European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 31, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday May 31, 1989 the stars and stripes Page 3 sex spouses changed by Washington a the supreme com tues Day barred the divorced spouses of military veterans from sharing in retirement pay the veterans have converted into disability benefits. In a 7-2 ruling in a California Case the justices said a 1982 Federal Law docs not permit state court divorce decrees to Divide the disability benefits. Justice Thurgood Marshall writing for the court said we realize that Reading the statute literally May inflict economic harm on Many former spouses. But we decline to misread the statute in order 19 reach a sympathetic result when such a Reading requires us to do violence to the Plain language of the statute and ignore much of the legislative  Justice Sandra Day o Connor in a dissenting Opin Ion said the harsh reality of this holding is that former spouses. Can without their consent be de Nied a fair share of their sex spouse s military pension simply because he elects to increase his after tax in come by converting a portion of that pension into disability  Justice Harry a. Blackmun joined o Connor in Dis sent. The Case stems from the 1979 divorce of Gerald and Gaye Mansill after 25 years of marriage that produced six children. Gerald Mansell a retired air Force major receives $1,200 a month in retirement pay and $482 in disability benefits. The disability benefits were converted from retirement pay by Mansell because unlike the pension they Are exempt from taxes. The divorce settlement filed in Merced county Calif awarded Gaye Mansell half the retirement pay in an uncontested split of that Money 3nd. Originally half the disability benefits. But the retired major went to court in 1983 to mod barred from pensions vets to disability benefits Ify the divorce decree and exclude the disability pay. The California courts rejected his request. California is a Community properly state meaning property acquired during marriage is considered jointly owned. In other action tuesday the supreme court refused to lift strict advertising limits imposed on a Texas counselling Center that authorities called a supreme court Roundup fake abortion clinic run by anti abortion activists. The justices without comment let stand rulings that ads run by the problem pregnancy Center in fort Worth violated a state Law Banning deceptive Trade practices. Stale assistant attorney general Stephen Gardner contended that the Center was seeking a Constitution Al right to lie to pregnant women to entice them into a fake abortion clinic where they were urged to continue their pregnancies. Let stand a decision Banning organized prayers at the Start of High school football games refusing with out comment to review a ruling in a Georgia Case that such pro game invocations impermissible promote re Ligion. The Ullh . Circuit court of appeals by a 2-1 vote last Jan. 3, said prayers carried Over the Public address system before Douglas county a High school Home football games had to Stop because they violated the separation of Church and state required by past supreme court rulings. The appeals court Deci Sion affected All Public schools in Georgia Alabama and Florida. Refused to reinstate the conviction of a California Man Stephen Edward Leichty who admitted he tried illegally to ship a drug via air freight. Without com ment the court left intact a ruling that police unlawfully searched the shipment without a court issued search warrant. Ruled 7-2 in a Florida Case that a state death pc zloty Law docs not have to require juries instead of judges to make the specific findings authorizing imposition of capital punishment. The justices upheld the death sentence of Paul Hild win convicted of the sept. 9, 1985, strangling of Vron pc tic Cox. Police said she was raped and killed and her body was locked inside the trunk of a car left in some Woods. Defeated by an 8-0 decision a bid by mining companies to revive a 5 percent Cap on the royalties they pay to help finance Arizona Public schools. The justices upheld a ruling by the state s highest court that the Cap established by the stale legislature in 1941, violates Federal  military benefits and divorce Case involved a Federal Law Congress passed in 1982 following a supreme court ruling that barred state courts from divid ing military pay in divorces. The Law called the uni formed services former spouses Protection act allows retirement pay to be subjected to Alimony awards. The High court tuesday said the Law does not cover military pay veterans arc allowed to convert to other  the act s Plain and precise language state courts have been granted the authority to treat Dispo Sable retired Pav As Community property. They have not been granted the authority to treat total retired pay As Community property Marshall said. The Justice department which sided initially with Gaye Mansell changed its mind late last year and concluded that her former husband s interpretation of the 1982 Law is Correct. The Case is Mansill is. Mansell. 87-201. Argentina orders state of siege to curb looting Buenos Aires Argentina a merchants barricaded their shops tues Day and police guarded grocery stores after president Raul Alfonsin declared a state of siege to Slop looting by people driven to desperation by the Economy. More than 1.500 people have been arrested nationwide in five Days of unrest according to reports from officials in major cities. Many of the looters were women and children caught eating in supermarkets and fleeing with food. At least three people were killed Mon Day during looting and riots in the North Ern City of Rosario the nation s third largest City and scene of the worst Vio Lence the government news Agency Clam said. I had a Shotgun and had prepared a system to electrify the doors one shop keeper in Rosario Pablo Davola told the Noticia Argentina a news Agency. But when looters came in there were Many people i knew people from the neighbourhood he said. Police said about 750 people were arrested and 41 were injured in Rosario. Another 500 were arrested in working class suburbs of Buenos Aires. Alfonsin declared a 30-Day state of siege monday night. The order suspends civil liberties in an attempt to end unrest by people angered by soaring inflation rising unemployment a devalued currency and shrunken wages. The Alfonsin government which re placed a military dictatorship had no alternative than this measure to preserve order and guarantee the property and Liberty of citizens Interior minister Juan Carlos Pugl Csc said. Most of the capital s businesses were closed tuesday and some shopkeepers barricaded their stores. Schools closed monday remained shut and Public transportation was scarce. Two bombs exploded in Buenos Aires Early tuesday but there were no injuries. One destroyed the Entrance of an of looters head fur Home after leaving a supermarket in Rusario Arij Entinio. Fico of the Radical civic Union party which was Defeated in May 14 elections. Many have said the defeat by the Pron its was because of the economic prob lems. The other bomb caused some damage outside a communist youth federation office. Argentina Rich in resources and once one of the world s wealthiest nations has been in steady decline for years. Many Trace the crisis Back to the policies of the former president. Gen. Juan Domingo Pron who nationalized industries and expanded social programs and Public employment allowing government to grow too big after he was elected presi Dent in 1946. Things took a turn for the worse in february when the Central Bank stopped Selling . Dollars to prop up the National currency the Austral. Since then it has been devalued by 90 percent against the Dollar. The country has a $59 billion foreign debt and inflation hit nearly 388 percent last year. Inflation this month May top 70 percent. Government austerity Mea sures have added to the difficulties faced by argentinians. It was the second uprising of its kind to strike a latin american nation in four months. In february at least 276 people died in Venezuela when rioting broke out Over a government austerity plan aimed at casing payments on the foreign debt. In the Western City of Mendoza where a supermarket was firebombed Friday several others were looted monday. Pugl Csc blamed the unrest on Ultra leftists. Who want to cause  he cited the coordination of assaults jamming of police radio signals and pamphlets urging Alfonsin to resign and workers to strike. Leftist leaders denounced the state of siege and blamed the disturbances on the failure of Alfonsin s economic policy. The Way to Calm people Down is to Grant an immediate salary hike of 100 percent Index wages weekly freeze prices and Tell businesses and stores on pain of confiscation to deliver immediately food and Medicine at the fro zen prices said Deputy Luis Zamora of the movement toward socialism