Police target violators
lacking proper IDs
■ Some people pose as siblings
orgivefalseinlbnnationwhen
cited, police say.
BY JOSH FUN*
Imagine being pulled over
for speeding and being hauled
off to jail for an outstanding
warrant, even though you’ve
never committed a crime.
Prospective employers
might refuse to hire people after
checking their criminal history,
and insurance companies
might cancel a driver's coverage.
Lincoln Police Chief Tom
Casady said these scenarios are
all too common because hun
dreds of people give false infor
mation to police.
So starting September 1,
Lincoln Police will fingerprint
all people without proper iden
tification when they are dted for
criminal or traffic offenses.
“There are lots of sad stories
here,” Casady said. “People get
stopped for speeding and end
up on the way to jail because
they have a warrant out, but it's
not them.”
Officers will carry an inkless
fingerprint pad, similar to the
ones banks use to validate
checks, to put the right index
fingerprint on the back of cita
tions.
This will allow police to
establish the identity of people
without a photo ID. Casady said
the other alternative is to arrest
everyone with insufficient ID.
This year there have already
been 228 cases of false identifi
cation. Last year there were 395.
The numbers have grown
steadily since 19%, Casady said.
Most typically a brother or
sister will pose as a sibling when
confronted by police.
Another common source of
these misidentifications is a
friend who shared personal
information to get a fake ID in
college and years later is still
using it, Casady said.
"We’re trying to minimize
the number of these," said
Casady, who believes Nebraska’s
low-tech driver’s license is part
of the problem.
Other states have licenses
with magnetic strips, similar to
a credit card, which are harder
to counterfeit
Fetal-tissue use issue still unresolved
■ UNMC says it has found an
alternative source for two kinds
of cells it uses for research.
BY QEORQE QREEN
A yearlong conflict between
University of Nebraska Medical
Center officials and anti-abor
tion groups over the use of
aborted fetal tissue for research
still remains unresolved.
Sen. John Hilgert of Omaha
tried to end the conflict last
spring by introducing a bill that
would ban the use of aborted
fetal tissue.
But a lack of time and sup
port for the bill forced Hilgert to
withdraw it nine days before the
end of the legislative season.
Hilgert would not comment
about any plans to reintroduce
anti-fetal research bills for the
upcoming legislative session.
"I would rather not share
(my plans),” he said. "Those are
my thoughts.”
Dr. Sam Cohen, chairman of
the department of pathology
and microbiology at die Medical
Center, said recent changes in
federal guidelines announced
by President Clinton will not
affect research underway at the
Med Center.
The federal guide'ines deal
vith stem cell research, which
ioesnt directly relate to the pro
grams at UNMC.
The change in federal guide
ines allows scientists to con
luct federally funded research
>n human embryos.
Three weeks ago,Med Center
esearchers announced they
lad found an alternative source
o the fetal tissue they used to
esearch Alzheimer's and
^arldnson’s diseases.
Researchers have been able
0 retrieve some of the cells they
teed from deceased adults
hrough a procedure called a
apid autopsy, said Dr. Howard
jendelman, professor of neu
ovirology and neurodegenera
ive disorders at the Medical
>nter.
A rapid autopsy is similar to
1 standard autopsy except it
>ccurs soon after death, he said.
By using the rapid autopsy
>rocedure, researchers have
>btained microglia and
istroglia cell types, Gendelman
aid.
Researchers still need tissue
rom aborted fetuses to gather
he third cell type, neurons,
2ohen said.
Neurons are brain cells that
eceive and send electrical sig
lals throughout the body,
tficroglia and astroglia support
*They (researchers at the Medical Center) have
become adept at spinning this issue to the
media,
Julie SchmJt-Albin
Nebraska Right to Life executive director
neurons.
The Med Center is still
actively looking for alternative
sources of tissue to end the con
flict, Gendelman said.
“We will leave no stone
unturned in search of an alter
native source,” Gendelman said.
Julie Schmit-Albin, execu
tive director of Nebraska Right
to Life, is skeptical about the
researchers’ goals.
Schmit-Albin said she has
never heard researchers say
their goal is to stop using fetal
tissue altogether.
The Medical Center has
made some effort to find alter
native sources, but some of it
seems like window dressing for
the public, Schmit-Albin said.
“They (researchers at the
Medical Center) have become
adept at spinning this issue to
the media,” Schmit-Albin said.
NU Regent Drew Miller, a
proponent of the fetal cell
research, ardently disagrees
with Schmit-Albin about the
researchers’ goals. UNMC Is not
spinning the issue, he said in an
e-mail to the Daily
Nebraskan."The Med Center
made it 100 percent clear—we
want to develop an alternative
source,” Miller said.
The Med Center has nothing
to gain by not finding an alter
native source, Miller said.
In fact, the Medical Center
will share its findings with uni
versities nationwide so that
other institutions can conduct
research with alternative
sources, Miller said.
Miller questioned Schmit
Albin’s motivation for not
believing Medical Center offi
cials.
Miller said he thought
Schmit-Albin was using this
issue as a way to generate pub
licity and donations for her
cause.
“Only a fool would think our
goal is anything less than 100
percent,” Miller said.
Z)«//yNebraskan
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DAILY NEBRASKAN
Despite labels, tires missinq safety feature
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Some
Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. tires
supplied to Ford Motor Co. in
Venezuela did not have a nylon
layer even though they had been
labeled as having that safety fea
ture, the tire mater said.
TODAY
Windy
high 92, low 77
TOMORROW
Partly cloudy
high 89, low 67
A Ford spokesman on
Tuesday disputed part of the tire
company's explanation, saying
the automaker had asked for the
safety feature years earlier than
Bridgestone/Firestone started
producing it
Venezuelan authorities are
investigating the tires in con
nection with 62 accidents and
are expected to submit a report
to the country’s attorney general
that could lead to fines or crimi
nal prosecution against the tire
maker and Ford.
Bridgestone/Firestone said
the mistake has been corrected,
and the company has no plans
to recall tires made in Venezuela
even though Ford said it is push
ing for one. However,
Venezuelan dealers were asked
Thursday to return their inven
tories of mislabeled tires to the
company,
Bridgestone/Firestone spokes
woman Christine Karbowiak
said.
Another company
spokesman, Ken Fields, said
Ford asked for a layer of nylon
between the steel belts and
tread of two types ofWildemess
AT tires in January 1999.
Firestone’s Venezuela plant
began producing those modi
fied tires six months later, Fields
said. Before that modification
went into effect, however,
Firestone “inadvertently began
marking tires without a cap ply
(nylon layer) as tires that had a
cap ply,” Fields said.
But Ford spokesman Mike
Vaughn on Tuesday disagreed
with Fields’ account. Vaughn
said Ford had asked for the
nyion-ieinforced tires in 1996.
“This mis
marking
situation
is totally
unrelated
to the
U.S.
recall."
Bridgestone/
Firestone
spokeswoman
i
Doubles - 3-Person - 4-Person Leagues
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Fac/Staff
Teams Wanted!
Sign up at
East Campus Union
Info Desk or
Lanes n’ Games
For info: 472-9627
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