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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 6, 1994)
Sports ■ Frazier to have surgery this week, Page 7 Arts & Entertainment ■ "Scapino!" opens at Howell Theatre, Page 8 PAGE 2: Missing woman found alive near Macy Emotion flows as Renteria family tells pain —^ „ - - Death or rrancisco is driving family cra2y, brother says By Brian Sharp Senior Reporter Maria Vega is feeling a loss like no other. Her son, Francisco Renteria, died Saturday after a struggle with police. “I feel something in my heart that is so big, I have no way of comparing it,” she said through an interpreter. “I don’t want anything unjust for anyone. I just want justice.” Vega and other family members, speaking through interpreter Jose Soto, talked about their loss to media and the community Wednesday night at the Hispanic Community Center, 2300 O St. The press conference, which began on the second floor, soon moved to first floor af ter the crowd began to overflow down the stairs and onto the fire escape. Renteria, 30, died Saturday at Lincoln Gen eral Hospital. Renteria was in a struggle with five Lincoln Police officers and one UNL Po lice officer Friday night after being stopped at 24th and Holdrege streets. The UNL officer attempted to stop Renteria, thinking he matched the description of a man wanted on charges of violating a protection or der. Renteria did not speak English. After be ing placed in a cruiser, Renteria had a seizure and was taken to the hospital. Police later learned he was not the man they were looking for. Jose Renteria, Francisco’s brother, said deal ing with the loss and how it came about was taking its toll on the family. “There’s only one way to explain it,” he said. “We’re going crazy.” The family came to Lincoln from Chicago, he said. Francisco Renteria lived in Chicago for eight years, moving there from Mexico, fam ily members said. He returned to Mexico for a short time, before moving to Lincoln six months ago. “Unfortunately we came here to suffer what we have never suffered in our lives,” Jose Renteria said. “It was a terrible death,” he said. “We never, never thought that it would be in this place (that it could happen), much less at the hands of the individuals who are charged with pro INKS Pauhnan/DN Jos* Renteria shows grief Wednesday evening for the death of Ms brother Francisco, who died Saturday after being arrested Friday night. Relatives of Francisco Renteria spoke with members of the community and the press . tecting us.” Cecilia Huerta, executive director of the Mexican American Commission, said she was concerned that the State Patrol was investigat ing LPD, after hearing complaints of conflicts with the agency. Huerta said it had been re quested that the UNL Ombudsman conduct an independent investigation of UNL police. Cathy Maestas, president of the Mexican American Student Association, said after the meeting that students sent a letter Tuesday to Chancellor Graham Spanier asking that a stu dent be appointed to an advisory committee investigating the UNL Police Department’s role in the death. Maestas said students are trying to help the family through the next few days. As far as students’ relationship with UNL and Lincoln police, Maestas said Friday’s episode was not an isolated incident. Carlos Monzon, a lawyer for the Renteria family, would not comment on the case or simi larities between county and independent au topsies completed Tuesday. Monzon did say there was “a high possibility” that Renteria had suffered broken bones. Results could be re leased in four to six weeks, he said. Earlier Wednesday, Casady said that al though the autopsy could help determine a cause of death, “results from medical exams are never as clear cut as they are made out to be.” The results, he said, can be interpreted many ways. “People ought to be pretty dam cautious about speculating or filling in the blanks,” Casady said. For Araceli Renteria, Francisco’s sister, there are no blanks to be filled in. She saw her brother being beaten by police, she said. “I saw when they grabbed him,” she said. “They kicked him. They pulled his hair. That’s part of what I saw.” Finding the answers to how this happened will restore Renteria’s dignity, his brother Carlos Renteria said. A dignity that was lost in the final moments of his life. “The way they killed my brother is the way that dogs are killedfHte said. “And my brother was never an animal. He was a human being, just like every one of us.” Memorial services will be held Thursday, with the funeral on Friday. He is survived by his mother, seven brothers and three sisters. Frazier’s next play likely to be surgery By Tfvor Parks__ Staff Reporter Nebraska quarterback Tommie Frazier likely will undergo surgery this week to relieve his clotting problem, one of his doctors said I--1 Wednesday. Dr. Dee pak Ganga nar, a cardio vascular sur geon at Bry an Memorial Hospital, said he was 90 i^*^^**-**-* percent cer Frazlar tain Frazier would undergo surgery to block off a superficial vein in his right calf, a surgery that is not dangerous or life-threatening. Frazier would likely miss the remainder of the Cornhuskers’ season. “As it stands now, his blood should be kept thin for three to six months,” Gangahar said. Frazier could remain in the hos pital for the next seven to 10 days, Gangahar said. Any decision on Frazier’s future, however, is not up to him, Gangahar said. “In terms of the long-term goal as to whether he plays football or not, that is up to the coaches,” Gangahar said. “But from a medi cal standpoint, he should not par ticipate in any activity while the blood is thin.” Frazier, who was diagnosed with a blood clot Sept. 25, was re admitted Tuesday afternoon to Bryan Memorial Hospital after another blood clot appeared. Gangahar said the second clot in Frazier’s right leg had dissolved late Tuesday afternoon. “We physicians have only one goal, and that goal is Tommie’s health,” Gangahar said. “We want Tommie to be healthy the way he has been in the past.” NU football coach Tom Osborne agreed that Frazier’s playing sta See FRAZIER on 7 Cops may be put in bars By Ann Stack_ Staff Reporter The Lincoln Police Department hopes that putting police in the bars will keep underage drinkers out. The department has applied for a grant through the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety to begin a program called “Badges In Bars.” Police Capt. Jim Peschong said the idea for the patrol came in part from downtown bar owners. A few own ers wanted the police to do more to keep minors out of their bars, he said. “It will consist of officers work ing in the downtown area in both plainclothes and uniform trying to catch minors using fake ID’s or con suming alcohol in bars,” Peschong said. In the past, police have done rou tine bar checks, but evidently that hasn’t been enough, he said. “We’re somewhat limited in re sources with on-duty officers, so we applied for a grant to put more en forcement in the area,” Peschong said. “Hopefully, people will drink more responsibly if they see a higher visibility of law enforcement.” He said the department had re ceived preliminary approval for the grant from the Office of Highway Safety, but Final approval should come in a few weeks. Several bars already have agreed to work with the police department, Peschong said. Chris Kugler, co-owner of Montigo Bay, 1435 O St., said he thought the program was a good idea. “I think it’ll help a lot. It’s hard to catch them (fake ID’s) because some of them are pretty good,” Kugler said. “If it’s someone helping us out, it’s Fine with me.” Frank Gillaspie, manager of Morgan’s Upstairs, 1409 O St., agreed. “They’re helping me because my liquor license is my livelihood,” he said. “If I lose that, I lose my income. If an officer is going to come in here to help me and I don’t have to pay him, I have no problem with that. “The only people who are going to have a problem with that are those who are doing something illegal,” he said. Jerry Reif, cook and doorman at The Watering Hole, 1321 O St., said the bar didn’t seem to have a prob lem with underage drinkers. The bar has a reputation for catch ing fake ID’s, he said, and it caters to older college students, most of whom have become regulars. Unfa miliar faces, he said, tend to stand out. Reif said distinguishing fake ID's from real ones wasn’t tough. “There’s a book the state puts out that shows what an ID is supposed to look like,” he said. “Also, the year they were born and the year the card is supposed to expire has to be divis ible by four. If the numbers don’t fit, it’s a fake.” The “Badges In Bars” program would be a positive addition for other bars, Reif said, but at The Watering Hole, police presence probably would be unnecessary. But it wouldn’t hurt business, he said. “I don’t see why it should bother anyone,” he said. Peschong said that if minors were caught with alcohol, they would be cited for being a minor purchasing alcohol or a minor in possession. Underage drinkers caught using fake ID’s to enter bars will be cited for misrepresentation of age to get into a liquor establishment. The maximum fine for these offenses is $500.