European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 30, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 the stars and stripes . Sunday january 30,1994 agent says at chiefs lied about raid on cult san Antonio a Federal officials lied to the Public about not losing the element of Surprise in a botched radon a cult s compound an undercover agent testified Friday. I Learned that they were not saying what had happened agent Robert Rodriguez told jurors in the Federal trial of 11 Branch davidians. They Are accused of murdering four agents with the Federal Bureau of alcohol tobacco and fire arms in the feb. 28  knew it was wrong. The information they were saying was  Rodriguez infiltrated cult Leader Davi Koresh s compound near Waco several months before the raid by the at. Rodriguez testified thursday that he had told his supervisors that Koresh knew of their plans to raid the compound and seize his Cache of weapons. He said the at officials who claimed that the element of Surprise was maintained were Stephen e. Higgins the director Law enforcement division in the stars and stripes 10 years ago Jan. 30,1984 the air Force and Navy stood to make the largest percentage gains in a proposed $305.7 billion military budget presi Dent Reagan planned to present to Congress defense department documents revealed. 20 years ago Jan. 30,1974 a los Angeles Superior court judge setting a precedent ordered president Nixon subpoenaed to testify at the trial of three former White House aides accused in the burglary of Daniel Ells Berg s psychiatrist s office. 30 years ago Jan. 30,1964 the soviet Union said in Moscow that an unarmed . Air Force plane missing Over East Germany was downed by a so Viet fighter plane killing All three men aboard. 40 years ago Jan. 30,1954 the West finally succeeding in turning the big four foreign ministers conference to the German question challenged the soviets to agree to a unified Ger Many based on free elections. World War ii 50 years ago today Jan. 29 19�44 with 69,000 soldiers 237 tanks and 508 howitzers ashore the allies go on the attack at Anzio but it is too late the germans now have eight divisions dug in around the italian beachhead. Some 800 . Bombers strike Frankfurt am main a German factory Center. With an invasion Force nearing . Planes hit the japanese in the Marshall islands. Source 2194 Days of War. W. H. Smith publishers inc. The world almanac of world War 0, Bison books corp. 1981 chief Dan Hartnett and intelligence chief David Troy. They made those statements at news conferences after the raid which turned into a shootout. Rodriguez said he complained about their statements and hired his own Law yer. Top at officials shunned him after that he said. Nobody would talk to me. Everybody avoided me except for the agents he said. Several at officials resigned of were disciplined for their roles in giving out the misleading information. The 11 Branch davidians Are on trial for murder and murder conspiracy in the deaths of the four Federal agents in the shootout. The defendants could face life in prison if convicted. Six Branch davidians Are thought Mohave died in the gun Battle. The ensuing 51-Day standoff ended april 19 when the compound burned Down. Koresh anymore than 80 of his followers died in the Blaze some from gunshot wounds. . Fatalities May overtake traffic deaths Atlanta a shootings will surpass traffic accidents As the nation s leading cause of death by injury in a few years if current trends continue Accord ing to a Federal study that was released Friday. The study said motor vehicle related deaths totalled 43,536 in 1991, Down 21 percent from 1968, while annual deaths from firearms Rose by 60 percent to 38,317 Over the same period. From 1988 to 199.1, firearm deaths in creased 9 percent. During the same time motor vehicle deaths declined 14 percent. If those three year rates continue fire Arm deaths will top motor vehicle deaths by the mid-1990s, the study said. If the rate of increase prevails firearm deaths will become no. 1 by 2003, it said. That is already the Case in some states. In 1991, the most recent year for which figures were available firearm related deaths topped the list of fatal injuries in new York California Texas Louisiana Maryland Nevada Virginia and the District of Columbia according to the re port. The study was released by the depart ment of health and human services and the Federal centers for disease control and prevention. David Satcher director of the cd said the statistics present a Challenge to americans. As a nation when faced with High rates of injury and death from motor vehicle crashes we developed a comprehensive plan to reduce motor vehicle deaths he said. He added that the same can be done to reduce deaths from guns. One Way to Cut the number of firearm deaths is to inform the Public better about the risks associated with gun ownership the cd said in the report. It also suggested the use of trigger locks and other safety devices. These would then help to reduce in accidents involving children. Piile Lyle Menc Nycz right and his brother Erik Are shown in a los Angeles court room with defense attorney Leslie Abramson in december 1992. Martendez j u rows Tell of great Divide panels split Over Brothers murder trial by the los Angeles times los Angeles the Gulf be tween the factions among the Lyle Menendez jurors was vast and no Evi Dence testimony or argument could draw them into common ground. On one extreme was juror Sharyn s. Bishop 42, who said i Don t think Lyle is a threat to society. If he live across the Street from me i would t be  on the other end of the spectrum sat Jude Nelson an unemployed marketing representative who called the evidence against Menendez a classic first degree murder  and then there were the jurors who spent half a year sitting in judgment of Erik Menendez who along with his brother is accused of murdering their parents in their Beverly Hills mansion. That panel almost came to blows. Those jurors speaking for the first time since they were dismissed More than two weeks ago described a contentious and sometimes mean-spirited19 Days of deliberations. The split was so deep so Early that some jurors believed others arrived with their minds already made up creating Inthewoods of juror Hazel Thornton too much prejudice. To  there was ."., not enough concentration on evidence and the Law said Thornton 36, who voted for voluntary manslaughter one of. The lesser charges for Erik Menendez the younger of the two Brothers. She specifically lamented that some jurors had a Bias against Rich people Andhomosexualswith participants in the Case finally free Friday to talk about the top secret deliberations that ended in two Hung juries defense attorney Lesli Abramson portrayed the Erik Menen Dez jury As sharply divided along Gen Der lines with frequent verbal clashes and even some threat of Physicalityabramson spoke on the basis of extensive discussion with members of that panel. She disclosed Friday that after her half of the Case ended she had several jurors Over to her Home for a to hour dinner party. The biggest problem with Erik s jury was it was a mix of individuals who could not work together she said. By contrast Lyle Menendez s panel whose 25 Days of deliberations were interrupted by the Jan. 17 Earth quake was a relatively harmonious group in which gender did not play a role according to juror Nelson. While sometimes jurors merely tolerated one another he said they generally were Able to discuss and consider each others views. The six month Long trial had revolved in Large part around the two Brothers Contention that they had been sexually abused by their father. While prosecutors said the Brothers were driven by greed for the family s $14 million Fortune defense lawyers said the pair had killed out of fear and the believability of that claim clearly became the most divisive Issue in the jury room. The women on Erik Menendez s jury were More Likely to be swayed by the tales of abuse Many said while More men saw the Issue As either in credible or irrelevant. There s a possibility of abuse but i Don t think that would rectify the fact that they did take the Law into their hands to kill their parents said juror Robert Rakestraw 53, who voted for first degree murder in Erik Menendez s Case. I Don t think that justifies their actions if molestation did Occurbut Thornton also of the Erik me Mendez jury said the problem was not in the jurors. I have some advice for the prosecution she said. Get some More evidence and prove it in a convincing