European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 03, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 the stars and stripes saturday september 3, 1977 army study May suggest putting women in combat by Fred a Hoffman Washington a the army is conducting a major new study which could result in women serving in combat in a future War officials say. The study the most detailed of its kind Ever conducted by the army is aimed at establishing How women can Best fit into the service Structure and How Many can be used effectively. Army officials said thursday there is no intention to change the longstanding policy barring women from a direct combat role retired adm., 2 others face october trial Alexandria a. A retired Navy vice Admiral Malcolm w. Cagle pleaded innocent Friday in . District court to conspiracy charges involving an alleged scheme to steer a training contract to a private firm that later hired him. Retired Navy capt James n. Hooper or. Of Pensacola. Fla. And Dominic a. Paolucci of Alexandria also pleaded not guilty to charges including conspiracy to defraud the government and conspiracy to violate Federal bribery Laws. . District judge Albert v. Bryan or. Ordered the three defendants to jury trial oct. 18 and released them on personal re cognizance. The Case centers around an alleged at tempt to steer a multimillion Dollar con tract for the training of iranian Navy sailors and officers to a firm then headed by Paolucci. Cagle was chief of naval education and training at the time and Hooper was Cagle s Deputy. Both officers went to work for Paolucci s company Lulejian & associates after they retired the same Day aug. 31,1974. The indictment returned by a Federal grand jury aug. 31 said Paolucci offered Post retirement jobs to Cagle and Hooper in Exchange for their efforts to steer the training contract to his company before their retirement. A Justice department official has said the contract was never awarded to the company. As an infantry Soldier machine gunner or tank Crew member. But they said they Are looking at How women might serve in what they Call a combat  As the officials explained the concept women eventually might be assigned to signal military police transportation maintenance or medical units with a role in Battle zones. Traditionally women soldiers have been kept far to the rear in higher Headquarters or hospitals although women nurses some times have been exposed to hellfire in past wars. Earlier thursday leaders of women s organizations appealed to Congress for More jobs for women in the armed forces. Testifying before a joint economic committee panel they said expanding Par tiption of women in the armed forces would result in greater military effective Ness. One witness retired col. Mary a. Halla Ren a former director of the women s army corps testified that was served in London during world War ii bombing raids. No one Ever asked for a Transfer to a Safe Billet she said. There Are women As Well As men who crack under stress who cannot take pres sure but working with men and women Over the last 50 years both in and out of the army has convinced me that it is the individual and not the gender that determines a person s strength under pressure she said. The army study is being carried out in several sections with most of the results due for consideration next Spring by army Secretary Clifford Alexander and Gen. Bernard Rogers army chief of staff. One of the most important tests involves some 200 women who will go into the Field with units in Western Europe this month. The purpose is to judge How women stand up under rough conditions of extended Field duty. Although women started serving with the army in numbers during world War ii they were limited strictly until recent years to medical or clerical jobs. But 92 per cent of the skills in the army now Are open to women. The army has a current goal of 50,400 enlisted women by october 1979. There currently Are 45,882 women in the enlisted ranks. The number of women officers is planned to Rise from slightly Over 6,000 to about 9,000 Over the next two years. The entire army totals 783,000 men and women. Domesticated wildlife Tony Difranco 84, was in his Garden last june when a Blue Jay landed on his shoulder and they be been friends Ever since. The Jay steals French Fries off his plate when the Defranco family picnics in the backyard but usually prefers eating breakfast Cereal out of their hands. He flies around the Yard most of the Day waiting for a member of the family to come outside. Up for Job actions Bell would bar us is Aga psf . Agents White Sulphur Springs w. A. A the Carter administration will propose legislation making the Federal government the Only defendant in suits brought against government employees for their actions on the Job atty. Gen. Griffin Bell said Friday. Without such action he said he fears Federal employees will be reluctant to carry out their duties because they might be sued personally for damages. Bell s comments were in a speech pre pared for the West Virginia bar Assoc a . Holds up arms for Somalia Washington a the United states in a reversal has decided to hold up military assistance to Somalia and to bar other countries from sending Ameri can weapons there. With the current clash in Ethiopia s Ogaden Region we have decided that pro Viding arms at this time would add fuel to fire we Are More interested in putting out state department spokesman Hod Ding Carter said thursday. At the same time department officials said no transfers of american military equipment to Somalia from other coun tries will be  indication of such an arms trans Fer would require investigation officials said. Ethiopia claims Somalia has sent troops to the Region in an Effort to detach Ogaden from Ethiopia after Washington had maintained close ties with Ethiopia for years and helped to build up its army the Carter administration decided last Spring to switch the . Allegiance to rival Somalia. Ethiopia has taken a leftist turn since the overthrow of emperor Haile Selassie in 1975 and has bid successfully for soviet arms. Somalia its neighbor and historic antagonist has gone the opposite Way Loos Erang its ties with the russians and moving toward an unofficial Alliance of moslem states including Egypt and the Sudan. They have the backing of Oil Rich saudi Arabia and Carter administration policy makers see them As a counter to soviet in fluence in  late july the administration decided to join France and other governments in providing what was described As defensive arms to Somalia. We do think it is desirable that Somalia knows it does not have to depend on the soviet Union but can obtain arms from other sources the state department spokesman said. Five weeks later the same spokesman announced the reversal. We do Hope he said that this fight ing within the Borders of Ethiopia can be first stopped and the matter resolved through the mediation efforts of the organization for african Unity. It is for that reason we Are holding off on our arms  Somalia has Long had designs on the Ogaden Region. It moved against Ethiopia when the military government faced Trou Bles with marxist factions in Eritrea and secessionists elsewhere As Well. Tion and the state chamber of Commerce. On several occasions Bell has said he is concerned about the growing number of civil suits brought against Fri agents in efforts to collect damages for allegedly improper intelligence gathering tactics. In Friday s speech he spoke of the pos sible reluctance of Federal employees to perform vital work because they fear they might be sued for damages and As a result lose their life savings or  the administration he continued will shortly propose amendments. That would substitute the Federal government As sole defendant in suits against employees for actions in the course of their  he emphasized however that the proposal would still allow the government to hold employees accountable for their deeds and still leave them subject to disciplinary action or criminal  under current Law both the government and the individual employees can be sue for damages. On another subject Bell said he will talk with vice president Walter Mondale and key members of Congress about establish ing a Federal Justice Council to propose and develop programs to improve the fed eral courts and their related  he suggested the Council might be made up of the vice president the attorney Gen eral the chairmen and ranking members of the Senate and House judiciary commit tees and possibly chief Justice Warren e. Burger and one other Federal judge. If the concept comes to fruition the Council could be created by informal agreement by those included and could hold its first meeting As Early As the coming fall Bell said