European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - September 3, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 28 j the stars and stripes saturday september 3,1988 officer innocent in drowning death Pensacola Fla. A a court martial thursday acquitted the former head of a Rescue swimmer school of dereliction of duly in inc death of a recruit last March. It. Thomas a Torchia was in charge of the Navy Rescue swimmer school when airman re cruel Lee Mirucki 19, died March 2 in a raining Pool. Torchia smiled broadly and his wife. Sheila wiped tears from her eyes after the verdict was read by the head of the four member panel of higher ranking officers who heard the Case All 1 can say is the military system worked Torchia said. The same sys tem that charged me found me inno  Torchia 32, of Princeton lit., plans to remain in inc Navy and he expects a new assignment soon As an aviation maintenance officer Mirucki of Appleton wis., had a Pho Bia about being pulled under water an suffered a fear induced attack before drowning a Navy pathologist testified inthe Torchia trial. Instructors had thrown the panic stricken recruit into a swimming poo after he climbed out and shouted he wanted to quit the voluntary training witnesses have said. In closing arguments the prosecutor i. Cmdr Larry Wynne said Torchi could not use As an excuse his following of Long established procedures each Man is responsible for his own watch Wynne said. One of Torchia s lawyers retire Navy capt. Ferdinand Salomon argued the Rescue swimmer Job was Tough an dangerous and training must go beyond leaching Mere technical skills and rut stress on students to make sure they can Cope with heavy seas bad weather and dark nights when they gel to the Fleet. The maximum punishment Torchia could have faced was a Fine of two months pay a reprimand and loss of seniority for promotion. Torchia was specifically accused of failing to safeguard Mirecki and other subordinates through the Lack of Clear policies on safely and withdrawal from training. He also is accused of neglecting to step in and Stop the actions that led directly to the recruit s death. The officer had testified he was Mak ing a Telephone Call from his office Over looking the Pool and failed to hear or see anything out of the Ordinary. If he had known what was going on Torchia Testi fied he would Nave stopped it. He blamed instructors for the death. Petty officer 2nd class Michael , 28, of to crepe ariz., also faces a court martial in the Case and attorney argued for dismissal of the charges be fore a military judge on  is accused of holding Mirucki s head under the water. He is charged with involuntary Man Slaughter Battery and conspiracy to com Mit Battery. If convicted he could get unto a three year prison term on the Man Slaughter count. In their dismiss motion. Combe lawyers have alleged that vice adm. . Thunman chief of naval education and training was unqualified to Convene the general court martial because be Hada personal interest in inc Case and had been influenced by others against the defendant. The military judge cmdr. Newell , had rejected the same motion last week in Torchia s Case. Thunman denied the allegations i testimony wednesday. The Admiral s lawyer capt. Robert Vander Lugt too the witness stand thursday to support Thunman s testimony. The pretrial hearing was recessed thursday until prosecution and defense lawyers could make Legal arguments on the Issue. Thousands of polish workers end strikes Gdansk Joland up More than 5,000 work ers reluctantly  10-Day strike thursday in a triumphal procession out of the symbolic Lenin ship Yard and 10,000 strikers Al a steel Mut announced. They will unconditionally end their sit in. Solidarity Leader Lech Walesa ordered an end to the strikes after a government Promise to discuss the Revi Val of the banned Union. The talks with opposition groups will focus on ways to resolve Poland s co not in crisis. However talks appeared deadlocked in inc Baltic seaport of Szczecin and the key Southwest Coal mine of Manifest Ltd copy Over the Issue of worker Security despite an announcement by the roman Call tic Church that it had a government Anu Almlee there would by of. Repercussions against tinting workers. In the Southeast troops ringed the huge Stalowa Wola Steelwork where Hallott Nejfak workers had been.tag1ng a sit in. The management refused to Budge and planned disciplinary action and even firings the local strike com Mittee said. It said the decision was made to leave the Plant  relying on assurances by Walesa. And the episcopate. Military and government officials had repeatedly warned that the strike Al the Steelworks which produces tanks and other heavy weaponry must end because it jeopardized Poland s credibility As a Warsaw pact ally. If the strike docs not Slop soon he authorities will Ora end to it government spokesman Jerzy Urban warned hours before the strikers made their decision to follow Walesa s Call to resume work. Sen. Hatch apologizes for remark Salt Lake City api  Hatch a Utah said thurs Day he never intended to Brand Al democrats As homosexual in com ments nude the previous Day but democrats quickly pounced on Bis remarks As unbelievable and insult ing. Hatch in an extemporaneous speech wednesday during a gop fund Raiser in Southern Utah referred Lod Morrau As the Parry of homosexuals and initially de Nied nuking the comment until a tape of the speech was replayed for him i would never say thai deliberately let s put it that Way he Ihen said at news conference. If thai was. Said that was a  Brian mass Hatch s democratic opponent for the Senate mat thar file criticized the i matk Dur ing speech to the Utah Al co � state convention thursday then issued a news release hit termed the remark childish  in the speech haled called the democratic party he party of big government anti defense continual failure to support Freedom lighters All Over the a cold weak Forella pol icy really a Deng Ntim of the Monroe doctrine if you look at what they be been doing to Reagan or these last tight  of course they Low they Art the Patty of . Heyart Tot party of abort too they re the party that he be vat Choo prayer every item of Ibe Way he investigators found Wing Flap control of crashed Delta Jet in wrong position Grapevine Texas a investigators thursday found the Flap indicator handle on a shattered Boeing 727 in the wrong position but a Federal safety offi Cial said it could have been jarred that Way in the fiery crash which killed 13 people. The handle which is located on the console Between the Pilot and the first officer indicates inc position of the air Craft s Wing flaps. At a news conference thursday night National transportation safely Board member Lee Dickinson said the handle on the Delta air lines Jet that crashed wednesday was found to be in the up position opposite where it should have been for a proper Takeoff. But he added that the handle could have been pushed into the wrong Posi Tion by the Impact or by a Crew member during the plane s evacuation. Delta flight 1141 went Down As it tried to take off from Dallas fort Worth International Airport in route to Salt Lake City with More than 100 people aboard. Most were Able to escape the burning plane by crawling out of Emer gency exits or torn open areas. Alt 13 deaths were attributed to smoke inhalation according to the Tarrant county medical examiner s office with Burns also listed in two instances one survivor Robert Coester 39, of the Dallas suburb of Carrollton said he was most troubled by his unsuccessful efforts to Rescue passengers trapped in the Back of the burning plane. I tried to gel the rear door open said Roesler who was hospitalized for smoke inhalation and first second and third degree Burns. There was a hand Leon the outside. I got the door ajar but not enough for them to get  investigators found at least five bodies near that door after the flames were extinguished. The same flight thursday from dal Las fort Worth to Salt Lake City was aborted when the Pilot selected a prob Lem with his plane. Most of the i of Pas sengers including six survivors of the crash wednesday left two hours later on another plane Delta officials said. Federal investigators determined that the flaps and slats aboard a Northwest airlines my so had not been properly set for Takeoff when that plane crashed aug. 16, 1987, Al Detroit metropolitan Airport killing 156 people. Dickinson cautioned that inc its investigation team had just begun to study positions of the Delta aircraft swings and slats. On wednesday the 15-year-old Boe ing 727 failed to gain sufficient attitude bounced three times on the runway and burst into flames. At least 95 people aboard miraculously survived by clambering or being pulled through emergency doors or through cracks in the burning fuselage into the hazy Sunshine. 21 reported killed in mexican air Arteaga Mexico a All 21people aboard a twin engine commuter plane were killed when in crashed and burned irl lbs Western Siena Madr Mountain Range Saint Rescue workers who airlifted the bodies Froidl the crash site thursday. About 300 relatives and friends Gale. Ered in an Airport Al the Pacific coast port of Lazaro Cardenas to identify the victims of wednesday s crash a red Cross worker said. It s difficult. The bodies Are badly deformed and some arrived in pieces Only limbs. Others Are thoroughly burned be raid. Rain and Clouds caused by Hurricane aviation official Jaid the brazilian made ban Ceirante aircraft of the Aeroff Deral line disappeared after leaving urea Junt 185 Miles West of Mexico City on the 100-mile flight to Lazaro Carde l the Day. R " army Gen. Carmeli ten said the wreck grand bodice Fere found within a radius of Aboul � Yards. He spoke  Moretti capital of Mich Yacai by thursday night the Rera Aii of the victims had been airlifted from the crash site to Lazaro Cardenas Airport an army spokesman said. Kristy delayed the rescuers trek through the Rocky heavily forested terrain. There arc no survivors a Federal aviation inspector in Mexico City said. The inspector said the plane carried naj 21 people three Crew members an