European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 11, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 c the stars and stripes sunday August 11, 1991army doctor gets 2vi years in prison fort Leonard Wood to. A an army Reserve doctor convicted of desertion for refusing to report for persian Gulf War duty was dismissed from the army and sentenced Friday to 2vi years in prison. Capt. Yolanda Huet Vaughn showed no emotion when the sentence from a jury of army officers was announced at her court martial. A prosecutor capt. David Harney called for a three year sentence. A she reneged on her promises. Her conduct is inexcusable. When duty called she deserted Quot Harney said. The maximum sentence was five years. Huet Vaughn also lost her army pay and allowances. Luther West Huet Vaughn a lawyer said she chose not to serve for religious reasons. A a you a be putting her in jail for following Catholic doctrine. Its not a political Case. Its a religious Case a he told the jury in his closing statement. A she is truly Defeated. You done to have to destroy her or her  capt. Dean mings an army Recruiter from St. Louis testified Friday during the sentencing phase of Huet Vaughn a court martial that he told her last year she could request conscientious objector status. But he said she told him she Likely would be shipped out with her unit anyway. Mings said he advised Huet Vaughn that she could ask to remain on Active duty in the United states but she said she did not want to. Huet Vaughn testified that she did not report in order to Call attention to her concerns about the death and destruction of War a my intent at that time was to bring to the Public the issues about the catastrophic consequences of the War which resulted and that it was preventable a she said. She said she stands by her decision. A when i took this action i knew there were consequences and risks involved with it Quot she said. A not acting and not taking the position that i took was a much worse  Huet Vaughn smother two Sisters and two of her three children sat nearby in the Small packed courtroom with actress Margot Kidder a Gulf War oppo capt. Yolanda Huet Vaughn with lawyer Luther West right hugs her son Daniel 2, after fridays sentencing. Nent who testified in support of Huet Vaughn. A the verdict was unfair. In a heartbroken at the moment a Kidder said. The jury could have convicted Huet Vaughn of being absent without leave which carried a maximum one year sentence. Huet Vaughn 40, a family physician from Kansas City Kan left her unit in december shortly after it received notice of deployment to saudi Arabia. She appeared on television talk shows at anti War rallies and lobbied in Congress and at the United  shuttle boiler no problem Nasa says space Center Houston a the Oil cooler for an auxiliary Power unit aboard the shuttle Atlantis failed saturday when the astronauts checked the system but Nasa said the problem would hot affect today a scheduled Landing. Atlantis commander John Blaha and Pilot Michael Baker turned on the unit because its water Spray boiler failed when the shuttle blasted into orbit eight Days ago. The boiler again failed to work properly. There were no reported problems with the unit itself one of three on the shuttle. Flight director Jeff Bantle said the Power unit could be used safely during re entry for up to 12 minutes the amount of time it ran saturday. It will be turned on six to seven minutes before touchdown he said. A we should have no problem a Bantle said. As usual one Power unit will be activated before the braking rockets Are fired to Send the shuttle plunging through the atmosphere Bantle said. The other will be turned on after the Burn he said. Although Nasa prefers the redundancy of All three auxiliary Power units for re entry one would be enough officials said. The units provide Power to the shuttles hydraulics which operate steering mechanisms. Engineers originally thought the bad water Spray boiler might have Frozen. They now believe the problem is with a valve or a plug in a water line. Besides checking the orbiters systems for the planned 8 24 . Edt Landing today the astronauts also planned saturday to Complete their tests and experiments and Stow the Cabin. They began their final full Day in space with familiar sounds of Home. Instead of the customary song piped into the shuttle Cabin by Mission control the Crew was awakened by croaking frogs a a sound they Are More Likely to hear outdoors on a humid Houston night. A if you have to Wake up its Good to Wake up to the sounds of Home a Mission specialist Shannon Lucid said at the end of the Frog Medley. A a Well Shannon we thought you a like a few sounds from your backyard a Mission controls Bill Shepherd replied. Lucid a 15-year-old son Michael recorded the singing frogs in the family a Yard. A a that a very True Hope to be Back there some time but we re in no Rush a Lucid said. When the flight ends Lucid will have logged 503 hours in space More than any other woman. The 48-year-old biochemist one of the first six women selected As astronauts in 1978, became the first woman to Fly in space three times when Atlantis blasted into orbit. Atlantis nine Day Mission began aug. 2. The primary goal accomplished several hours after Blastoff was the release of a $120 million communications  service reports deficit of $1.6 billion Washington a the . Postal service is facing a $1.6 billion deficit for the fiscal year the Agency a Board of governors was told Friday. Most of the loss results from a shift in responsibility for health and Cost of living payments for retired postal workers. But lower income and mall volume since new rates took effect earlier this year Are also factors officials said. The switch in Retiree payments from the Federal budget to the postal service will Cost the Agency an added $800 million in the fiscal year that ends sept. 27. In addition the new postal rates that took effect in february led to a drop in third class mail volume and a decline in income from first class mail. The Independent postal rate commission approved a 29-cent first class rate instead of the 30-cent rate the postal service had sought while it raised third class advertising rates by More than postal officials had wanted. The commission said its intent was to offset income lost by lowering the first class charge with added Revenue from third class. The postal service has appealed the current rates and is awaiting a decision from the commission. Besides the actual spending losses of $900 million the deficit is inflated on paper by about $700 million because of an accounting Rule the Agency said. Accounting rules require another $700 million in retirees health and Benefit costs which will be paid later to be counted against fiscal 1991.naacp gives in allows Branch to Back Thomas Compton Calif. Up the a act withdrew an ultimatum ordering leaders of a tiny Branch of the civil rights group to retract their support of supreme court nominee Clarence Thomas or resign in Masse a agreement has been reached that the vote of the Compton Branch will stand As an expression of the sentiment of the Compton Branch but not As an official a act position a said a joint statement Friday by Benjamin Hooks a act executive director and Royce Ester Compton chapter president. The statement emphasized that while All a act branches Are free to express opinions on the Thomas matter and other issues they cannot do so a in the name of the a acpt after the organization has adopted an official position. The unanimous vote by the Compton chapter to Back Thomas came at a meeting july 20, 11 Days before the National leadership had voted to oppose president Bush a nomination to fill the seat of Thurgood Marshall. The 150-member Compton Branch was the Only one of the 5,000 local branches of the National association for the advancement of coloured people to take Issue with the National leadership. The statement announcing the Resolution of the dispute said no further action would be taken effectively dropping the National a acpt a demand that Compton members rescind their vote or lose their charter and resign. The news that the potentially divisive Issue had been resolved reached the a act Compton office about 30 min utes before a noon deadline set by the National office