Miller can speak but not vote
By Julie Sobczyk
Senior Reporter
Although Regent Drew Miller of
Papi 11 ion won’t go to the NU Board of
Regents’ meeting Saturday, he will
still make his? opinions heard.
Miller is in Stuttgart, Germany,
serving as a major in the Nebraska Air
National Guard.
He wi 11 be participating in the meet
ingviatelephonc, said Richard Wood,
NU general counsel.
Under the state public meetings
law, however, any votes that Miller
makes will not count.
“He will still participate and be
recognized and can still be heard on
matters,” Wood said. “But if he is not
present, he cannot vote.”
The law states that a person must
be present at the public meeting for
the vote to count. The only exception
is if the meeting is called an emer
gency.
In that case, votes via telecommu
nications would count, Wood said.
The meeting has not been declared an
emergency.
J.B. Milliken, NU corporation sec
retary, said he would still call Miller’s
name during roll and a record of his
vote would still be taken.
“It isn’t that anyone doesn’t want
Regent Miller’s vote to count,”
Milliken said. “It’sjust that if... there
is a challenge under open meetings
laws, that would invalidate the re
gents’ actions.
“That’s a risk that can’t be take^.”
Regents
Continued from Page 1
not be fair for Blank, who has been
chairperson twice, to take another turn.
“In past years, it had been agreed
upon that it was passed around,”
Skrupa said. “It hasn’t been that way
lately. Three or four want to keep it
under their control.
“I don’t see why they want to. It’s
largely a ceremonial position.”
Allen agreed.
“We should take turns,” he said.
“It’s a teamwork kind of a thing.”
Allen had the sharpest criticism for
Blank.
“We’re talking about mediocrity
personified,” he said.
Also on the regents’ agenda this
weekend:
• A program statement for a S7.66
million parking garage near Memo
rial Stadium at the University of Ne
braska-Lincoln.
The structure would house 600
parking stalls, several campus offices
and rental space for commercial op
erations. The structure also could be
expanded to house another 300 spaces.
• An increase of $20 in UNL stu
dent fees to help pay for the Nebraska
Union expansion project.
The fee increase was approved by
students in the last Association of Stu
dents of the University of Nebraska
elections. It will not take effect until
1998.
• The approval of the bonds to pay
for the Union expansion project. The
project is'estimated to cost $ 13.8 mil
lion.
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Eating Disorders Education GroupI
Group discussions/presentations
offered each week!
Topics include nutrition, exercise,
and the psychological and emo
tional aspects of eating disorders.
Open to students, family or friends!
UHC Counseling & Psychological
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—
Two Sessions Offered!
Session I: Jan. 23-Feb. 20
Session 2: Feb. 27-Apr. 2
Tuesdays, 3:30-4:45 p.m.
UHC 213, $25 for students
$50 for others; Begister at
the UHC Business Office!
_Law & Order
Teen-ager killed in shooting accident
A 13-year-old boy died Thurs
day morning from an accidental
gunshot wound to his head.
Michael Bryan, 6701 Vine St.,
died at 5:30 a.m. at St. Elizabeth
Community Health Center.
Bryan’s 14-year-old sister acci
dentally shot him at their residence
just after 8 p.m. Wednesday, Lin
coln Police Sgt. Ann Hecrmann
said. The two children were home
alone.
County Attorney Gary Lacey is
investigating the incident.
An irate man whose car was be
ing towed attacked a Lincoln police
parking officer Wednesday morn
ing, police said.
According to reports, Danny
Adkins, 1111 S. 32nd St., returned
to his vehicle on P Street between
Seventh and Eighth streets to find
Officer John May towing it because
of unpaid tickets.
Adkins, 26, allegedly punched
May in the face through the win
dow of May’s car. When May got
out of his car, police said, Adkins
repeatedly hit and kicked him.
A nearby bicycle officer, whom
May called for assistance, detained
Adkins and arrested him for as
sault.
May was treated and released
from Lincoln General Hospital.
A Crimestoppers tip led police
to bust a 21 -year-old suspected drug
dealer and seize three weapons and
narcotics.
Police contacted Filipp
Mirzakhanov at 3:28 p.m. Wednes
day at Yia Yia’s Pizza, 1423 O St.
Police obtained a warrant to
search Mirzakhanov’sbriefcaseand
took him and the briefcase into cus
tody. Inside the briefcase, they
found a loaded 9mm handgun and
14 grams of methanphetamine.
Police then searched two resi
dences: 139N. 11th St., Apt. 1002,
Mirzachanov’sresidencc,an#l 107
L St.
There they found a semi-auto
matic 9mm gun, a ,22-calibcr re
volver, .7 grams of “crack” cocaine
and 14 grams of methanphetamine.
Mirzachanov was arrested for
possession ofacontrolled substance
with intent to deliver, possession of ?
a handgun while violating the con
trolled substance act and carrying a
concealed weapon.
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
police are investigating the theft of
$3,700 in computer parts out of
Architecture Hall.
Sgt. My lo Bushing said Wednes
day that the parts were taken from a
computer lab- at 3 p.m. He said
pol ice were questioning people who
had keys to the labs.
— Compiled by Chad Lorenz
Tobacco
Continued from Page 1
samples.
• If retailers sold the tobacco at a
nominal cost, one substantially below
the original cost.
By honoring the coupon, Camp
said, retailers probably didn’t realize
they would lose profit, thus the cost
could not be considered nominal.
But Tom Bassett, who helped draft
the law in 1989, said Camp missed the
law’s intention.
* “In my estimation, she is wrong,”
Bassett said.
Bassett said the tobacco was sold
at a nominal cost because the coupon
offered a 50 to 60 percent discount on
the tobacco. At Super Saver grocery
at 2662 Cornhusker Highway, where
the tobacco is sold for $2.38, the cou
pon grants a 63 percent discount.
“Anything sold under 50 percent
off is at nominal cost,” Bassett said.
Bassett, who is executive director
of the Nebraska Dental Association,
worked with state senators Merton
“Cap” Dierks of Ewing and Arlene
Nelson of Grand Island to draft the
law after it had been defeated twice in
the Legislature, he said.
They wrote the law to keep manu
facturers from givingchewingtobacco
away as free or nearly-free samples,
Bassett said.
“We tried to think in terms of what
they would do to get around it,” he
said.
Bassett said he thought the law
would prevent promotional distribu
tion because it prohibited smokeless
tobacco distribution at no or nominal
cost, and coupon discounts or rebates.
“It’s up to state officials to enforce
the law as it was intended,” he said.
But Investigator Dan Plautz said
the state patrol had never issued any
fines for violations of the law.
He said Nebraska didn’t have a
commission to oversee tobacco laws
as it does for liquor, so tobacco li
cences were relatively easy to obtain.
Bassett said if officials continued
to interpret the law wrongly, the its
original purpose would be lost.
“Our attorney general is interpret
ing a law different from how our Leg
islature intended it,” Bassett said. “It’s
disappointingto see them finding ways
around it.”
=1
$4.00
Daily Nebraskan Wedding
Extravaganza and Fashion Show
in the Nebraska Student Union!
Answers to these questions and more at the
Daily Nebraskan Wedding Extravaganza and Fashion Show
Tuesday, January 16 from 10-2pm in the Nebraska
Student Union (Watch the DN for the room number!)
The fashion show will be in the main lounge at 11:30am.
Listen to:
!
for More Details! ' ^
Many businesses from in
and around Lincoln will be
on hand to help you get
started on planning the
wedding of your dreams.
✓
