years
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‘City of Roses’
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Established in 1970
w ww.portlandobserver.com
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Volume XXXV, Number 51
Wednesday • December 21, 2005
■■■
.Weekin
ThcReview
End of
an Era
$1 Million-a-day Fine to Union
A judge slapped a public transit
union in New York City with a $1
million-a-day fine for strikingTues
day. Commuters trudged through
the freezing cold, rode bicycles and
shared cabs as the city 's bus and
subway workers went on strike for
the first time in more than 25 years
Williams Funeral Held
Hundreds of people attended a star-
studded funeral Tuesday for ex
ecuted killer Stanley Tookie Will
iams in the violence-wracked South
Los Angeles section where he co­
founded the Crips gang three de
cades ago. See story, page A2
Area residents try to image Alberta
Street without Joe's Place, the
popular African-American hangout
with its peace sign out front at
1801 N.E. Alberta St. Owner Joe
Benjamin, 72, is selling the busi­
ness and retiring after 34 years. A
special goodbye party is planned
on New Year's Eve with the busi­
ness changing hands on Jan. 3.
Bush Censure Proposed
Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., called
Tuesday for Congress to censure
President Bush and Vice President
Cheney, saying they misled law
makers on the decision to go to war
in Iraq. Conyers, the senior Demo­
crat on the House Judiciary Com
mittee, also introduced resolutions
creating a panel to investigate the
Bush administration’s handling of
the Iraq war.
Democrats Reject Wiretapping
Some Democrats say they never
approved a domestic wiretapping
program, undermining suggestions
by President Bush and his senior
advisers that the plan was ful ly vetted
in a series of congressional brief­
ings. See related story, page A2.
photo by
M ark W ashington ?T he P ortland O bserver
Plane Wreck Investigated
Federal investigators searched for
evidence Tuesday, hoping to ex­
plain why a seaplane broke apart
and plunged into the ocean just off
Miami Beach, Fla. killing all 20
people on board, including three
infants. A fireball was seen at the
time o f the accident, leading to
speculation there was an explosion
on the plane.
Girl May Be Frozen
School Uniforms for Jefferson Debated
Proposal one of
many to make
school a magnet
Searchers in Albany, Ind. follow­ by S arah B lount
ing a tip from a man jailed for alleg­
T he ; P ortland O bserver
edly killing his wife and three young
Controversial initiatives could bring
daughters have found a frozen
major changes to Jefferson High School.
body believed to be that of a 10-
The reforms, including school uni­
year-old girl last seen heading to a
forms
and separate academies for boys
school bus stop earlier this month.
Sunnis Reject Iraq Vote
Sunni Arabs alleged Tuesday that
last week’s parliamentary elections
w ere fraudulent, esp ecially in
Baghdad province, and they said if
the irregularities are not corrected,
new balloting must be held in Iraq’s
largest electoral district.
Officials Took Improper Gifts
About 20 state Treasury Depart­
ment officials of New Jersey ac­
cepted golf outings, cigars, gour­
met chocolates and other gifts from
a contractor, then looked the other
way as the company overcharged
the State of New Jersey hundreds
of thousands of dollars a year, a
watchdog agency said Tuesday.
and girls, brought passionate responses
when they were presented during a
public meeting Thursday at Ockley Green
Middle School.
The Portland School District, led by
Superintendent Vicki Phil lips and acom-
munity-based committee, formulated the
plans in hopes of making Jefferson, as
well as several feeder middle schools
academically stronger, reversing a tide
of declining enrollment.
continued
on page A3
photo by I saiah
B oite TT he P ortland O bserver
Support for school uniforms at Jefferson High School won praise from a local Spanish -speaking parent who made her
views known with the assistance of Veronica Banuelos, an interpreter for Portland Public Schools, at a public meeting to
discuss several proposed changes for the school.
D evotedt0 a Lifetim eot Goodwill
Spirit Award
for Geneva
Jones
Geneva Jones (front row, from left), Celeste Jones, Elizabeth Langston and
Carol Jones; and Steve and Roman Jones (back row, from left) at a holiday
gathering for local Pacific Power retirees.
Geneva Jones, a local TV
personality and former Pacific
Poweremployee, was honored
by her peers by becoming the
first Geneva Jones Community
Spirit Award recipient. She was
given the award at a holiday
gathering for local Pacific
Power retirees.
Geneva was the high-pro­
file face of Pacific Power for
many years as "Polly Pacific”
and as a m e m b e r o f the
com pany’s Community Rela-
enntinued
on page A 9
Drive Hammered - Get Nailed
Holiday DUI Patrols Added
If you plan to drink and drive this holiday season, be
forewarned: law enforcement officers in Oregon and W ash­
ington and scheduling extra DUI patrols.
In Vancouver, law enforcement from Clark County Sheriff
Office, Vancouver Police Department, Battle Ground Police
Department and La Center Police Department will have extra
DUI officers on the roadways through Jan. 2,
The “Drive Hammered - Get Nailed" campaign is a joint
effort between the Washington Traffic Safety Commission,
law enforcement and the Clark County DUI and Traffic Safety
Task Force.
The Commission strongly encourages people to plan
ahead, use designated drivers, stay in hotels, get taxis — do
whatever it takes to make sure that the person behind the
wheel is sober.
Drunk driving is the most frequently committed violent
crime in America - and in W ashington State it is the single
largest cause o f fatal collisions.
In 2003, there were 8.393 collisions in W ashington that
involved a drinking driver, resulting in 221 deaths.
The average blood alcohol level of people arrested for DUI
is about .14. T hat’s almost twice the legal limit o f .08.