VOL. 98
COVERING THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN SINCE 1901
NO. 144
)
SPORTS
Race for the title
The 1999 NCAA Men’s Gymnastics
Championships begin Thursday, with
Nebraska having a shot at the title. PAGE 8
At E
Lincoln superstars
Lincoln has trouble fostering interest in a hip-hop
scene, but some local artists are trying to bring the
noisePAGE 12
THURSDAY
April 22, 1999
38 Days aid 38 NkkiI Tito
Rain likely, high 60. Sho\yeat tonight, low 43.
Sex, 4
Drugs
Story by Bryce Glenn
Photos by Ryan Soderlin
ABOVE, FROM LEFT: BEN PERKINS, of Lincoln, Matt Kiso, a
December graduate of UNL, and Jen Scherer, an occupational
therapist, bow their heads to pray at the end of their Bible
study class held at the University Lutheran Chapel Wednesday
night.
LEFT: BEN PERKINS rests his hand on his Bible during study.
Ministries offer UNL
religious solutions
Editor s note: This is the seventh day of an eight-part series on col
lege students ’high-risk behaviors and the movements to curb them.
y» s lines began forming outside downtown Lincoln bars
/ 8 Friday night - a testament to the student tradition of week
/"'ll end partying - a group of about 100 UNL students gath
ered in the Nebraska Union to honor different testaments:
namely, the Old and New.
The Navigators, a University ofNebraska-Lincoln Christian stu
dent ministry, holds student worship services or social activities
every Friday night to give students an alternate way to blow off steam
from a week of classes.
“It provides an outlet for Friday night,” said John Hatfield,
Navigators representative. “If you’re used to going down to the
(Brass) Rail, you can come here instead.”
As the Navigators and other UNL student ministries struggle to
curb student drinking, drug use and promiscuous sex, Hatfield and
many other leaders say heavy-handed moralizing won’t solve these
problems because people who engage in these activities usually have
deeper problems.
Instead, events such as the Friday night worship service offer
encouragement and support, so students are dealt with in an open,
accepting environment, said Hatfield, who has led the organization
for 14 years. \
“It’s like an icebeig,” he said. “It’s easy to say, ‘Don’t drink,’ but
the rest of the iceberg is underneath. If you don’t go down there,
Please see MINISTRIES on 6
Read the Daily Nebraskan on the World Wide Web at dailyneb.com
Legislature
Execution
moratorium
advances in
close vote
By Brian Carlson and Jessica Fargen
Senior staff writers
By a narrow margin, the Legislature advanced a
bill Wednesday that would stop all state executions for
two years while the state studied whether or not the
death sentence was applied fairly.
LB76, which advanced 26-20 - two fewer votes
would have killed the bill - has two more rounds of
debate to clear. Gov. Mike Johanns’ signature would
make the bill law, but he has not yet said whether he
would sign it.
The bill originally would have abolished the death
penalty, but it has been amended to enact a two-year
moratorium. No execution dates could be set during
the moratorium, which would end in 2001. The
Nebraska Crime Commission would study the death
penalty from September 1999 to Jan. 1,2001.
Murderers could still receive the death sentence,
and die appeals process would go on under die bill.
Please see DEATH on 2
Local officials
alert to danger
in high schools
■ In the wake of Denver’s tragedy,
education and police officials say
the same could happen in Lincoln.
By Josh Funk
Senior staff writer
In the wake of Tuesday’s school shooting in
Colorado, local officials said it may be difficult to
prevent similar incidents.
But all are working to ensure the safest possible
school environment by stopping problems before
they start.
“I’m not convinced that you can stop incidents
like this one that occurred from happening,” said
Becky Wild, director of student services for Lincoln
Public Schools.
“But there are things we need to always look for
and be aware of in student behavior.”
Officials are looking for ways to put an end to the
recent string of school shootings nationwide that was
punctuated by two students’ rampage Tuesday in a
Denver-area high school that left 15 dead.
Students at Lincoln High School said the shoot
ing had been on their minds; some worried that some
Please see SCHOOLS on 2