Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 9, 1993)
iSPORTS Strickland might tackle football Nebraska basketball player Erick Strickland considers playing Huskerfootball Thursday 76/47 Today, mostly sunny and breezy. Friday, mostly sunny and wanner. September 9, 1993 University of Nebraska-Lincoln Vol. 93 No. 13 New law requires 24-hour wait for abortion By Jeff Zetony Senbr §dtejr Women seeking abortions today in Nebraska will have to wait until Friday to have the service performed, under a new state law. LB 110, passed in June by the Nebraska Legislature, states that women must wait 24 hours after they are given information about abortion before having one. Abortion opponents said the law, which went into effect today, would help protect women and ensure that their decisions were property thought out. “It’s going to assure that women have the ability now to ask for all of the information they need,” said Julie Schmit-Albin, executive director of Nebraska Right to Life. “It is a life-or death decision. We feel women need this information.” Dr. G.W. Orr, a physician who performs abortions at Women’s Services in Omaha, said his clinic already provided information to patients. He said the waiting period would be nothing but an additional hassle for patients. “That’s just another unnecessary delay for them,” he said. “They’ve already waited a considerable amount of time.” Under the law, the woman must be informed by the physician performing the abortion, by the referring physician, or by a physician assistant or registered nurse. The law requires conveyance of information on the following issues: • medical risks associated with the abortion procedure, including risks of infection, hemorrhage, danger to • probable gestational age of the unborn child at the time of the abortion. • medical risks associated with carrying the child to term. Under a provision in the law, the patient can be given the information over the telephone. This eases the -44 It’s going to assure that women have the ability now to ask for all of the Information they need. — SchmU-Albin executive director, Nebraska Right to Life inconvenience for the women, Orr said, but adds to the strain on the clinic’s office staff. Additional phone lines, staffed by registered nurses, will be installed at Women’s Services, Orr said. Schmit-Albin said she wasn’t opposed to women being informed by phone. The waiting period was the most important part of the law, she said. “Only the cruelest people would deny a cooling-off period, she said. “I just think that it makes perfect sense to allow her that time and not to presume that she has already thought See ABORTION on 3 Courtesy at Bob Henry Bob Henry, a senior finance major and Army National Guard member, stands by a waterfall near Tamron, Honduras. Off guard Time spent in Honduras makes soldier late for class By Alan Phelps Senior Reporter Bob Henry, a senior UNL finance major, stepped out of the jungle and into the classroom this week. As a member of the Nebraska Army National Guard, Henry spent the first two weeks of the semester training in Honduras with about 100 other Nebraskans. Working with the Honduran army, the soldiers played war games while braving potential terrorism and tropical temperatures. \ “I tried weasel ing out because I was a student, but they wouldn’t let me,” Henry said. Henry’s first mission was to track down all of his professors before leaving. ‘‘Most were understanding," he said. One professor thought missing two weeks was too much, but Henry said his instructors had no choice in the matter because of laws protecting National Guard members. As most students were busy buying books and parking permits the day before the fall semester began, Henry boarded a plane and left for another world. Because of guerrilla activity, Henry and the other Nebraskans were allowed off the Honduran base where they stayed only during daylight hours. “We could onlv leave at certain times or we might get snot” Henry said. “They shoot first and ask questions later.” Henry, part of a headquarters unit from Omaha, said he and the other guard members spent one day on a humanitarian mission distributing U.S. school supplies See GUARD on 3 Delender protests adding witnesses to Bjorklund trial By Steve Smith and Alan Phelps Senior Reporters Lancaster County District Judge Donald Endacott delayed a decision Wednesday on whether prosecuting attorneys would be allowed to introduce more than 70 additional witnesses into Roger Bjorklund’s murder trial. Chief Lancaster County Public Defender Scott Helvie objected to the introduction of additional witnesses, saying the move back up the case and interfere D;~-u constitutional rieht to due or “Iter* • ‘ Initially, the state had introduced about 150 to 200 witnesses to be endorsed for Bjorklund’s trial. About 20 to 30 witnesses were added in July, Deputy Lancaster County Attorney John Colbom said. “We’ve tried to be quite diligent,” Colbom said. “But in regards to physical evidence, the state has had to dot every ‘i’ and cross every However, Helvie said he objected to additional witnesses “at this late date.” Helvie said endorsing additional witnesses meant he would have to prepare for them before the trial. But Colbom said it was unlikely all the additional witnesses would testify. “I know, the court knows and Mr. Helvie knows we won’t call all these witnesses,” Colbom said. “We never do." The hearings were closed to the public four times Wednesday in accordance with Endacott’s earlier order to suppress sensitive material. During open court, Lincoln Police Detective Sgt. Greg Sorensen told of how police came to interview Bjorklund on Feb. z4, a session Sorensen said Bjorklund requested. Although the court was closed when questions dealt directly with statements Bjorklund made to police, Sorensen said Bjorklund spoke of the Mary Cronin case “and also other cases he felt Scott Barney was involved in." Police have said in earlier hearings that Bjorklund told them Barney had been involved in the disappearance of Mary Cronin of Omaha. Sorensen said the interview began in the See BJORKLUND on 3 Sweepstakes fraud a growing problem, official warns Suspicious offers seldom fabulous, belong in trash By Matt Woody M FhpotHr. _ You may already be a winner. Or more likely, you may al ready be a sucker. Sweepstakes fraud is a growing problem — one that has warranted attention from the Nebraska attorney general’s office. Dan Parsons, senior consumer pro tection specialist in Attorney General Don Stenberg’soffice, said complaints to the office deal ing with sweepstakes fraud increased 52percent in 1992. “We’ve been aware of the problem for some time now,” Parsons said, “and it has become increasingly a problem not only in Nebraska, but across the country.” ' The increase prompted the office to launch its “Just Toss It” campaign, which urges people to throw away sweepstakes prize notifications with out opening them. “We feel the best way to combat this problem is a consumer education program,” he said.”It’s much better to put our resources on this aspect than to wait for a tot of victims to come forward.” To promote the “Just Toss It” cam paign, the attorney general’s office opened a booth at the Nebraska State Fair, where consumers can bring their notifications and throw them in a large bin. “The best way to avoid this kind of problem is to not get involved,” Par sons said. Parsons said students needed tobe especially cautious. ' “I would say students and the eld erly are probabl v the two most com mon targets for these types of scams,” Parsons said. Students are susceptible because the sweepstakes offer cash or fabu lous prizes with no strings attached, he said. “It’s an easy way to possibly make easy money," Parsons said, “if you think you’re going to get something for nothing." But many times it's the other way around, Parsons said. Winners pay bogus prize-claim fees and receive either nothing or a prize that is much less valuable than was promised. Although students are prime swin dle targets, Shelley Stall, director of UNL’s Student Legal Services, said she had not yet heard complaints of sweepstakes fraud from University of Nebraska-Lmcoln students. Parsons said students should be especially wary of sweepstakes or companies that ask for a credit card or checking account number over the phone. A good rule to remember is: “If you didn’t enter a contest, then you probably didn’t win anything,” he said. “The ones that are legitimate, you don’t have to pay anything to claim that prize.”