European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 03, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes . Thursday february 3,1994 in cough drop defense helps Man beat eating citation v from wire reports Compton Calif. A Man who was fined $250for eating on a train platform beat the ticket by employing the cough drop defense. Ricky Gonzales 31, said he was Only sucking on lozenge and he had the wrapper to prove it Gonzales was cited nov. 23 by a los Angeles county sheriffs Deputy for eating hard Candy ii violation of an eating ban at the metro rail platform. Traffic court commissioner Ellen Deshazer dismissed the citation during a meeting in her Chambers tuesday. But she warned that she would take a dim viewer Otic Man  i j by i. Want., to was just eating cough drops when they really have secret sauce dripping from their Chin said Gonzales attorney George Bird. Blasts Rock Rural Iowa Iowa City Iowa five explosions rocked chemical storage and pipeline station tuesday biasing out flames higher than nearby  one was injured. Each one was louder than the one before said Mike Stevens who lives about two Miles from the blast site. He said the resulting fire sounded like a Jet plane taking  six nearby Homes were evacuated As a precaution after the blasts occurred at the mid americ pipeline co. Plant in a Rural area six Miles East of Lowa City. The fire was under control before noon fewer than two hours after it was reported said Rick Neal at mid America Headquarters in Tulsa okla. The fire was fuelled by either an ethane propane mix that is used As a building Block for mixtures in the petrochemical Industry or a liquefied Petroleum Gas he said. Derailment disrupts trains Whitakers . A freight train jumped the track Early tuesday causing delays on passenger and freight trains up and Down the East coast. Noone was injured. Twelve of the 21 cars on the northbound is corp. Train derailed shortly after 2 30 . Near this town in the northeastern Corner of the state. The cause was not immediately  train was in route from Jacksonville fla., to Baltimore with a Crew of two. It was carrying Coffee pulpwood mail and roofing materials. Several northbound and southbound Amtrak trains including the car carrying Auto train were disrupted. At least nine freight trains also were affected. " stalking suspect ruled insane Pontiac Mich. A 41-year-old Man who sent threatening letters to a Detroit television anchorwoman has been found innocent by reason of insanity of a charge of stalking. This Man is not capable of conforming to the Law Oakland county circuit court judge Hilda Gage said monday in finding Timothy m. Hines innocent. He was sent to a mental health Center for evaluation. Hines of Ypsilanti was charged with stalking Catherine Leahan sending her dozens of letters including some containing death threats. He talked about violence sex and How he wanted to kill me Leahan testified. It was like he was obsessed. He had no regard for the  Leahan a newscaster for wbk in Detroit refused to comment on the verdict. Brown cleared in probe of Bri Washington a a Federal grand jury found no wrongdoing by Commerce Secretary Ronald  in efforts by Vietnam to get a . Trade Embar go lifted a government official says. And it s expected that the Justice department will soon close its investigation of the Cabinet offi cer a second official said tuesday. Both officials spoke in condition of anonymity. Early last year the Fri began looking into allegations that Brown accepted$700,000 to help lift the 19 year Trade embargo. The Justice department s pub Lic integrity Section has been overseeing the probe. Brown has denied the allegations by Binh t. By a vietnamese american Brown businessman and had predicted he would be exonerated by the grand jury in Miami. The Justice department was expected to Send a letter to Brown s attorney notifying him that he has been cleared. Justice department spokesman John Russell said we re not ready to announce anything  Jill Schuker a spokeswoman for Brown at the Commerce department declined to com ment As did Brown s attorney Reid Weingarten. In september Brown acknowledged that he had met three times with a former vietnamese government offi Cial Nguyen Van Hao whom by accused of arranging the official says $700,000 payment. But Brov a denied receiving any Money or having any kind of business relationship with Hao. The vietnamese government also had denied by allegations. President Clinton defended Brown last fall after two conservative Republican lawmakers asked for appoint ment of a special prosecutor to investigate the allegations. In october House Republican leaders joined therall for appointment of a special prosecutor and recommended several Legal experts for the Job. Attorney general Janet Reno had said she would not appoint one because As a Cabinet colleague Fbrown s it might appear she had a conflict of interest. Hico is a vietnamese businessman and former official of the communist government in Hanoi. By who is a former business partner of Hao a has said Brown accepted the Money and promises of future income from vietnamese development projects to help lift the Trade embargo. By has acknowledged that he has no direct evidence to support his allegations which Are based on his conversations with Hao. In August Brown denied the allegations published by . News & world report Magazine which also disclosed the feb probe when news reports surfaced in late september with details about Brown s three meetings with Hao brow acknowledged the meetings in november and de Cember 1992 and in february 1993, after he became Commerce Secretary. But Brown continued to deny receiving any Money or having any kind of business relationship with Hao. Brown also has said he did not participate in the administration s discussions about lifting the Trade embargo. Cult Leader originally planned mass suicide Davidian testifies by the Washington Post san Antonio Victorine Hollingsworth a Branch Davidian did not want to kill herself. Four Days after a feb. 28 shootout with Federal agents David to Resh planned for his followers to draw authorities into a final firefight commit mass suicide and blow up their armed compound Hollingsworth testified in Federal court tuesday. By then the Branch Davidian Leader Felt certain he was dying from gunshot wounds he had received in the shootout. His body would be carried outside on a Stretcher by men armed with hand grenades. Everyone would die a Quick death and we would All go Home to the heavenly Mother Hollingsworth said. But even As she stood in line to bid Koresh Farewell even As she joined in a last prayer with the others Hollingsworth 59, was deeply troubled. I knew if i committed suicide she said i would not have a place in god s  she was spared the decision. Koresh suddenly called off the plan announcing he had had a vision from god directing him to do further work. The testimony by Hollingsworth a British citizen who has not been charged was the first of a Branch Davidian in the murder and conspiracy trial of 11 Mem Bers of the sect. Ten men and one woman Are accused in the feb. 28 deaths of four agents with the Federal Bureau of alcohol tobacco and firearms. The cult s 51-Day standoff with authorities which began the Day of the shootout ended april 19 with a massive fire at the compound near Waco and the deaths of Koresh and More than 80 followers. During a Long Day on the stand Hollingsworth provided a portrait of Koresh s often mean treatment of his followers. She also told How on the morning of the shootout she cowered on the floor of an upper hallway of4he compound listening to the terrible sound of bul lets. And in the first few Days of the standoff she said she was so frightened of another firefight that she slept under her bed. Frequently feisty Hollingsworth ordered both prosecutors and defense attorneys to let her have her say before answering questions. And once impatient with an attorney s queries she demanded to know. Why Are you asking me All that. Hollingsworth testified that on the morning of the shootout she saw two of the defendants Livingstone frag an and Brad Branch holding guns and boasting about shooting at agents. But she also said Branch who ran from room to room firing and Yelling at people to keep Low was protecting the women and children on the upper floor. She described Fagan As my son a Young Man i love and respect very much and suggested that he was brainwashed by Koresh. Two other defendants Kevin Whitecliff and Cliv Edoyle who were on guard duty in the Chapel in the Days following the raid were Only doing what David had ordered them to do she said. Philadelphia a unless student threatens physical harm to an other racist sexist or politically incorrect comments should no longer be punished at the University of Pennsylvania Accord ing to a preliminary report. Essentially it is what the first amendment says University spokeswoman. Barbara Beck said tuesday. The rules inside the Campus cannot be differ ent from those  the school s old policy prohibited be Havior that insults or demeans the per son. Or abuses a Power relationship incorrect May get break of University ass with that Ner srm in the � Hrncic of a e a _ with that person on the basis of his or her race color ethnicity or National  it was rescinded in november while the 25-member commission studied alter natives. The political correctness spotlight focused on Penn last year after a White Stu Dent called a group of Black female Stu dents water  he denied the remark was intended As a racial slur. The women later dropped racial harassment charges against Eden Jacobo Witz saying his Public statements would have compromised the fairness of the disciplinary proceedings. The commission s preliminary report Calls for mediation rather than charges and hearings to resolve student disputes the final version of the commission report is expected by March 31 and will go to the University president for approval. R by president of the school United minority Council said tuesday that she feared the University was propos ing Quick and easy solutions to problem that take time to resolve. The report recommended 10 ways that the University could create an Atmo sphere where everyone feels Welcome and in which the free Exchange of ideas May  the commission also recommended that an ombudsman be appointed at the University s Independent daily newspaper the daily pennsylvanian which has Deen accused of being insensitive to minorities. The newspaper s executive editor Jor who a said tuesday that she was Ca Pable of dealing with outside concerns without an ombudsman s help