European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 24, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 a a the stars and stripes saturday March 24, 1990study faults Cheney on base closures Washington apr defense Secretary Dick Cheney is trying to divert attention from a bloated defense budget by proposing closing military bases As a Cost saving measure a democratic study said Friday. The report criticized the Bush administration for its $307 billion fiscal 1991 defense budget that increases spending Over last year including funds for such strategic weapons As the b-2 stealth bomber. A in the face of dramatic changes in the external threat faced by the United states the president has proposed nominal growth in defense spending for not Only the coming year but for the foreseeable future Quot the democratic study group said in its report. Faced with those charges the Pentagon has argued that the budget fails to keep Pace with the 2.1 percent increase in inflation. The study faults Cheney for requesting new legislation to close military facilities thus ending the congressional oversight of Pentagon decisions on the bases and bypassing the recent process in which an Independent Commir Sion recommended which bases should be closed. Complicating matters was Cheney a january announcement of he candidates for closure or realignment before the department had completed its review the study said. Quot the administrations alternative process involves listing bases being a considered for closing Long before final decisions Are made a thereby creating maximum Opportunity for full blown lobbying campaigns against possible cutbacks Quot the study said. Cheney a recommendations called for closing or scaling Back of More than 72 Domestic facilities and 14 overseas installations. Congressional members including rep. Les Aspin a wish a chairman of the House armed services committee have criticized Cheney a list As partisan. The defense Secretary has declined to give exact figures on the savings from the closings. The study a the great base closing ploy creatine a political tempest to shield a bloated defense budget Quot said that 19 of 21 proposed base closings Are in democratic districts. Quot a of the 41,638 civilian jobs affected by the closings 41,139 or 99 percent were in democratic districts Quot the report said. A the Pentagon in response to the partisan charge noted that democrats Are the majority party in the House the commission on base realignment and closure recommended in december 1988 closing 86 Domestic bases partly closing five others and changing the Mission of 54 other installations for an estimated savings of $694 million a year and a 20-year savings estimated at $5.6 billion. Former defense Secretary Frank c. Carlucci approved the recommendations and Congress despite some complaints last year overwhelmingly supported the commissions decision. Joseph Hazelwood right with his Arm around lawyer Michael Chalos tells a press conference thursday that lies pleased with the Oil spill trial  link unproved Hazelwood jurors say Anchorage Alaska apr jurors who acquitted Tanker skipper Joseph Hazelwood of most charges thursday said there was no proof that alcohol played a role in the Exxon Valdez Oil spill. And while there was considerable debate about the Maxim that a Captain is responsible for his ship jurors said they were forced to recognize that the Law does t say so a in fact that caused some difficult times while we were in there Quot said juror Terrill Smith. A we considered the fact that Hazelwood was Captain of his ship and responsible for the actions of his Crew. A but when it came Down to making a verdict we could not say that because that was not the  Smith said he and the other jurors based their decision on the Law and evidence and a the state just did no to have the  asked who then was responsible for spilling nearly 11 million Gallons of North slope crude Oil into alaskans Prince William sound last March Smith said �?o1 done to know. I can to answer that. The Only gentleman who was on trial was Captain Hazelwood a Hazelwood acquitted of charges of drunkenness and recklessness faces a possible Fine of $ 1,000 and 90 Days in jail on the Misdemeanour count of negligent discharge of Oil. Smith and juror Jeff Sage said the state could not prove that alcohol played a role because authorities failed to give Hazelwood a blood alcohol test until 10 a i hours after the grounding. �?o., with the time involved a it was not possible to determine beyond a reasonable doubt that alcohol played a role Smith said. Dpt vaccine Safe report concludes Chicago apr a vaccine commonly administered to youngsters five times by their fifth birthday does not increase the risk of epilepsy and other neurological problems researchers say. Previous reports indicated a possible link Between one component of diphtheria pertussis tetanus vaccine and such disorders. A your study provides reassurance to parents that Dpt vaccine does not cause serious diseases of the brain a Wayne Ray an associate professor of preventive Medicine at Vanderbilt University in Nashville Tenn., said thursday. Dpt vaccine is Given to tens of thousands of children each week. Children typically Are immunized three times in their first year of life again at about 18 months and for the last time at around 5 years of age. The vaccine frequently causes Low fevers and some swelling at the Point of immunization. Earlier Case reports and lawsuits filed by parents against pharmaceutical companies have alleged that the pertussis or whooping cough component of the vaccine has caused seizures and even death. But the study reported in fridays journal of the american medical association when seen in conjunction with other recent studies of the vaccine should provide reassurance to parents that there is no such link Ray said. Ray and the co authors of his study examined the medicaid records of 38,171 Tennessee children who received More than 107,000 Dpt immunizations in their first three years of life. They compared the rate of neurological events such As seizures that occurred immediately following immunization with the rate of such events that occurred 30 or More Days after inoculation. A no child who was previously Normal without a prior history of seizures had a seizure in the Zero to three Days following immunization that marked the Onset of either epilepsy or other neurological or developmental abnormality a the authors wrote. Alec Walker an associate professor of epidemiology at Harvard school of Public health in Boston said the work appears to confirm research he has done on the vaccine. Walker studied 26,000 children in the Seattle area and found no increase in any serious neurological problems immediately following pertussis vaccination. Search suspended for 9 feared drowned in sinking Juneau Alaska apr the coast guard on Friday suspended its search for nine men presumed drowned after their fishing trawler capsized and Sank in the frigid Bering sea. Fishing vessels rescued 22 Crew members who had abandoned the sinking ship on lifeboats. They were reported in Good condition aboard a trawler that was taking them to dutch Harbor about 250 Miles Southeast of the Accident site. The nine including a Federal fisheries observer were lost thursday when the 162-foot Aleutian Enterprise Sank the coast guard said adding that there was Little Chance of finding their bodies. A we had a very Good search yesterday a it. Brian Flory said Friday in Juneau. A we think we would have found anyone who was  several fishing vessels remained in the area to look for bodies said Dan Roberts executive vice president of Arctic Alaska fisheries corp. In Seattle which managed the Aleutian Enterprise. The cause of the sinking was unknown said Christopher Haley a coast guard , girl caught in . After Chase from Rota Mcewen Tenn. Apr an airman charged with desertion and his 12-Ycar-old companion were arrested Early Friday alter leading authorities on a Chase that began in Spain and spanned much of the Eastern United states the airman Janics Nicholas Coppock 25, and his companion Stephanie Lee Griffith 12, Are believed to be the abductors of Griffith a Niece in Gulfport miss on March 8. Investigator Randy Waddell of the naval investigative service said Friday that warrants against Coppock charged him with kidnapping und desertion front the military. He said that Coppock faces a variety of Feder Al military and state charges and that Griffith May also be charged with some crimes. The Niece 3-year-old Brittany Collins was found March 14 in a Virginia hotel elevator. The girl was unharmed dressed in clean clothes and her abductors had left a note asking that she be returned Home Waddell said. The note identified the girls parents and gave their address he added. Coppock and Griffith fled in Early March from Rota Spain where Griffith a father is stationed in the Navy Waddell said. They were arrested in Mcewen after a Van authorities believe they had stolen earlier was in a hit and run Accident thursday afternoon. Waddell said they were discovered in the Back of a truck at a private residence outside Mcewen. The investigator said Coppock and Griffith Are believed to have stolen cars in several states As they moved around. He said their Trail has gone from Spain to Iowa new York West Virginia Virginia South Carolina and now Tennessee. He said the investigation has been a joint venture of several agencies representatives of which a will get la Gether on monday and decide where to charge them and what to charge them  he said Coppock and Griffith were to be transferred Friday to Biloxi miss