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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 3, 1999)
SPORTS One down HI The Nebraska women’s basketball team clawed its way to a 82-71 win over Texas A&M in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. PAGE 9 A & E South by so what Ev ear the best unsigned bands go to Texas for a giant music festival and a chance to get signed. Two invited Nebraska bands say “big deal.” PAGE 12 JLViarcn a, xyyy Sun Signs Partly sunny, high 45. low 33. VOL. 98 COVERING THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN SINCE 1901 NO. 113 Three arrested in Pickinpaugh murder case Police say a drug deal was involved * * By Josh Funk Senior staff writer Police arrested three suspects this week in the murder of a Lincoln teen-ager who was found dead in Van Dorn Plaza Shopping Center on Feb. 18. The murder was the result of a botched robbery in the parking lot, Lincoln Police Chief Tom Casady said. Brandon Pickinpaugh was shot once in the head while the three men tried to steal the approximately three quarters of a pound of marijuana and the $950.40pickinpaugh had with him, police said. Casady sard Pickinpaugh had been dealing drugs. All three men were arrested for other crimes, and the County Attorney will charge them for the homicide after reviewing the files. Pickinpaugh, 17, was shot and was found lying on the ground next to the green Chevrolet Cavalier he was driving. A McDonald’s customer who was parked near Pickinpaugh saw his body when he was returning to his car around 9:30 p.m. and called police. ' Pickinpaugh, a Hastings native, had been living in a group home run by Robert and Marilyn Beggs since he became a ward of the state in December 1997. He was a junior at Lincoln Southeast High School. None of the suspects arrested were group home residents, but sev eral of them were known gang mem bers, Casady said. Jeremy Kurtzer, 18, was arrested Monday evening at 6011 S. 43rd St. for possession of stolen property. Police said Kurtzer gave a stolen handgun to another teen-ager who robbed an ATM user in January. Derek Graves, 20, was arrested for several outstanding warrants Monday afternoon when police served a search warrant at his apart ment, 4600 Briarpark Drive, Apt. H2. i" Graves was wanted for burglary, possession of a controlled substance and refusal to comply with a police . officer. The SWAT team found several guns in Graves’ apartment, and they arrested Graves’ roommate, Tanner Andrews, 19, for having a .38-Caliber revolver that was stolen in a November burglary. Andrews has not been linked to the murder. Monday evening, police arrested Jedidiah Ngirchoimei, 19, for the %% This isn’t the Paula Jones lawsuit. If you lie in a murder investigation, you get arrested.” Tom Casady Lincoln police chief attempted robbery of Pickippaugh. Ngirchoimei, Graves and Kurtzer are all implicated in the murder, but police have not said which one shot Pickinpaugh. During their investigation, Casady said police encountered sev eral teen-agers who concealed evi dence or lied to them. Dennis Sciscoe, 19, was arrested Tuesday morning for concealing evi dence. He was charged with being an accessory to a felony. Casady said that more arrests could follow for accessory to a felony and giving false information to a police officer. In recent homicide investiga tions, Casady said the trend has been not to tell the truth to police. But Casady said investigators feel strongly that people need to be arrested for lying. “This isn’t the Paula Jones law suit,” Casady said. “If you lie in a murder investigation, you get arrest ed.” While police had Graves’ apart ment under surveillance, Casady said veteran investigators were taken aback by the number of teen-agers who hung out at the apartment even though they were aware of the gang activity. “It deeply concerns me to see 15 , lb^and 17-year-old kids hanging out here after school,” Casady said. Casady said that this murder should be a warning for parents. “The message to parents is wake up and pay attention to who your kids are hanging around with,” Casady said. Parents need to get their children away from people involved in these activities, Casady said, so they are not subject to the risks. It is dangerous to normalize this kind of conduct, Casady said. “When you get a couple of wanna-be gangsters together with a gun, you get a wanna-be homicide .” Taking the floor RickTownley/DN onlfcesday afternoon. “I love my state,” said Rockenbach, a 42-year-old IINL graduate with a degree in Great Plains folk lore. “My family has some real roots here.” Candidates make final cases Communication, academic rigor top lists of priorities By Kim Sweet Staff writer ASUN election candidates faced off one last time Tuesday, giving curi ous voters a chance to cement their decision on which box they will check in today’s elections. Presidential and second vice presidential candidates shared the microphone with senatorial candi dates for the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources positions during the first debate held on East Campus. When asked what the biggest issues students will face next year -p are, Kate Hutchens, Voice senatorial candidate for the agricultural col lege, said communicating with stu dents and finding out their concerns will be the biggest issue. “Just making sure students feel a part of the university they are in will be important,” Hutchens said. Focus presidential candidate Paul Schreier responded with the words retention rates and academic rigor. How the Legislature will view the university when considering a spend ing cap will also be a discussion that university students will have to par ticipate in next year, Schreier said. Responding to the question of how the candidates plan to bridge the divide that currently separates East Campus, Focus party senatorial can didate for the agricultural college Matt Rasmussen said bringing more core academic classes there would force students to become more famil iar with the campus. Hutchens said unifying East Campus first was necessary before trying to bring the two campuses together. A Voice ticket that is made Please see DEBATE on 6 Student aid dollars may be at risk ■ A loan program’s switch to nonprofit raises concerns about funding. By Jessica Fargen Senior staff writer Millions of dollars in scholarships and educational support for Nebraska college students was at stake recently when NebHELP - Nebraska Higher Education Loan Program Inc. - switched from for-profit to nonprofit. Concerns that the transition last year was done largely behind closed doors and with little public scrutiny is what brought representatives from a national consumer group to Lincoln this week. Patrick Gardner, coordinator of the Educational Assets Project for the Consumers Union in San Francisco, was in town to increase awareness about funds available for student financial aid through an educational foundation cre ated with the $100 million. “We are trying hard to get the public interested in their own community,” he said. “We’re trying to open the door that you all walk through.” Gardner met with representatives from social and educational groups-* Tuesday at the Nebraska Appleseed Center. Today he will meet with state officials, the Attorney General’s staff and UNL Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs James Griesen. NebHELP, which buys and sells student loans, has actual assets of about $100 million. This money was accrued during die last 20 years through issuing tax-free bonds. The $100 million was used to create the Foundation for Educational Funding. The FEF partially funds three stu dent-loan help centers statewide, one of which is at 13* and O streets. It also has given out $500,000 in need-based scholarships. Gardner said the FEF was created with taxpayer money and therefore the ^public should be involved in determin ing its mission. Insufficient public input " has gone into the foundation, he said. “When you have a nonprofit, you Please see AID on 6 Read the Daily Nebraskan on the World Wide Web at dailyneb.com