Gore presses urgency of decision
Nelson sympathizes with
Gore from own experience
BY BRIAN CARLSON
When searching for insight on
the presidential election’s stale
mate, Sen.-elect Ben Nelson can
simply look to his own political
past
In the 1990 Democratic
gubernatorial primary, Nelson
defeated Bill Hoppner by a razor
thin margin of 41 votes.
On Election Night that year, he
trailed by about 250 votes. But
after several recounts and correc
tions of mathematical errors,
Nelson came out on top.
The recounts extended for
more than a month, but the
Nebraska Supreme Court finally
ordered that Nelson be certified
the Democratic nominee.
He went on to win the general
election and served two terms.
“Nobody is more sympathetic
to how it is to live under die cloud
of an indefinite outcome than I
am,” Nelson said. “I understand
how important it is to have the
judiciary involved in it”
For that reason, Nelson is not
calling on Vice President A1 Gore
to concede just yet, even after
George W. Bush’s certification as
the winner in Florida.
“Keep in mind, Gov. Bush filed
the action in the U.S. Supreme
Court,” Nelson said. "If you follow
the logic, why would you quit
before you have the case heard?”
On Friday, the U.S. Supreme
Court will hear oral arguments on
whether the Florida Supreme
Court overstepped its authority by
ordering that hand recounts be
considered and extending the
statutory deadline for an election
certification.
Nelson said the court may
provide a definitive ruling that
brings order to the chaos of law
suits, public relations and political
posturing that have gone on since
Election Day.
“There will be enough of a
cloud hanging over the presiden
cy,” he said “What we need to do
is get in a position where we
reduce the size of the cloud. The
Supreme Court can provide
something definitive.”
Nelson said he was unsure if
there was any way Gore could win
in a timely fashion. The court’s rul
ing may help decide that, he said.
Nelson said he agreed with
Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., who
said this week if Bush becomes
president, he should appoint
Democrats to his Cabinet because
of the close election results.
Nelson also urged the federal
government to appoint a com
mission, perhaps led by former
Presidents Gerald Ford and
Jimmy Carter, to study ways to
ensure ballots can be understood
by voters and counted accurately.
He said it was unlikely the
Electoral College would go, even if
Bush wins the electoral vote and
loses the popular vote.
But he said all 50 states should
consider adopting the systems in
Maine and Nebraska, die only two
states that don’t award electoral
votes on a winner-take-all basis.
In those states, the winner of
each congressional district wins
one electoral vote and the
statewide winner earns two.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A1
Gore’s legal filings reverberated
with the sense of a race with the
dock. Repeatedly his lawyers used
the words “emergency” and
“urgent"
George W. Bush’s attorneys
said there was no need for any
more recounts. They opposed
Gore’s proposals while telling a
Florida judge they were hurrying
as fast as they could to meet hurry
up deadlines for court filings.
With time growing ever short
er, Gore’s lawyers pleaded with a
court Tuesday for speedy hearings
and new ballot recounts to be
done by judges or court derks.
The vice president, too, went
on television to stress the urgency
and accuse Bush’s legal team of
stalling in Florida - at the same
time fifing briefs along with Bush
at the U.S. Supreme Court in
Washington.
Bush and the Republicans
"just want to run the dock out so
the votes will not be counted,”
said Gore attorney Jeff Robinson.
In Tallahassee, Circuit Court
Judge N. Sanders Sauls began a
hearing late Tuesday to deal with
new legal briefs that seemed to
arrive almost hourly.
A fast-paced schedule out
lined by Gore’s lawyers would
allow the Florida Supreme Court
to hear any appeal and issue an
order, if necessary, by Dec. 9, three
days before a Dec. 12 deadline for
the state to choose its electors.
Gore’s team first proposed
appointment of a special master
to scrutinize disputed ballots. But
Robert Hng/Newsmakers
A small group of Democratic party supporters gather outside the Stephen P. dark Government Center on Tuesday in Miami to show
its support for Vice President Al Gore's request to manually recount 10,000 ballots in Miami-Dade County.
when the Bush lawyers objected,
Gore’s attorneys came back with a
plan for court clerics or judges in
Miami-Dade and Palm Beach
counties to conduct hand
recounts of some 13,000 disputed
presidential ballots.
The action in Washington,
meanwhile, involved a challenge
brought by the Republicans to
overturn a Florida Supreme Court
ruling that came down on the side
of recounting votes beyond a
deadline in state law. A hearing
before the high court was set for
Friday.
Gore's team asked the high
court to avoid interfering in
Florida’s presidential recount dis
pute, saying the issue “does not
belong in federal court”
Bush attorneys told the jus
tices in their brief that it was the
Florida Supreme Court ruling that
was “inconsistent with federal
law”
In Tallahassee, Gore is contest
ing Florida’s certification of Bush
as the winner of the state and its
decisive 25 electoral votes.
“The need for the judiciary to
transcend mob action in Miami is
clear and urgent,” the state court
motion said, reiterating a claim
that the canvassing board stopped
counting ballots there because of
intimidation by Republicans.
Bush attorney Fred Bartlit said
there was no such intimidation.
A different judge meantime
set a Dec. 6 trial date for chal
lenges to results in Seminole
County, where a Democratic
activist has accused Republicans
of tampering with absentee ballot
applications and wants more than
15,000 votes thrown out It would
cost Bush nearly5,000votes.
" ' - v • ' ■ x
Dew cans'ad
promotes
NUtodo.com
BYJH1ZEMAN
A can of Mountain Dew could give students mote
than the usual dose of caffeine and sugar.
Cans in die Lincoln area are now displaying an
advertisement for a UNLWsb site, wwwNUtodo.com,
which offers alternatives to drinking.
The promotion is funded by Pepsi, a sponsor of
the Web site, and NU Directions, a group that aims to
reduce high-risk drinking, said Linda Major, NU
Directions coordinator
The advertisement shows the Web site address, as
well as a brief description of its purpose.
The NUtodo Web site lists activities in the Lincoln
area, such as concerts, art shows, plays and restau
rants.
Major said student response has been positive so
far, but many agreed the site should have more activ
ities listed
The Web site was created in October 1999, and its
layout hasn't changed since then, she said.
Major said she didn’t know if the Web site has
received more hits since its inception. This is because
the group is focusing more on making the site as stu
dent-friendly as possible, she said
But NU Directions planned to add more and
more to better suit the students, Major said.
“We’re continually working to improve it,” she
said.
A University of Nebraska-Lincoln advertising
class made suggestions to improve the Web site, and
Major said NU Directions will take the ideas seriously.
“We're not going to heavily promote this site until
we’re confident students will have a good experience
(accessing it),* she said
But the Mountain Dew cans should drum up
some interest in the site, said Tom Workman, NU
Directions spokesman.
The cans were just recently distributed but were
manufactured in November, he said
Workman, who designed the panel for the cans,
said they will be available until the supply runs out
The special NUtodo cans will be distributed in
nine counties, he said
"Wfe’re excited that we’ve been able to expose (the
Web site) to so many people,” he said
TODAY TOMORROW
Partly cloudy Showers
high 42, low 28 high 48, low 28
£><z#j'Nebraskan
rjlll L1 c . _ . Questions? Comments?
Managing EcHtOR BrtM&s A^forthe.ppmprtrte^ion ^ihor^
Associate News Editor Kimberly Sweet „
Opinion Editor Samuel Mdtewon " «*n@unl.e«Ju
Sports Editor Matthew Hansen
Arts Editor Dane Stickney General Manager DanShattil
Copy Desk Co-Chief: Lindsay Young Publications Board Russell Willbanks,
Copy Desk CoOtief: Danell McCoy Chairman: (402)436-7226
Photo Chief: Heather Glenboski Professional Adviser Don Walton, (402) 473-7248
Art Director Melanie Falk Advertising Manager Nick Partsch, (402) 472-2589
Design Chief: Andrew Broer Assistant Ad Manager Nicole Woita
Web Editor Gregg Steams Classified Ad Manager Nikki Bruner
Assistant Web Editor Tanner Graham Circulation Manager Imtiyaz Khan
Fax Number: (402) 472-1761
World Wide Web: www.dailyneb.com
The Daily Nebraskan (USPS144-080) is published by the UNL Publications Board, 20 Nebraska
Union, 1400 R St, Lincoln, NE 68588-0448, Monday through Friday during the academic year;
weekly during the summer sessions. The public has access to the Publications Board.
Readers are encouraged to submit story ideas and comments to the Daily Nebraskan by calling
(402)472-2588.
Subscriptions are $60 for one year.
Postmaster Send address changes to the Daily Nebraskan, 20 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St,
Lincoln, NE 68588-0448. Periodical postage paid at Lincoln, NE.
ALL MATERIAL COPYRIGHT 2000
__DAILY NEBRASKAN
High court hit with briefs supporting Brandon
BY JOSH FUNK
The Nebraska Supreme Court has been flooded
with briefs in support of Teena Brandon’s mother’s
appeal of a judgment against the sheriff in die county
where Brandon was murdered
The state high court may hear arguments in the
case in early December Nineteen local and national
groups have filed briefs in support of Brandon, and
more may be entered before the case is heard
Brandon’s mother, Joann, argues that the $17,000
negligence judgment against the Richardson County
Sheriffistoolow.
The county judge assigned 14 percent of the
responsibility for Brandon’s death to Sheriff Charles
Laux and die county. Eighty-five percent of the blame
went to the two men convicted of Brandon’s murder,
and 1 percent was assigned to Brandon herself.
Laux responded with an appeal arguing he
should not have been found negligent for his investi
gation into rape allegations made by Brandon shortly
before her death.
Additionally, Laux argues that if he is found negli
gent, it should only be for the 14 percent liability
assigned by the lower court
The case has garnered national attention, and
two movies have been made about the circum
stances of Brandon’s life and death.
Brandon was living as a man in Falls City at the
time of her death. At her murder trial prosecutors
argued that Brandon’s lifestyle was part of her killers’
motives.
John Lotter and Marvin Nissen were convicted of
murdering Brandon, 21, lisa Lambert, 24, and Philip
DeVine, 22, in a farmhouse near Humboldt in 1993.
Lotter is on Nebraska’s death row for the murders,
and Nissen is serving a life sentence.
Teena Brandon was murdered one week after she
reported to Laux that Lotter and Nissen had raped
her, according to arguments submitted by the
Lambda Legal Defense and Educational Fund, a
national equal-rights group representing Joann
Brandon.
Laux informed the rapists of the allegations
against them and took no steps to protect Brandon,
said the Lambda lawyers, who are working with
Lincoln attorneys Michael Hansen and Herb
Friedman.
The tide of one of the sub-sections of Brandon’s
appeal compares the sheriff’s actions to “pouring
vinegar into an open wound.”
Laux argues that his investigation into Brandon’s
rape allegations was reasonable and that he was not
obligated to tell Brandon he did not plan to arrest
LotterandNissen.
“Sheriff Laux discharged his duty to protect Teena
Brandon by conducting a reasonable investigation of
her rape,” according to Lame's brief.
The 19 friend-of-the-court briefs filed by outside
groups in this case address a child’s value to a parent,
law enforcement’s blame-the-victim approach to
rapes and the rate of violence against transgendered
people
ASUN, Academic Senate tackle records i
LAWSUIT from page 1
Inc., have campaigned to make
sure campus police and univer
sity disciplinary records are not
hidden as part of a student’s
educational record.
“Students need to know
about crime on campus,
whether it is handled by police
or the disciplinary office, so they
can make informed decisions to
avoid being a victim,” said
Daniel Carter, Security On
Campus’ vice president.
Security On Campus was
founded in 1987 by Connie and
Howard Clery after their daugh
ter Jeanne was beaten, raped
and murdered in her residence
hall room at Pennsylvania’s
Lehigh University.
After Jeanne’s murder, the
Clerys learned that 38 violent
offenses had been reported on
the Lehigh campus in a three
year period. But the university
had failed to warn students
about any dangers, according to
the Security On Campus Web
site, www.socontine.org.
Carter said for a university’s
disciplinary system to be effec
tive, students must know how
the cases are being handled.
“(Students) need to know
how justice is being adminis
tered and whether potentially
violent students may be on
campus,” Carter said. “They
may not be able to trust people
as much as before.”
University of Nebraska
Lincoln policy states that disci
plinary and counseling records
should not be released unless
required by law or if the safety of
others is involved.
Earlier this fall, the Daily
Nebraskan requested that UNL
release the results of discipli
nary actions involving crimes of
violence and sex offenses out of
concern for campus safety.
The newspaper also was
concerned the Office of Judicial
Affairs was not being held
accountable because the
records remain confidential.
The campus newspaper
asked for the information under
Nebraska's open records law
because a 1998 revision to the
federal Higher Education Act
makes it clear that crimes of vio
lence and sex offenses should
not be protected as educational
records.
UNL and the state Attorney
General rejected the Daily
Nebraskan’s requests.
An exception to the state
open records law states that a
student's personal records do
not have to be released, but the
law does not prohibit their
release.
Expert: Dairy farms, laws harm water
COWS from page 1
Martin, who was an expert
witness in die Verdigre trial, said
Nebraska has several glaring
problems with its system to guard
the environment
"If I were a Nebraskan, I would
be highly concerned,” she said.
Nebraska s environmental
laws are vague and general, she
said.
The laws also are more lenient
and are easier to comply with
than laws in other states, she said.
In states such as Oklahoma,
regulations explicitly mandate
how farms have to guard against
environmental disasters, such as
waste seeping into streams, she
said.
“Nebraska has not specifically
defined these areas,” she said.
Furthermore, Martin said, the
Nebraska Department of
Environmental Quality “has not
embraced the problem” that
feedlots pose.
For example, Martin said, she
did an independent evaluation of
a hog farm in Hayes County that
already went through a depart
ment inspection.
When she arrrived, Martin
said, she found a 39-foot dam in a
creek that had been filled with
cow manure.
Such an arrangement is not
environmentally sound, she said.
Matin also said some mem
bers of the Department of
Environmental Quality may have
conflicts of interest
Dennis Heitmann, who works
for the department, also worked
for a committee charged with
enticing dairy farmers to come to
Nebraska, she said.
Heitmann would not com
ment on Martin’s allegations.
Several private businesses
and government committees
have been enticing dairy farmers
to come to Nebraska.
They cite Nebraska’s low land
and feed prices as reasons to relo
cate to Nebraska, Borer said.
The possibility of an environ
mental disaster spreads beyond
Heitmann's conflict of interests,
Martin said.
Martin said she met with the
Department of Environmental
Quality’s board of directors earlier
this year to propose changes to
Nebraska laws.
During this meeting, she said,
the board was disregarding the
possibility that feedlots may be
polluting area streams
“I was highly disappointed
with their attitude,” she said.
Speaker addresses
justice, democracy
JUSTICE from page 1
“judicial romanticism” - the idea that criminal pros
ecutions can solve the world’s ills, Forsythe said.
Sometimes, he said, a nation can make an easier
transition to democratic peace if it forgoes criminal
prosecutions or pursues them cautiously.
If NATO peacekeeping forces had aggressively
sought to capture indicted war criminals shortly after
the 1995 Dayton Accords that ended the fighting in
Bosnia, they probably would have suffered casualties
while pursuing them.
This may have caused Western support for
peacekeeping to collapse, and Bosnia may have been
engulfed by ethnic warfare once again, Forsythe said.
Likewise, Yugoslav President Slobodan
Milosevic’s indictment by the Hague criminal court
in the spring of 1999 may have delayed his fall from
power. Had he been offered immunity, the West
might have negotiated his resignation from power
far earlier than this fall, when he lost in a democratic
election.
In some situations, as in South Africa after the fall
of apartheid, the solution has been truth and recon
ciliation commissions.
In these cases, officials who have violated human
rights are granted immunity if they confess their
deeds and express remorse.
“Unfortunately, truth commissions come very
close to situations of impunity, which is very frustrat
ing for victims and their relatives,” Forsythe said.
“But on balance, a truth commission may be a
way of making the best of a bad situation. If truth
commissions could be combined with fair trials, you
might have the best of both worlds. Alas, that situa
tion rarely presents itself”
Other approaches include reparations and
apologies. Some have suggested the U.S. govern
ment owes both to black Americans and other
groups whose human rights have been violated.
Forsythe said he supported an official U.S. apolo
gy for slavery and racial discrimination. The federal
government should make reparation payments, not
to individuals, but to non-governmental organiza
tions that promote causes like improved education
for blacks, he said.
“The U.S. attempt to lead on human rights issues
will ring hollow unless we face with brutal honesty
our own history,” he said.
The desire for criminal justice will continue to
butt heads with political reality, Forsythe said.
Because of that fact, the international community
must consider a range of responses to cases of geno
cide, crimes against humanity or other atrocities, he
said.
“The decision on how to respond to atrocities
and deal with the demands for justice after injustice
is no easy matter.”
