European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 19, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 the stars and stripes Friday. January 19,1990 after 3 years and $ 15 million a mistrial Mother and son found innocent in Calif child molestation Case los Angeles a jurors on thursday acquitted the operators or the Mcmartin pro school of 52 counts of child molestation in the nation s longest and costliest criminal trial. The judge declared a mistrial on 13 remaining counts. Raymond Buckey 31. And his Mother Peggy Mcmartin Buccy 63, were found innocent of lewd and lascivious conduct with minors under 14. They cried As the verdicts were announced. The panel deadlocked on 12 Molesta Tion charges against Buccy and a single count of conspiracy against both defendants. Superior court judge William Pounders declared a mistrial on those counts. It was not immediately announced whether prosecutors would at tempt another trial on those counts. The jury spent nine weeks deliberating on the 65 molestation and conspiracy charges against the pair who were accused of molesting 11 children during a five year period at their family owned Center m Manhattan Beach. Raymond Buccy spent nearly five years in jail without being convicted until his release on si.5 million bail last february. The trial has run nearly three years Ata Cost of $15 million. A single scream was heard in the crowded courthouse hallway when the verdicts were read. An unidentified woman wept into her hands and another looked distressed. Friends or relatives shielded the women from to cameras. They re making a big mistake said Chris Collins 18. Who As a child was student at the Center. When i woke up this morning i thought they would be going to jail the next Day. The Justice system has let us  More than 1,000 pieces of evidence were entered and 124 witnesses Testi fied. Buccy and his Mother were required to stand trial after an 18-month preliminary hearing. But five women teachers who worked at the preschool had charges against them dismissed. Among those were Buccy s sister Peggy Ann and his grandmother Virginia Mcmartin who founded the once prestigious but now defunct Nursery school. The Mcmartin investigation ignited a wave of hysteria about child molestation in Southern California and the nation. It produced widespread fear among work ing parents that their children might not be Safe in private schools. Other child molestation cases surfaced in the Wake of Mcmartin but none received As much publicity. Twelve jurors and six alternates began the trial in april 1987. As months and years passed Job problems and illness took its toll leaving the Bare dozen pan lists needed to deliberate and avoid a mistrial on All 65 counts. The Mcmartin Case began in August 1983 when Judy Johnson Mother of a child at the school called Manhattan Beach police. She told the department s sex abuse and juvenile investigator that her son s Bottom was red and that he had spoken of a Man named Ray who worked at the school. Letters were sent alerting Peggy Mcmartin Buckey parents to Check their children for signs of molestation. Johnson suffering from alcohol and mental problems died at the age of 44 a few months before trial began in april 1987. Defense attorneys contended she was unbalanced and that the Case that emerged was largely the result of her increasingly bizarre allegations. On the basis of her complaint Buckey was arrested released and later arrested a second time. By 1984, when indict ments were handed up prosecutors alleged Buccy his Mother sister grand Mother and three other women teachers had molested hundreds of tots at the Raymond Buckey school during a five year period. Children gave investigators accounts of satanic rites and animals tortured to frighten the youngsters into silence. When Buckey and his Mother finally came to trial in 1987, the focus of the prosecution had narrowed. Hundreds of counts of child molestation were pruned to 64 and a shared count of  41 children once said to have been abused came Down to 11 alleged victims. Judge Pounders summed up the Case at one Point. The Case has poisoned everyone who had Contact with it he said. By that i mean Verv witness every litigant and every judicial officer. It s a very upsetting  86 Comoro remains the hottest of stolen cars Detroit a the 1986 Chevrolet Camaro once again is the hottest of America s hot cars an insurance valuation company said wednesday. Acc information services inc. Of Chicago said Samaros hold the top four spots in the company s most stolen list for 1989, just like they did the pre Vious year. I Don t know if it can be Good news that their cars Are the most popular with thieves acc s William Geen said. They Are still holding their place in the  of the lop 10 cars on the list Only one the 1988 Hyundai Excel go was not made by general motors corp. Cars and trucks made by pm and Over seas companies made up the top 14. Car thieves for the most part Are parts suppliers Geen said. And interchangeability of parts such As Between the firebird and Camaro makes those cars More Likely candidates for being stolen. If the belief is that the number 1 reason that people steal cars is for the parts Geen said it would seem to be common sense that they would always appear on  the 1988 Ford Mustang no. 43 among stolen cars was the first non pm Domestic car on the list which is used by the insurance Industry to provide theft data. Pm is banking that in later reports newer Ca Maros will drop in rankings. We re confident that our new pass key system will greatly reduce the number of thefts said pm spokeswoman Ruth Boulds. The system which shuts Down the fuel system if someone tampers with the ignition originally was introduced on the 1986 Corvette and the 1989 Ca Maro. The annual report also reflected the growing popu Larity of Light trucks especially pickups not Only among buyers but among thieves. The 1986 and 1985 Chevrolet full size pickup trucks zoomed to 13th and 14th places respectively on last year s list. Neither vehicle was in the top 100 in 1988. The number of Light duty trucks sold in the last two to three years is just off the charts Geen said. Sales of Domestic and foreign Light trucks jumped to 4.7 million in 1989, up 9.3 percent from the 1985  popularity he said increases the likelihood of them becoming theft targets for parts suppliers. However. Geen said minivans Haven t shown the same growth in popularity among thieves. They really did t pick up he said. That sur prised  following is a listing of the 10 most stolen cars in the United states during 1989, according to acc. The make and Model of the car is followed by its ranking in the 1988 Survey. 1. 86 Chevrolet Camaro i 2. 87 Chevrolet Camaro 2 3. 84 Chevrolet Camaro 3 4. 85 Chevrolet Camaro 4 5. 84 Oldsmobile Cutlass supreme 8 6. 86 Pontiac firebird 6 7. 87 Pontiac firebird 7 8. 81 Oldsmobile Cutlass supreme 5 9. 88 Chevrolet Camaro 33 10. 88 Hyundai Excel go 38 Aspin seeks delay in High tech weapon production Washington a the chair Man of the House armed services committee called on the Bush administration thursday to delay production of some High Lech weapons in Light of budget pressures and a lessening soviet threat. What we might do is pursue a real research and development system rather than a develop and buy sys tem rep. Les Aspin d-wis., said in a speech delivered to the National strategy forum in Chicago. A text of the address to the private group interested in National Security issues was released in Washington. Aspin said the Warsaw pact can no longer be perceived As a cohesive Mili tary Alliance ready to respond blindly to orders from Moscow. In response to areas where the threat has diminished the United states should reduce its spending on defense. If an agreement is reached creating numerical parity among Warsaw pact and nato the United states might not need to pursue expensive risky High tech weapons designed to attack them. We have been pursuing such weapons he said. Specifically Aspin said full production of the advanced tactical fighter a top secret stealth like aircraft might be delayed until it is determined whether a soviet threat exists that re quires a fighter plane of the future. For the budget year 1991. The House armed services committee might hold up at and buy the cur rent generation of fighters Al 5 and f-16," the congressman said. But Aspin stressed the need for a new class of . Submarines the san 21 or so Wolf class in response to the greatly improved soviet subs. Existing . Submarines cannot physically accommodate the necessary improvements he said. Aspin said the Bush administration has made consideration of the 1991 military budget difficult because it failed to Supply sufficient information about changes in the soviet threat and began discussing budget cuts before presenting a strategy. The budget that comes to us in 10 Days will undoubtedly be Cut. The question is How wisely Aspin said. What we Hope to do with the strategy. Is give our colleagues a new Way of dealing with the budget. Without such a strategy the strongest guiding Force May be the Aroma of