has asked for an expand ed effort to desegregate the schools, in order to bring all schools below the required 50 percent maximum of minor ity students. Recommended methods of implementing desegregation are 1) stimu lating transfer of majority students into Jefferson and Adams high schools, 2) year-round recruiting for the administra tive transfer program, and 3) the funding of reasonable transportation costs for students whose transfers contribute to the elimination of racial segregation. Additional costs, including transporta tion, would be $455,177. Dr. Blanchard also asked that $250,000 in general funds money be reserved for his proposal for work with disruptive youth, which will be revealed today, March 31st. Budget hearings will be held at the school district office on March 31st at 6:30 and on April 4th from 2:30 to 10:00 p.m., and on April 7th from 9 a.m. until noon and from 1:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. Compliance q y tlo n w d County considers set-aside program Multnomah County was recently in formed by George J. Roybal, assistant regional administrator for fair housing and equal opportunity of the U.S. De partment of Housing and Urban Devel opment, that the county is administering its Community Development Block Grant Program “in apparent noncompliance" with HUD regulations on Equal Employ ment Opportunity. The areas in question are: under-rep- resentation of minority employees and lower wages paid to minorities and women than to white males. Peter Shaw, Administrative Assistant to Board Chairman Don Clark, told the Obeerver that the county believes it is in compliance. Material is being forwarded to HUD to illustrate the county's efforts in affirmative action. Shaw expressed the opinion that the problem is one of not supplying the evidence of compliance rather than of not being in compliance. He said the county had been found in compliance in an earlier review by the local HUD office. According to Berna Plummer, Affirm ative Action Director, the latest Equal Opportunity report on county employees shows a total of 3,968 employees. 263 or 6.8 per cent of which are minorities. Of the 2,810 full time, permanent employees, 181 employees or 6.4 per cent are minorities. Current breakdowns as to positions and salary range are not yet available. Women occupy 2,149 of the total positions and 1,248 of the full time, permanent positions. Of the total minor ity employees, 135 are women and of the full time, permanent minority employees, 96 are women. According to Mrs. Plummer, there has been progress, especially in temporary hiring. Some minority employees have been promoted and there are some new hires. The county has submitted a prelimin ary reply to HUD but has not heard back from the Seattle office. If the county does not voluntarily comply or adopt and implement a satisfactory plan to comply within 60 days from March 1st, federal funds can be withdrawn. Minority set-aside ] Multnomah County adopted its Af firmative Action Policy on July 31, 1975 and as an extension of that plan will consider an "Affirmative Action in Public Contracts” plan today, March 31st. The Affirmative Action Policy states in part: "Multnomah County recognizes its moral and legal responsibility . . . to improve employment and career oppor tunities for minority group persons and women according to affirmative action principles." The purpose of the new public contract program is to establish procedures to promote and insure minority business enterprise participation in public works and other selected contracts let by Multnomah County. If adopted by the Board of County Commissioners, the program will set aside at least ten per cent of the total dollar amount of contracts priced below $50,000 for minority enterprise. Desig nated contracts that are for amounts less than $5,000 can be negotiated; designated contracts between $5,000 and $50,000 will be subject to competitive bidding among minority enterprises. For larger contracts, non-minority bid ders who agree to sub-contract at least 15 per cent of the total dollar amount of the contract to minority enterprise will be given a 1 per cent bid preference. The County will promote minority business enterprise participation in the purchase of goods, services and equip ment and may establish separate set- aside or incentive programs to govern the bidding and award of these contracts. For the purpose of this program, min ority enterprise is defined as businesses i that are at least 51 percent owned by* Blacks, Spanish-surnamed Americans, American Orientals, Native Americans, Eskimos and Aleuts. Women and the mentally and/or physically handicapped will quality under the goods, services and equipment section. I BASEBALL SEASON IS HERE! Irving Park Senior League starts sign ups on Saturday, April 2nd at noon, at Irving Park. Senior League baseball is for thirteen through fifteen year olds. Navy investigators document Kian strategy in Marine Corps by Todd Darling* Pacific N ew s Service CAMP PENDLETON. CA (PNS) - A confidential Naval Investigative Services report on racial unrest at the Nation's largest Marine base here has documented widespread illegal activity by a small but highly organized white supremacist group bent on fomenting racial conflict, racial conflict. The report, ordered by the Camp Pendleton Marine Commandant and car ried out by Naval investigative person nel, goes beyond previous widely publi cized accounts of the deteriorating racial situation here. It documents concrete strategies by Marine Ku KJux Kian members and their links with outside racist organiaaitons Kian tactics, listed in the 900page report, include harassment and beatings of Black marines, arson of homes and autos of Black personnel, the fire- bombing of a Black social service agency and dissemination of hate literature aimed at Jews and Chicanos as well as Blacks. The report was submitted as pre-court- marital evidence in the case of 10 Black Marines currently facing charges of crim inal assault on six white Marines here last November. The report reveals a series of illegal and provacational acts carried out on and off the base by Kian members and threats of reprisals by both Blacks and whites prior to the alleged assault. Police reports included in the Naval documents suspected the Kian of fire bombing a van owned by a Black ex- Marine and his white wife living in Oceanside. The police also confirmed reports of cross burnings in the area. A military policeman quoted in the report charged that Marine Klansmen had slashed the tires of five autos belonging to Black Marines and may have wired others to catch fire. An anonymous Marine Klansman told investigators that the Kian had beaten up a Black pimp who operated in the Camp Pendleton area and had carried out a “raid” on a Black Marine “to warn him.*' The informant declined to elaborate on why the raid was made or what was done. BASIC STRATEGIES The Naval document, based on a score of interviews with military personnel here and reports from local police and FBI files, also points to Kian activity on Marine bases at Twentynine Palms, Ca.. and Okinawa. Sgt. Randal Clouse, identified in the report as leader of the Camp Pendleton Kian, told investigators that the Kian followed three basic strategies within the Corps. The first strategy was to use any pretext to “put on report” to the Marine command Blacks who showed signs of independence or militancy. The second was to personally threaten “the opposi tion," and, third, if such intimidation failed, to carry out "violent vigilante action outside the base.” The Marine Klansman admitted he was a member of the California State Kian organization and added that members of civilian racist organizations had urged him “to take more violent action against Blacks on the base.” Other racist organizations in contact with Marine Klansmen included the San Diego Nazi Party, the National States Rights Party and an obscure local group called the White Brotherhood, according to the Naval document. The report linked Marine Klansmen with illegal racist attacks outside the base. An anonymous Marine informant from* inside the Kian told investigators that the Kian was “probably responsible” for last October's fire bombing of the Oceanside Urban League office near Camp Pendleton. Police reports of the molatov cocktail raid on the office of the national racial justice organization also agreed with the informant. The Naval report, entitled "Racist Extremist/Dissident Group Activities,” is expected to be a crucial part of the defense of the court-martial hearings. The defense is arguing that Black Mar ines-faced with an increasingly desper ate situation in which the Marine com mand had failed to counteract, or even acknowledge, the physical threats to Blacks had mounted,a slow of strength in self-defense. \ “The (Naval Investigative) report clearly indicates mounting racial tension. The Marines (command) were well aware of it. The Blacks were acting in self-defense," one of the civilian defense lawyers, David Weitzman of Berkeley, says. TENSION FILLED WEEK The Naval investigation concentrates on activities surrounding the November 13 assault. The attack culminated a tension filed week of racial incidents - a fight in the mess hall, a brawl on a Pendleton bus, and reported threats of reprisal actions by whites in which, according to the report, “all hell was going to break loose.” Fourteen Blacks reportedly assaulted a group of white Marines whom, according to the defense lawyers, the Blacks sus pected of holding a Kian meeting. The six white victims who were severe ly beaten and hospitalized were not Kian members. But an official search of the barracks where the incident took place uncovered a cache of gun powder, knives, a .357 Magnum pistol and sawed-off broom handles. A Kian membership list was found in a nearby room occupied by two admitted Klansmen. Before the attack Marines reportedly openly wearing Kian insignia had passed out KKK literature exhorting, “White Man Wake Up.” Barracks had stickers with caricatures of a Jew. a Black and a Chicano declaring, "Beware! We want your jobs. We want your homes. We want your country.” Twelve of the 17 Klansmen on the list, including the suspected leader, have been transferred to other installations, and two were discharged from the service (Please turn to p.2 col.4)