Friday, September?, 1934
iD)IJi$l
By Erad Kuhn
Daily Nebnuian Senior Ceportsr
As expected, Nebraska Attor
ney General Paul Douglas plea
ded innocent to charges of per-
jury and obstruction of justice in
the investigation of the insolvency
of Commonwealth Savings Co. of
Lincoln. District Judge Jeffre
Cheuvront set a Nov. 20 trial date.
Douglas was indicted in June
by a Lancaster County grand jury
on one count of perjury and one
count of obstruction of justice.
The perjury charge stems from
allegedly false testimony Douglas
gave Feb. 25 before the Legisla
ture's special Commonwealth com
mittee. Douglas testified he paid
income taxes on all payments he
received, totaling $32,500, from
Commonwealth Vice President
Marvin Copple for services Dou
glas performed as a consultant.
Douglas also said at the time that
his actions a3 attorney general
had not been influenced by his
business or personal relationship
with Copple. It later came to light
that Douglas had received as
much as $40,000 from Copple.
The misdemeanor obstruction
charge alleges that Douglas know-
statement he made Feb. 30 to
special assistant Attorney Gen
eral David Domina. Douglas told
Dornina he did not discuss with
Copple a letter from the b til dated
March 10, 1983. The indictment
alleges the two men did discuss
Alumni center construction
to he finished next month
Ey Gene Gentmp
' Daily Nebraska Staff Writer
Construction of the Wick
Alumni Center, 1520 R St,
should be completed sometime
next month, said Jack Miller,
executive vice president of the
NU Alumni Association.
'The alumni center originally
was scheduled to open a year
ago this month, but construc
tion was halted in December
1983 after the Alumni Associ
ation terminated its contract
with the Harold G. Wright Co.
of Blair. The contract dismis
sal resulted from dissatisfac
tion with the brickwork on the
facade of the building.
The Wright firm and Asso
ciated General Contractors of
Nebraska claimed earlier that
the firm's dismissal was a
breach of contract and that
the New York architectural firm
of Gwathmey Siegel and Asso
ciates should have been remov
ed instead of Wright. Gwath
mey Siegel was seiected in a
national competition.
Miller said Wright earlier had
threatened to file suit against
the Alumni Association but has
not done so. He said ha has not
talked with Wright for some
time.
I V f 5 - I 1
the letter prior to the declared
Insolvency of Commonwealth.
Several obstacles lie between
Thursday's arraignment and a
Nov. 26 trial.. For one, Douglas'
lawyer, William Morrow, said he
must get 45 signed depositions to
complete the defense. Morrow
also refused to rule out the possi
bility that he would ask that the
trial be moved out of Lincoln to
ensure his client a fair trial There
is also some question whether
Morrow will continue to repres
ent Douglas because of a possible
conflict of interest with one of
Morrow's partners who is a wit
ness in the case.
Douglas entered the courthouse
through the back door 45 min
utes before the 4 p.m. hearing,
waving at a handful of startled
television camera men fumbling
with their equipment, sans-repor-ters.
At 4:04 p.m., Douglas and Mor
row strode confidently into the
tiny courtroom laughing and jok
ing. Douglas, scanning the gallery
said, smiling, "Look at 'em all."
Sen. Ernie Chambers ofOmaha,
caught Douglas' eye and respond
ed: "Where the carcass is, there
will the eagles be gathered
together."
After the arraignment, Morrow
kept reporters busy while Dou
glas beat a hasty retreat down
the back stairs.
Wright could not be reached
for comment.
After the contract was ter
minated, Builders Inc., a local
contractor, was hired to com
plete the project, and con
struction resumed in March.
Builders Inc. was hired by Uni
versity Surety Co., which holds
the performance bond on the
project.
The bond essentially is an
insurance policy for the Alumni
Association that guarantees the
Wick Center will be completed
as designed if the contractor
does not complete his contract
for any reason.
The 30,000-square-foot, $3.6
million structure is being fi
nanced by the alumni dona
tions. The center is named after
Milton I. Wick, an alumnus
whose family provided $1 mil
lion for the building. Another
$1 million came from an ano
nymous donor, and about 4,000
other alumni contributed. An
endowment fund has been
established to ensure opera
tions for the center.
The center will feature a3V6
story Great Hall, a library board
room on the first floor, offices
on the second and third Goers
and filing and storage space in
the basement
I J
University of NcbrasKa-Lincoln
I
Joel SartoreDally Nebrsskan
Nebraska Attorney General Paul Douglas, left, leaves the County-City Build
ing Thursday with an unidentified man.
Former
files hazing
By Baa Bender .. .
Dally Nebraskan Senior Reporter
A former member of Kappa
Sigma Fraternity filed suit last
week for damages he claims he
suffered during a fraternity-sponsored
pie-eating contest that took
place more than 3V& years ago.
Douglas W. Larson said Wednes
day he refrained from suing his
former fraternity because he was
promised at the time of the inci
dent that he would be compen
sated for his injuries.
According to the suit, Larson
was injured during a pledge activ
ity for the Alpha Psi Chapter of
Kappa Sigma Fraternity on Jan.
29, 1931. Larson and other
pledges were required to eat pies
without using utensils while sit
ting in a circle on the floor. The
first to finish his pie was to stand
on a chair in the middle of the
circle and whistle.
According to the suit, two
Elliot found
By J ohn Meissner
Dally Nebraskaa Senior Bepcrter
Jack Elliot's career ended be
fore a packed house last Friday.
Sadly, it was a packed court
house. Elliot, 59, the superintendent
of North Piatte Public Schools for
the past 15 years, was found
guilty of third-degree sexual as
sault in Lincoln County Court
The case stemmed from charges
filed May 2 by a female student
who claimed during visits to the
superintendent's olilce Elliot had
fondled her, hugged her and at
tempted to French kiss her.
During the two-day trial, both
sides quickly became engaged in
internecine attempts to defame
each other. The defense capital
ized on the 17-year-old victim's
unwed pregnancy and contumacy,
branding her a "bona fide socio
path" and "troublemaker." The
state contended the alleged inci
dents of assault were "Jack Elli
ot's little secrets" and painted a
t- .... .
frater
pledges wrestled to be the first to
stand on the chair. The chair
toppled during the struggle and
struck Larson in the mouth. Lar
son allegedly suffered a cut lip
that required four stitches and
broke a tooth that required a
root canal and a crown.
Larson would not comment Wed
nesday on whether he was a wil
ling participant in -the contest,
which he said was hazing and
therefore prohibited by the fra
ternity and the UNL rnterfrater
nity Council
"When you are a pledge, you
are required to participate in
those events," Larson said. "They
don't come around and ask you if
you want to do it"
Larson said he was promised
by the chapter's pledge trainer
after the contest that the medical
and dental bills would be paid by
the chapter.
They never paid," Larson said.
guilty of sexual assault
picture of Elliot as lecher.
Elliot testified that the student
had been in his office several
times during the 1983-84 school
year, and admitted he placed his
hands on her shoulders occasion
ally. But he vigorously denied
making sexual advances toward
the girl. According to the North
Platte Telegraph, Elliot said he
took a special interest because he
liked to make an extra effort to
work with students who were
having difficulty.
The victim had difficulty get
ting through her testimony on
Aug. 29. At one point, her sobs
prompted County Judge J. Pat
rick McArdle to call a 10-minute
recess. She contended Elliot "pat
ted me on the butt" in a Novem
ber 1933 encounter and accused
him of trying to place one of her
hands on his crotch in a February
134 visit to his office.
Although early trips to Elliot's
oCice were voluntary (she sought
help on ajresearch project in the
Vol. 84 No. 10
'1
- Adam-Karavas, president of
the Kappa Sigma Building Associa
tion, said Larson and several other
members were asked to leave the
fraternity in January 1984, be
cause they participated in "im
permissable hazing, abuse and
damage to fraternity property
and general conduct unbecom
ing a member of the fraternity.
"We had hazing problems we
wanted to eliminate," Karavas said
"We gave them an opportunity to
abide by the rules."
Larson said he was willing to go
along with the rules, but he voiced
his opposition to them. He left the
fraternity in February.
Named as defendants in the
suit are the Kappa Sigma Frater
nity, its Alpha Psi Chapter at UNL
and the Kappa Sigma Building
Association. The suit, filed in Lan
caster County District Court, asks
for $503 in medical and dental
expenses and general damages. '
spring of 1983 and other visits
were prompted by a need to dis
cuss school problems), the girl
said she was summoned into
Elliot's office May 2.
Elliot said he requested the
visit because "she was in grave
danger of not graduating." At
that point, according to the girl
the superintendent fondled her
and tried to kiss her.
In an interview Tuesday, Lin
coln County Attorney Charles
Kandt said Elliot's third-degree
sexual assault charge is a class
one misdemeanor invoh'ingtouch
ing or contact for physical grati
fication." As such, Kandt said, it
falls between second degree sex
ual assault, where a weapon is
useel but no penetration occurs,
and sexual harassment, a civil
offense, that is primarily non
physical abuse. Wnen a sentence
is handed down later this month,
Elliot could face up to one year in
prison and a $1,000 fine.
Continued en P&ss 6
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nity member
damage suit