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PAGE 2: Kidnapping jeopardizes peace
Regent cai
By PaPra Jut—n
Senior Reporter
Keith Vrbicky has spent about $35,000 more
than his opponent in the 3rd District race for
the NU Board of Regents, according to a re
port released this week.
The regent candidates' campaign finance
statements, released in a report by the State
Accountability and Disclosure Commission,
show Vrbicky has spent about $46,000 on his
campaign, while his opponent. Chuck
Hassebrook of Walthill. has spent about
$11,500.
Vrbicky, who is from Norfolk, has raised
Federal
investigators
onto case
By Brian Sharp
Senior Reporter
In two separate developments Wednesday,
a judge named a special prosecutor and the US.
Justice Department initiated a federal investi
gation into the death of Francisco Renteria.
U.S. Attorney Tom Monaghan was unavail
able for comment Wednesday night, but a
memo from his office confirmed the Justice
Department's planned investigation.
While emphasizing confidence in other
probes into the case, Monaghan stated in the
memo that “public confidence would best be
served” by the federal investigation.
Renteria, 29. was mistaken by police as a
man wanted for a protection order. He died Oct.
1 while in police custody.
Monday, State Sen. Ernie Chambers of
Omaha wrote Monaghan a letter describing the
events surrounding the death.
In the letter, Chambers said police kicked
Renteria in the legs and genitals, grabbed his
hair, kneed him in the ribs when he was down
and “placed a knee on (his) neck, grabbed h^
head and twisted it to one side.”
Meanwhile. District Court Judge Donald
Endacott selected Lincoln attorney Robert F.
Bartle as special prosecutor in the case.
Bartle, who has been a partner with the
See RENTERIA on 6
UNL Police
investigate
rape report
From Staff Report*
UNL police began an investigation on
Wednesday after a woman reported that she
was forcibly raped in Schramm Residence Hall
in late August or early September.
The woman is a University of Ncbraska
Lincoln freshman. The Daily Nebraskan does
not publish names of sexual assault victims.
Police became aware of the alleged first
degree sexual assault when the student con
tacted them on a disturbance call late Tuesday
evening.
The 18-year-old student told police that an
unidentified man confronted her on Monday
at 7:30 p.m. outside the Harpcr-Schramm
Smith food service building. The student said
the man threatened her and told her to leave
the area.
It was unknown on Wednesday whether the
unidentified man was a suspect in the sexual
assault investigation.
The student told police and residence hall
officials that she thought she was safe in her
See ASSAULT on 6 _
npaign spending varies widely
about $47,000 for his campaign from busi
nesses and individual contributors, including
himself, the report showed. Vrbicky also re
ceived a $10,000 loan for the campaign from
FirsTier Bank in Norfolk.
Hassebrook, however, raised about $29,500,
mostly from individual contributors. He was
one of those contributors, the report showed.
The report showed a wide range of cam
paign expenditures among candidates in all
four races.
The eight regent candidates have spent be
tween $5,000 and $46,000 during the cam
paign, the report showed. Vrbicky has spent
more than any other candidate.
r ....
Candidates in the 4th District race were the
next biggest spenders in the campaign.
Drew Miller of Papillion has spent about
$39,700. He has raised about $40,000 from
individual contributors and businesses. He has
contributed about $1,000 to his campaign.
Miller’s opponent, incumbent Nancy Hoch
of Nebraska City, has spent about $32,000.
Like Vrbicky, she has raised about $47,000
from businesses and individual contributors.
Hoch contributed about $1,000 to her cam
paign.
She also has received a $25,000 loan for
the campaign from the Otoe County Bank and
Trust Company in Nebraska City.
Candidates in the 8th District, Richard
Berkshire and incumbent Rosemary Skrupa,
both have spent about $20,000 on their cam
paigns, the report showed.
Berkshire, an Omaha lawyer, has spent
about $20,000 during the campaign. He has
raised about $21,000, mostly from individual
contributors. Berkshire has lent $3,000 to the
campaign, the report showed. Robert Berkshire
also lent $5,000 to the campaign.
Skrupa, also of Omaha, has spent about
$16,000 on her campaign. She has raised about
$20,000. The report showed that Skrupa was
See FINANCE on 8
Jay CaMaroa/DN
Ends Chambers, state senater and write-in candidate ter gevemer, speaks In fltkraslra Ihden Wednesday.
Chambers tells audience to think, speak out
Write-in candidate
says people should
question authority
By Matthaw Walt»
Senior Reporter
In his own words, Ernie Chambers is not
a role model.
But the ficiy 56-year-old state senator
from Omaha did have a lesson to teach the
more than 70 students and faculty Wednes
day at the Nebraska Union.
“Think, observe and listen.”
Chambers, who was a guest speaker for
the African-American and African studies
program at the University of Nebraska-Lin
coln, said each individual needed to form
an opinion of what was right and wrong.
Armed with those opinions, he said, in
dividuals need to speak out. Chambers, a
write-in candidate for governor, said people
should question Gov. Ben Nelson and his
Republican challenger Gene Spence. No one
has asked questions during this race, he
said.
“What happens in this society is people
are distracted by the form and miss the sub
stance,” Chambers said. “People get side
tracked into the inconsequential and miss
the substance.”
Knowledge is supposed to be power, he
said, but people need to question authority
for that power to be realized.
Chambers said he used his knowledge
in his role as a public servant.
“What we should be concerned with, in
public life, is helping those who can't help
themselves,” he said.
However, Chambers said, people of color,
especially black people, need more knowl
edge than white people do.
“If you are white, you don’t have to
graduate (from college),” he said. “AH you
white kids are wasting your time here.”
Racism is a flawed idea, Chambers said,
because all people come from the same
place: Africa.
“If they said, ‘Well, why don’t you go
back where you came from,' I have to take
all of y’all with me," he said.
Chambers said the mind ruled over mat
ter always.
“The power of the mind and the power
of words are all overlooked in this society,”
he said. “You all have the power to change
this state.”
“Don’t think about supporting politi
cians, think about being the politicians,”
Chambers said.
Outlining his position on several issues.
Chambers said his bid for governor was
started by those oflended by Gov. Nelson
and Attorney General Don Stcnbcrg's ac
tions in the Sept. 2 execution of Harold
La m on t Otey.
On abortion. Chambers said he sup
ported the rights of women to do what they
want with their bodies. He said, however,
people have criticized his position on abor
tion because of his position on the death
penalty.
Chambers said he was opposed to the
state thinking it could kill in any situation.
He said if abortions were mandated by law,
he would be opposed to them.
With the death penalty, Chambers said
his opposition ran true through all cases,
including the recent overturning of con
victed murderer John Joubert’s death sen
tence.
Chambers said Joubert's crimes, kidnap
ping and murdering two Bellevue boys in
1983, were horrible. However, he said, the
state did not have the right to kill.
“I don't believe in the death penalty for
See CHAMBERS on 7
