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(02/09/01 5:47am)
It was not unusual for Robert Pickett, an IU alumnus and Evansville accountant who fired shots outside of the White House Wednesday, to take unannounced time off of work and drive to Washington, D.C.\nClients and his employer say he often made the trip "to consult a lawyer" in his ongoing litigation with a former employer, the Internal Revenue Service. Sometimes he would disappear for weeks at a time during the tax season.\nHe has sued the IRS at least four times, said Evansville attorney Joseph Slocum, who represented him in one of the suits.\n"He was very disturbed," said Slocum, whom Pickett later sued for alleged legal malpractice. "For want of a better way to put it, I think he was more bothered by getting fired than most people would be."\nPickett, who graduated from IU in 1979 with a degree in history, found a job as an auditor at the IRS in Cincinnati in the mid-1980s. After he was fired, he moved back to his home in Evansville, where he had lived alone since his parents died, neighbors said.\nSlocum, who said he regrets taking up Pickett's case, said the IRS dismissed him because he was often late for work.\nLittle changed after his dismissal, said Greg Bachert, who employed Pickett at his downtown accounting firm. Bachert said he wasn't surprised when Pickett didn't show up for work Monday at the start of another tax-filing session, although he had not indicated anything was wrong.\nPickett had evidently planned not to return.\nJerry Liddle, circulation director of the Evansville Courier & Press, said Pickett called last Thursday to ask that the paper not be delivered starting Saturday. The customer service representative who took the call thought nothing of it, Liddle said.\n"He took 54 calls that day," he said. "And he heard nothing strange or unusual."\nBut after the news broke, Liddle went back and checked the records. He found a discrepancy.\n"He had stopped delivery before when he'd go on vacation," he said. "But he always left the time when he'd come back. This time, he just said he'd call."\nPickett purchased the revolver used in the incident earlier in the week at Casey's Pawnshop, which ran a standard background check. It turned up no previous criminal record, operations manager David Sisson said. \nThat didn't come as a shock to Pickett's neighbors, who described him as "polite" and "friendly."\n"He never struck me as the type that would ever even own a gun," neighbor Mark Jewel said. \nWhile Jewel said Pickett didn't stand out in the middle-class neighborhood, he now recognizes that the warning signs were there.\n"He kept to himself a lot," he said. "We thought he was just very quiet. We had no idea that he was having all these mental problems."\nIt turns out Pickett did have psychiatric problems.\nIn an apparent suicide note sent to the IRS, Pickett depicted himself as a mentally ill individual who had been unjustly persecuted by the IRS. \n"My death is on your hands," he wrote. "Although you were not in charge when this conspiracy began in 1985, your office has been informed of the situation many times. I have been a victim of a corrupt government."\nThe letter -- in which Pickett painted himself as a suicidal whistleblower fighting a corrupt system -- was also sent to President George W. Bush, the Courier & Press and the Cincinnati Enquirer.\nIt's not the first time Pickett took his issues to public officials.\nHe had mailed many complaints to Rep. John Hostettler's offices in Washington and Indiana, said the Congressman's spokesman, Michael Jahr.\n"Threatening is not the word I would use," Jahr said. "But the letters could probably be described as angry."\nA raid of Pickett's home turned up no other firearms, said Capt. Bill Welcher of the Evansville Police Department. Authorities removed personal items, such as software and cassette tapes, which were shipped to Secret Service labs for investigation.\nFor the moment, the Secret Service is tight-lipped about the case.\n"We can't comment on an ongoing investigation," spokesman Eric Harnischfeger said. "And we have to be respectful of the forthcoming prosecution"
(02/09/01 5:45am)
It would be hard to disagree that Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., is a rising star in the Democratic party.\nTuesday, he was appointed chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council, a centrist group. The council of "New Democrats" has helped launch the national careers of many former chairmen, including then-Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton and House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt of Missouri.\nFormed after the the Democrats suffered severe political setbacks in the 1980s, the council has been an incubator of national politicians and policies. \n"It gives him a higher profile to advance his priority issues," said Mark Kornblau, Bayh's Washington press secretary. "He'll work on bipartisan support on his education plans and a tax cut."\nBayh has met with President George W. Bush and enlisted the support of moderate Democrats and Republicans to set forward policy alternatives to Bush's plan. Bayh, Kornblau said, opposes vouchers and would like to see a "trigger mechanism" in any broad-based tax cut in the event the surplus dries up.\n"He supports about 90 percent of the president's agenda," Kornblau said. "But, he'd like something that everyone can agree on."\nAl From, central executive officer of the leadership council, said the council will be key to the Democrats' success in a new political landscape. Republicans control all three branches of government now.\nAnd that's not all, From said.\n"The next Democrat to occupy the White House will be one of us," he said. "And there's nothing like having the White House. We plan on being an incubator of national candidates."\nBayh is assuming a position vacated by Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., who ran on former Vice President Al Gore's ticket in 2000. Bayh made the short list of Gore's potential running mates, and speculation surrounds a possible presidential run in 2004.\n"I think in the back of his mind, he's toying with a presidential run down the road," said Raymond Scheele, a political science professor at Ball State. "He's still a young guy. And he's already got bona fide credentials. But, you don't always get to choose the timing."\nBut the election is still a long way off.\n"Nobody's hat is in the ring yet," said Douglass Davidoff, director of communications for the Indiana Democratic Party. "Right now, all the focus is on winning back the House and Senate. No decisions have been made yet, and the winds are blowing in all different directions. Some would like to see Gore run again."\nBut Davidoff said Bayh would be a good candidate, capable of winning the moderate suburbanites who flocked to Bush in droves in November.\n"He truly is the father of moderate, mainstream, centrist Democrats," he said. "As his father (former U.S. Sen. Birch Bayh) always says, his prospects are as bright as the north star."\nDavidoff said Bayh could also take his home state's 11 electoral votes in 2004. A Democrat hasn't won Indiana in a presidential election since Lyndon Johnson's 1964 landslide victory against the radically right-wing Barry Goldwater.\n"Absolutely, he would carry Indiana," Davidoff said, noting that Bayh has been elected Indiana secretary of state, governor and U.S. senator. "He's shown that he can carry the state -- in four elections."\nWhile many pundits discouraged Gore from choosing Bayh on the grounds that he couldn't have put a traditionally Republican state in his column, Scheele disagrees.\n"He could win this state on any ticket," he said. "He's one of the most popular politicians here"
(02/08/01 6:20am)
The gunman who fired shots at the White House Wednesday was an IU alumnus who neighbors described as a quiet man.\nRobert W. Pickett, 47, graduated in 1979 with a degree in history.\nNeighbors said they were surprised to hear that he was identified as the man who shot at the White House Wednesday morning. \nSurprised, but not shocked.\nNeighbors described Pickett as a recluse who lived alone after the death of his parents. They said his only companion was his dog. \nSahar Wafa, a Racine, Wis., resident who lived across the street from Pickett for seven years, said he was unmarried and without family.\n"He was always alone," she said. "I never saw him with any guests. Sometimes I felt no one lived at that house." \nThey said Pickett, an accountant, has long held a grudge against former employer the Internal Revenue Service. While he was largely reserved, they said he made no secret of his strong dislike of the government, which started after he dropped out of West Point in 1972.\n"You knew he didn't like the government," said Mark Jewel, who lives next door and hired Pickett two years ago to handle the accounting for his floral shop, Cottage Florist & Gifts. "(You) could tell he was often aggravated with taxes and the IRS."\nPickett sued the the IRS, said Evansville attorney Joseph Yocum, who served as his legal counsel in the suit before Pickett decided to represent himself. The agency dismissed him from its Cincinnati office in the mid-1980s, prompting him to move back to Evansville, where he took up a job at a downtown accounting firm. \nJewel, who bought a home next to Pickett's in the neighborhood four years ago, said the gunman blended in. \n"It's not a friendly neighborhood," he said. "And though he kept to himself a lot, he was the only person to take the time to introduce himself when I moved in. But I mostly knew him through business."\nOthers remember Pickett as easygoing, often seeing him outside mowing his lawn or playing with his dog.\n"I thought he wouldn't have done something like that," said neighbor Judi Gates, who first heard the news when her husband called her at her mother's home. "I thought they had the wrong Robert Pickett."\nGates, a 51-year-old painter, had a casual interaction with Pickett, whom she describes as "kind of a loner."\n"He's a nice fellow," she said. "I wouldn't have expected it from him."\nPolice and Secret Service agents raided Pickett's home Wednesday afternoon. Capt. Bill Welcher of the Evansville Police Department said they were looking for threatening letters to President George W. Bush or Rep. John Hostettler, R-8th. Welcher said Pickett had sent letters over the past year to Hostettler's offices in Indiana and Washington, complaining about the IRS.\nThe police raid caused a commotion in the usually placid neighborhood.\nBrenda Payton, another neighbor, drove home to find her street blocked off. Television cameras and police cars surrounded Pickett's home, she said.\n"We live in a very routine neighborhood," she said. "It's quite an ordeal."\nStaff writer Freddie Yap and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
(02/07/01 5:25am)
IOWA CITY, IOWA -- The Hoosiers crossed paths with Iowa Sunday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.\nBoth teams are headed in different directions, as evidenced by the Hawkeyes' 83-56 blowout.\nAfter two consecutive losing seasons, the Hoosiers leaped out to a 12-2 start under new coach Kathi Bennett. It seemed they would be the surprise team of the Big Ten, coming within a point of upsetting traditional powerhouse Louisiana Tech, which visited the Final Four last year and was then ranked No. 8.\nThe Hoosiers garnered as many as 40 votes in the Associated Press poll, peaking at a No. 27 ranking. Then in early January, the Hoosiers ran into the Boilermaker special -- sixth-ranked Purdue held off a second-half comeback bid to win 67-59. \nSince the disappointing loss to its in-state rival, IU has gone on a 2-4 skid. \nIowa (12-8, 7-3 Big Ten) has taken an almost diametrically opposite path.\nAfter winning the Big Ten Conference title in the 1997-98 season, the Hawkeyes were also coming from two consecutive losing seasons, including a 9-18 finish last year.\nAfter struggling through its preconference schedule, Iowa has gone 7-3 in Big Ten play. Now fourth in the Big Ten, the rout of the Hoosiers gave the Hawkeyes their fourth consecutive win.\n"It's been a long while since we've been on a four-game streak," said a grinning Rob Howe, who covers the Hawkeyes for the Iowa City Press-Citizen.\nIt's undeniable -- Iowa is again a competitor.\n"The best part about it is going onto the court knowing we've won a couple straight," said senior guard Cara Consuegra, who matched her season-high assist total with 10 Sunday. "I've never felt so confident. I've never gone into games feeling like this is our game, and we deserve this win."\nConsuegra played on that fabled 1997-98 squad and has since watched her team go 13-20.\nSenior center Randi Peterson is the only other active player to have tasted the glory of a conference title. The whole outlook has changed, she said at the postgame press conference.\n"Right now, there really isn't anything to do but have fun," she said, after having put up her seventh double-double of the year with 13 points and 10 rebounds. "We haven't had a lot of things that have hurt us or stopped us from enjoying the whole thing. We've learned how to incorporate fun back into basketball."\nFirst-year coach Lisa Bluder deserves much credit for the turnaround, having brought in a potent high post offense. While the Hawkeyes starting center stands at only 6-foot-2, they managed to score 34 points in the paint Sunday against the likes of 6-foot-5 junior center Jill Chapman. \n"All five players that they put out on the floor can score, and pretty much score from anywhere," Bennett said. "That makes it extremely difficult. Their offense feeds into their talents."\nThe humbling loss Iowa handed IU should prove significant for the team's confidence down the road, Bluder said.\n"I thought this was a changing point in our season, whether we were going to establish ourselves against someone who deserves to be in the top half of the Big Ten," she said. "This has raised the bar."\nWhile Iowa has shown it can beat tough conference foes, the Hawkeyes aren't out of the woods yet. They play host to No. 6 Purdue (20-3, 11-0 Big Ten) Thursday. The Boilers beat Iowa earlier in the season.\n"I don't think there's a better time to be playing Purdue than right now," Bluder said.
(02/07/01 4:32am)
After a decade, it appears likely that Indiana will lower its legal drinking limit.\nMonday, the house overwhelmingly voted -- 89-6 -- to bring the legal blood-alcohol level down from .10 to .08. Under the bill, no further evidence of impairment would be required for a drunk driving conviction.\n"We're not going after the social drinkers or even the heavy drinkers," said state Rep. Peggy Welch, D-Bloomington, who sponsored the legislation. "But you should not be driving, if you're impaired. At 0.08, you're impaired."\nAccording to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the typical 170-pound man would have to consume four drinks in an hour to reach .08; a 137-pound woman would need three drinks.\nThe legislation will go to the state Senate, where legislators will consider a similar bill later this week authored by Sen. Tom Wyss, R-Fort Wayne. Wyss has filed such legislation in 10 of the past 11 years. But it only reached the floor once, only to die in the House in 1990.\n"It's a measure we should have passed long ago," he said, noting that the District of Columbia and 19 states already have the lower limit. "It's time we lead instead of follow."\nWyss and Welch concede enacting tougher drunk driving standards is more politically expedient this session.\nCongress passed legislation last year that will deprive states of millions of dollars of highway funding, if they fail to lower the legal blood-alcohol limit. If Indiana doesn't lower the threshold, Welch said Indiana could lose as much as $14 million in 2004. The state could receive $12 million in incentive money if it toughens its standard this year, she said.\nBut Welch insists money should not be the foremost consideration.\n"It's good public policy and good for public health," she said.\nThe legislation was not expected to sail through the House so easily. It's strongly opposed by restaurant and tavern lobbies, which say it will hurt business and targets social drinkers.\n"It will only hurt us economically for no good reason," said John Livengood, a spokesman for the Indiana Restaurant and Hospitality Association. "The argument is political and emotional -- not factual."\nThe bill was made more agreeable to skeptics with an amendment that allows judges to waive drunk driving charges against those with .08 and .09 levels on certain conditions.\nThe driver would have to be a first-time offender not responsible for any injury or property damage. Even if prosecution is deferred, the offender would still have to go through alcohol counseling and probation. Lawmakers, Welch said, are checking with the U.S. Department of Transportation to see whether the amendment qualifies with federal law.\nWyss said he's delaying floor consideration for his bill until he gets a response from Washington. In the event that doesn't comply with federal law, he said it will go to conference committee, where legislators will settle their differences.
(02/05/01 5:35am)
When someone drove 10-inch nails into trees set aside for logging in the Morgan-Monroe State Forest in June, the trees became no longer good for lumber. Cutting them down might have caused serious bodily injury to the loggers or millworkers.\nAfter investigating for more than six months, authorities believe Frank Ambrose, a prominent area environmentalist, did it.\nIn a faxed statement to the media, Ambrose denied spiking the trees.\nFacing a felony charge of timber spiking, he maintained that position Friday in Monroe Circuit Court, pleading not guilty during his arraignment.\nHe's not the only one who thinks he's innocent.\nChanting and drumming on plastic buckets, more than 75 sympathizers braved the cold in an hour-long protest outside the Justice Building. As his scheduled hearing drew closer, they filed into the courtroom. Dozens loitered around in the hallway and the vestibule.\n"Frank is an innocent man," said Donna McNeely, a friend who has known him for three years. "He's been outspoken on the environment. He's not the type to be involved in the underground activities he's been charged with."\nThe Indiana Department of Natural Resources arrested Ambrose Jan. 25, alleging he had participated in a tree spiking for which a radical ecoterrorist group, the Earth Liberation Front, had claimed responsibility.\nRichard Kammen, Ambrose's attorney, said his client is not affiliated with the group.\n"If we take a step back and look at the stuff that's been in the newspapers, Frank is charged with a crime that others have already admitted to," Kammen said. "The Earth Liberation Front claims responsibility for this."\nAmbrose's arrest is the first made in connection with the ELF, which has evaded authorities for the past four years while destroying more than $37 million of property nationwide. \nThe group left its calling card -- a spray-painted "ELF" -- on five sites in the Bloomington area last year, including a burnt-down house in the Sterling Woods development.\nBecause the loose-knit ELF is not an organization in the traditional sense of the word, authorities said they don't think Ambrose's defense will hold up.\nFBI agent Doug Garrison said ELF is essentially an acronym scrawled near vandalism to identify it as a political statement. \nAuthorities said they have enough evidence to get a conviction.\nA car later traced back to Ambrose had been spotted in the woods near the time of the spiking, said DNR officer Marlin Dodge. Witnesses identified Ambrose as the man seen purchasing the type of nails used in the spiking on a local hardware store's security camera tape, he said.\nThe 10-inch Grip-Rite spiral-shank nails -- only carried by one store in the area -- settled the case, Dodge said.\n"They're very peculiar nails that I've never seen before," he said. "It made it easy for me to track them down."\nThe protesters said they see the arrest as an attempt to suppress political activism.\n"I hope this (demonstration) shows that we will not be intimidated," said junior Jacob Hannan, who waved a placard at passing cars from the street corner. "It's just an attempt to scare activists in Bloomington."\nOthers hoped to divert attention away from Ambrose and toward the "environmental terrorism" allegedly perpetrated by the DNR.\n"The state forest logging program is against the law, and the DNR officials who run it know this," said Marie Mason. "It is high time that these bureaucrats who are implicit in the destruction of thousands of acres of our public land every years are put on trial."\nMason and Ambrose protested the practice -- the presumed motive for the spiking -- by staging a six-hour lockdown in the Morgan-Monroe state forest headquarter this past May. It was only weeks later that officials discovered that 10-inch nails had been driven into 17 trees.\nPrivate logging on public lands is not an uncommon practice, said DNR spokesman Stephen Sellers. In fact, it's necessary for forest maintenance, he said.\nWhen addressing those gathered, Ambrose said he hopes his colleagues will continue to press the issue. \n"I just want people to not focus on this so much, on this case, and move forward with the issues," he said. "We can't let it stop the work we do."\nAmbrose will return to court April 5, when circuit court judge Kenneth G. Todd schedules his pretrial conference.
(02/05/01 5:30am)
Iowa City, Iowa -- About 10 minutes into the second half of Sunday's game, Hawkeye guard Mary Berdo faked left and exploded down the baseline.\nMet down low, she fired the ball out to junior forward Jerica Watson, who put up an uncontested shot in the lane.\nIt rattled around for a few seconds, then fell in.\n The Hoosiers (14-7, 5-5 Big Ten) then lost possession of the ball on the other end, and Berdo took it up the court. She stutter-stepped on her defender and buried a long three.\n That's how the afternoon went for the women's basketball team, who fell to Iowa 83-56.\nThe Hawkeyes (12-8, 7-3 Big Ten) kept taking the ball aggressively to the hoop, creating offensive opportunities and capitalizing off good looks. \nThe Hoosiers kept turning the ball over.\nIowa kept the momentum going in front of 5,142 screaming fans. \nRunning a high post offense, the Hawkeyes repeatedly slashed to the basket. With a starting center standing at only six-foot-two, they managed to score 34 of their points in the paint. \n"We prepared for their post game all week," said coach Kathi Bennett. "But it got easier for them as it went on. Their catches got better."\nSpearheaded by senior guard Cara Consuegra, the offensive strategy worked well against the Hoosiers, who were allowing 64.6 points per game this season under Bennett. \n"Having a good passer is an important element of the offense," Iowa coach Lisa Bluder said of Consuegra, who finished with 10 assists. "But it also helps to be able to shoot the ball outside."\nWhile Iowa ended the game with shooting 47 percent from the field, all of its shots seemed to drop when they had to. Time and time again, the announcer would boom the name of one player or another -- four ended with double digits. Everyone on the roster had scored by the end of the first half.\nJunior center Randi Peterson came up big, scoring 13 points. Peterson, who's the shortest center in the Big Ten at six-foot-two, also had 10 rebounds in her seventh double-double of the year. \n"It was frustrating with their height at first," Peterson said. "But I kept pushing and pushing."\nNot moving much off the ball or getting many good looks, the Hoosiers shot a 37 percent from the field. \nThey were also plagued by turnovers, losing possession of the ball 29 times. \n"I think we were hurt largely by our inability to take care of the ball," Bennett said. "I have to give them credit though, they played fearlessly and with abandon"
(02/02/01 7:26pm)
The Congressional Budget Office released a report Thursday forecasting an overall budget surplus of $5.6 trillion during the next decade, $1 trillion more than it predicted six months ago. \nWith only $3.1 trillion of the surplus committed to Social Security, Rep. John Hostettler, R-8th, is calling for "significant, across-the-board tax relief."\n"The federal budget is balance, we're paying down the national debt, and we've stopped the raid on the Social Security Trust Fund," he said in a press release. "Now the government has a moral obligation to return a significant portion of the remaining surplus to the American people so they can pay off their own bills and debts."\nMichael Jahr, a Washington spokesman for the Congressman, said Hostettler would support President George W. Bush's proposed $1.6 trillion tax cut. The cut -- a central plank of Bush's presidential campaign -- would cover all tax brackets during the next 10 years.\n"We still have to take a look at the details of his proposal," Jahr said. "But the congressman is very supportive of the principle. Besides an across-the-board cut, he'd like to see the marriage tax and the estate tax done away with."\nJahr said Hostettler would be willing to support a compromise with Democrats, who have openly criticized the size of the proposed cut.\n"He'd work with the Democrats," Jahr said. "He's always in support of tax relief."\nA compromise would be likely with an evenly split Senate and narrow Republican edge in the House, Jahr said. But he said Bush's tax cut has picked up momentum after an endorsement from Federal Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan. \nIn a testimony before the Senate Budget Committee last week, Greenspan said he would favor tax cuts instead of federal spending. He had previously denounced Bush's tax plan as "too large," stating that he would rather see the money go to pay down the national debt.\nBut, aware of the more optimistic predictions, Greenspan switched his position.\n"The most recent data significantly raise the probability that sufficient resources will be available to undertake both debt reduction and surplus-lowering policy initiatives," he said. "Accordingly, the trade-off faced earlier appears no longer an issue."\nEchoing Bush's position on across-the-board tax relief, Greenspan said it might give the economy a boost.\n"Should current economic weakness spread beyond what now appears likely, having a tax cut in place may in fact do noticeable good," he said.\nHostettler said he views Greenspan's comments as a mandate for Bush's proposed cut.\n"I agree with Greenspan's assessment that if the surplus is not returned to taxpayers it will instead disappear into an abyss of government spending," he said.\nAccording to the Congressional Budget Office, the surplus for the upcoming budget cycle in 2002 will run at about $313 billion. The 2001 budget is estimated to be at $281 billion.\nThe Associated Press contributed to this report.
(02/02/01 7:25pm)
Frank Ambrose -- the 26-year-old Bloomington environmentalist accused of tree spiking -- will have a preliminary hearing at 1 p.m. today in the Monroe Circuit Court. His first court appearance will be protested by a variety of local activists who maintain his innocence.\nTimber-spiking, or putting nails in trees to prevent logging, is a felony in Indiana punishable by up to three years in jail and a $10,000 fine. Not always noticed, the nails can cause serious harm -- even death -- to loggers cutting down the trees.\nThe Indiana Department of Natural Resources arrested Ambrose Jan. 25, alleging he participated in a June tree spiking in the Morgan-Monroe State Forest that was linked to the Earth Liberation Front.\nAmbrose denies committing the crime or knowing who did.\n"I am only guilty of being outspoken about the issue of logging on our public lands," he said in a statement faxed to the media last Thursday. He has since declined to comment.\nELF, a loose-knit ecoterrorist group that has claimed responsibility for more than $39 million of property damage nationwide, committed five acts of vandalism in the Bloomington area last year. In addition to the tree spiking incident, the group damaged heavy logging equipment and burned down a luxury home under construction in the Sterling Woods development on the west side of town.\nLeaving authorities without leads and communicating through Oregon-based spokesman Craig Rosebraugh, ELF primarily targets logging and urban sprawl. Most recently, it set fire to lumber company offices in Oregon.\nFBI agent Doug Garrison said it has been hard to track suspects because ELF is an acronym used by individuals to identify vandalism as a political statement rather than an organization.\nDNR officer Marlin Dodge, who oversaw the case, said linking Ambrose to the crime was relatively easy, although it took authorities more than six months. A state official, Dodge said, saw a car blocking off a logging path and took down the license plate number, which Dodge said he traced to Ambrose.\nAnd Dodge said loggers found a box of 10-inch Grip-Rite spiral-shank nails June 26, where trees has been marked for logging. The nails, Dodge said, were later found in 17 trees in the area with their heads removed, making them impossible to take out.\nDodge said he found that only one store in the area, Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse, carries that brand of nails. \n"They're very peculiar nails that I've never seen before," he said. "It made it easy for me to track them down."\nHe said he then reviewed the store's security tape, which he said shows a man resembling Ambrose purchasing that type of nails. \nWitnesses both at the scene of the crime and familiar with Ambrose identified him after viewing the tape, Dodge said. \nAnd Dodge said a police raid of Ambrose's home last fall turned up cotton gloves and spray paint, which he said had been used to scrawl "ELF" on some of the trees.\nInvestigators believe the crime couldn't have been committed by one man.\n"He couldn't have (done) it all by himself," said Dodge, who declined to comment on whether there are any other suspects.\nFriends and fellow activists describe Ambrose as "mild-mannered" and said they believe he is innocent.\n"He's being targeted because of his outspoken stance of being pro-environment," said fellow activist David Agranoff, who is organizing the noon protest outside the Justice Building, where the hearing will take place. "He has worked for years in Bloomington, and now he's being slandered."\nAgranoff said police needed to charge someone with the crime. \n"They need a scapegoat so they can look good," he said.\nOther local environmentalist said they don't know enough to reach a conclusion, but don't like the bad press the ecoterrorist activities have generated.\n"I think things have been much harder for us," said gradate student Joshua Martin, who has been involved in a variety of environmental causes. "Those of us that work within the system can't get away from it"
(02/01/01 6:11am)
State Sen. Tom Wyss, R-Fort Wayne, said he would like to see Indiana's standard for drunken driving lowered.\nHe's filed legislation 10 of the past 11 sessions to affect that change. For the first time, that legislation has gotten its feet off the ground.\nIt's been passed for floor consideration in both House and Senate committees. The House Public Policy Committee passed it 10-3 Tuesday, its Senate counterpart 7-3 Wednesday. \n"This is a measure that Indiana should have passed long ago," Wyss said. "It would be nice to see Indiana become a leader in this effort that will nationally save hundreds of lives and thousands of injuries every year. It's time we lead instead of follow."\nHe said the bill has more momentum this year. \nCongress passed a law last year that denies states federal highway money if they fail to lower the legal blood-alcohol limit to .08 from .10. \nDespite his earlier perseverance, Wyss said the legislation has only reached the floor once before, in 1990, when it died in the House.\nThe District of Columbia and 19 states have already adopted the .08 standard. \n"While many of us resent the federal government dictating to us what we should do, this particular instance serves a very good cause: reducing the numbers of fatal crashes and other risks posed by drunken drivers," said state Rep. Peggy Welch, D-Bloomington, who endorsed the House legislation. "By holding drivers to greater accountability when they drink and drive, we can make great strides forward in keeping our roads safe." \nBoth bills were modified so that county prosecutors can only pursue drunk driving charges under certain conditions.\nIn the House version, a judge can deter prosecution of a first-time offender with a blood-alcohol level of .08 or .09 so long as the person isn't responsible for death or property damage. The offender would also have to go through an alcohol counseling course and a probationary period. \nWelch, who voted for the amendment, said she's willing to make such compromises so long as the bill gets through.\n"The change embodied in this legislation is just one part of an overall state policy aimed at reducing the numbers of people who drink and drive," she said. "In other states that have enacted a blood alcohol content percentage at .08, there has been a demonstrated impact in advising people that there is a point where they will be arrested if they have too many drinks and get behind the wheel of a car."\nWhile Welch and Wyss said they believe it will cut back on drunk driving, others say it will only harm social drinkers. Restaurant and tavern interests strongly oppose the measure.\nJohn Livengood, a spokesman for the Restaurant and Hospitality Association, said bars in states with an .08 level have seen sales drop off 10 to 20 percent.\n"We think it hurts us economically for no good reason," Livengood said. "It's not going to save any lives. It's a feel-good bill"
(02/01/01 3:51am)
The city of Gary has been about dueling with the Ku Klux Klan over a planned rally since mid-January.\nNow, it's going to the courts.\nThe Indiana Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit on the Klan's behalf, alleging the city violated the constitutional rights of the Klansmen. \nThe Butler-based American Knights of the Ku Klux Klan sought to have a rally Jan. 20, which Gary Mayor Scott King blocked with an executive order requiring a 45-day waiting period. \nPreviously, the waiting period had been seven days.\nAlleging violations of the First Amendment rights to free speech and assembly, the suit filed in the U.S. District Court in Hammond would bar the city from enforcing the waiting period.\nDenying several other applicants, King granted a permit for the Baptist Ministers Conference to stage a counter-rally that Saturday. Members gathered on the steps of city hall, held a prayer service and dispersed.\nThe Klan reapplied for a permit through a Lake County court Jan. 28. Its request was denied. It warned the city it would take legal action if a permit wasn't granted.\n"Cleveland tried stopping us," said Imperial Wizard John Berry of Newville. "And it cost them $1 million. If the mayor wants to waste that money, it's up to him."\nThe Klan would convene for a "First Amendment rally," Berry said. Rather than address the subject of white pride, Berry said the Klansmen would discuss crime, drugs and the riverboats.\n"The mayor tries to make this out to be a racist thing," he said. \nKen aFalk, ICLU legal director, said the waiting period is unreasonable. \n"Any restrictions on the First Amendment have to be reasonable," he said. "In Chicago, the wait is seven days and that can be reduced."\nAnd King's executive order specifically targets the Klan, Falk said.\n"The order is not neutral," he said. "It's in response to the Klan and it's discrimination."\nThe city denies that this is the case.\nGary city attorney Jim Meyer said the policy has as much to do with the number of anti-Klan groups that wanted to hold counter-rallies.\n"The time period has to be long enough for the police to investigate and the mayor to make a decision," he said. "We believe the policy is constitutional."\nMeyer said the city is not discriminating against the Klan.\n"We treat everyone the same," he said. "The mayor discussed his plans for the executive order with me before they applied for the permit."\nThe Klan could stage a rally without a permit, but it would not be allowed police protection.
(01/31/01 4:09am)
With the Democrats holding a 53-47 edge in the House of the state legislature, both parties threw money hand over fist into last fall's election.\nAccording to the Indiana Election Division, House candidates spent a total of $8 million, $1.3 million more than they did a year ago. \nA race for the 64th House seat in Vincennes figured prominently. \nState Rep. John Frenz, D-Vincennes, and Republican challenger Eric Holcomb spent a sum of $537,912.51.\nIt's believed to be a new record.\nEd Feigenbaum, publisher of the "Indiana Legislative Insight" newsletter, said it was $11,000 more than had previously been spent in a single race.\nThe record had been set in 1998, he said. State Sen. David Ford, R-Hartford City, and Democratic challenger Mark Townsend poured $526,168 into their District 19 contest.\nNeither Frenz nor Holcomb faced a primary opponent. According to their campaign finance reports, they each spent nearly $25 per vote. Frenz, a restaurant owner, won reelection with 55 percent of the vote.\n"This money just wasn't for my seat," Frenz said. "(House Speaker John Gregg, D-Sandorn) wanted to keep control of the House. He knew this race was important."\nThe Democrats maintained their majority margin in a redistricting year, which means they'll have an advantage in keeping control over the House for the next decade. And although Republicans control the state Senate, it allows them more control over how the lines for U.S. congressional districts are drawn. \nThe race cost so much, Feigenbaum said, because of the geographic area of the district, which spans five counties and both the Terre Haute and Evansville television markets. And, he said Democrats poured money into the race after they realized it was being targeted by Republicans. \n"Everybody sensed there was an opportunity on the Republican side," he said. "The Democrats had to do what they could to ensure that they won."\nThe Associated Press reported that Frenz's largest contributor was the Indiana House Democratic Caucus, which gave more than $143,000, including $40,000 after October. All in all, holding on to the seat cost him more than $294,000, a fact of which he is "not proud." \nMuch of the spending was in-kind, meaning that lobbyist groups bought up ads on his behalf.\n"I have no say," Frenz said. "I have to report that, even though I had no say on how it was spent." \nFrenz received $65,000 from the Indiana State Teachers Association, a union that spent more than $1 million on the election, according to the election division. The rest of his contributions came from groups as varied as steelworkers' unions and the National Rifle Association, according to the Associated Press.\nHolcomb, an aide to U.S. Rep. John Hostettler, received nearly $100,000 from House Republicans and $75,000 from the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, a business interest group, according to the Associated Press.\n"It's ludicrous that a race costs half a million dollars just to have people's concerns addressed in the statehouse," he said.\nHolcomb would now like to see campaign finance reform taken up in the statehouse, an issue he and Frenz agreed on during the campaign. Specifically, he said he'd like to see mandatory debates in every county, relieving candidates of having to buy so much radio and television time.\n"If we had newspapers and radio stations to step up and encourage candidates to debate, then we wouldn't need to spend so much," he said. "It concerns me when candidates refuse to debate the issues"
(01/30/01 4:56am)
During his eight years as Indianapolis mayor, Stephen Goldsmith sought ways to get private charities more involved in providing social services.\nPresident George W. Bush is now calling on Goldsmith to take his crusade to the national level. \nBush tapped him Monday to head the Corporation for National Service, which former President Bill Clinton created in 1993 to oversee service efforts such as AmeriCorps. Goldsmith will report directly to Bush and serve on the advisory board of a new office that will distribute federal money to religious groups and charities.\n"A person who needs help should have a secular provider to go to as an option at their choice," Goldsmith said at the announcement, according to the Associated Press. "Government should never use its authority to force someone through the door of a religious organization in order to help."\nMike McDaniel, Indiana's GOP chairman, said the state stands to gain from having a strong connection in the Bush administration.\n"He knows what's here," he said. "He knows what programs are here, and he'll draw on that familiarity."\nGoldsmith served as a domestic policy adviser during Bush's presidential campaign, helping him shape his faith-based charities policy. As mayor, Goldsmith created the Front Porch Alliance, a collaboration between the city and religious groups.\n"He was the Moses of compassionate conservatives," said Marshall Wittman, a senior fellow of the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank based out of Indianapolis. "He led it out of the desert."\nCoordinating city services and offering $5,000 grants to charity groups, it was a small initiative, which had a $450,000 annual budget and a nine-person staff. But it garnered national attention for its innovation and caught Bush's eye. \nWith Goldsmith at his side at a rally in Indianapolis last year, Bush first announced his plan to reform the tax code to encourage private charities. \nThe faith-based charities initiative has come under fire in some circles, which say it violates separation of church and state and drains money away from government programs.\nGoldsmith was rumored to be a top candidate for secretary of housing or labor. \n"I think it's probably not the position he should have been selected for," said Joe Lottus, Goldsmith's former deputy mayor. "But he'll bring a lot of energy and leadership to the government."\nWhile Indiana Republicans said they are disappointed he didn't end up with a cabinet position, they expressed joy at his appointment.\n"(Goldsmith) was an excellent choice," said Shirley Baker, vice chairman of the state Republican party. "He did some very innovative, very creative things in Indianapolis, especially with privatization. His leadership will come in useful."\nOther Indiana Republicans were expected to find prominent positions in the Bush administration, including former Rep. David McIntosh and former Sen. Dan Coats.\nCoats was considered a top choice for defense secretary, which ultimately went to Donald Rumsfeld. Newsweek reported Bush decided against Coats when he expressed his desire to scale back the integration of gays in the military during a private meeting with Bush.\n"I'm disappointed that we didn't end up with more Hoosiers in the cabinet," Baker said. "He made excellent choices, though, and I don't know his reasons for his decisions."\nBesides his two terms as mayor, Goldsmith served as Marion County prosecutor for 11 years. He lost the 1996 gubernatorial election to Gov. Frank O'Bannon.\nGoldsmith said he will work for the Bush administration on a volunteer basis. A spokesman with the Washington-based Baker & Daniels law firm, which employs Goldsmith, confirmed he would stay on as an attorney.
(01/30/01 4:54am)
James R. Davis has lived in the McDoel Gardens neighborhood for much of his life.\nHis parents built a house there decades ago, and he now owns a his own home there. \nHe's paid his taxes and filed all the paperwork with the city whenever he's wanted to make exterior renovations, and he's worried that the property will soon be subject to another level of bureaucracy. \nBut he doesn't have much to worry about.\nThe controversial proposal to make McDoel a historic conservation district will likely die at the hands of the city council as a preliminary vote showed the council leaned toward voting against it.\nThe designation would impose limitations on construction in the neighborhood, especially demolition and relocation. Those who would want to make changes would have to seek permits from the Bloomington Historical Preservation Commission as well as the city.\nDavis said he doesn't think it will be of much use.\n"They built a house that was later converted into a duplex," he said. "That's explicitly against the zoning code, but they didn't bother to enforce it. I don't see how they'd enforce these new regulations they're talking about."\nIn early January, the commission passed a 5-1 vote in support of the proposal, sending it to the city council. Two members abstained because of conflicts of interest. \n"Erosion is nipping at the edge of the neighborhood, with new construction," said Ellen Sieber of the commission. "We need a tool to keep strong boundaries."\nSupporters say the special status would preserve the neighborhood and increase property value.\n"It is central to keeping the character of our neighborhood," said Robert Stark, who has lobbied for the ordinance. "We need to encourage our neighbors to invest in their property. The only people this will harm is the speculators. The people who don't want to sell their homes won't be harmed -- it's the perfect prescription."\nDetractors say the proposal would infringe on the rights of property owners.\n"I have put blood, sweat and tears into my house, the whole bit," said Roger Hayes, who gathered a petition with 177 signatures opposing the ordinance. "I've made every decision, every payment; I've put in every nut, bolt and screw. I have the right to keep control over my own property."\nMore than 20 people made public comment on the proposal at the Wednesday city council meeting, which stretched past midnight. Many spoke in favor, but most opposed the idea.\nThe council took a preliminary vote on the matter and appears as divided as the residents themselves. Four council members voted in favor, while the remaining five were either opposed or undecided.\nThe Mayor's office does not back the proposal, City Attorney Michael Flory said at the time. Final action will not be taken on the matter until the council's next meeting Feb. 7.\nOther matters on the agenda include an ordinance to approve a lease between the city and the developer of the Walnut Center garage and a request for a tax abatement to a condominium project at the corner of Ninth and Walnut Streets.\nNeither are nearly as contentious as the proposed conservation district.
(01/29/01 5:04am)
Bloomington Mayor John Fernandez filed papers with the state Friday that launched his candidacy for Indiana secretary of state.\nHe has publicly entertained the idea of running for the seat, which oversees business, securities and elections. It will be vacated in 2002 by Republican Sue Anne Gilroy at the end of her second term. \nThe papers he filed with the Indiana Election Division create an exploratory committee. Under state law, candidates cannot start to raise campaign funds until they have an exploratory committee.\n"I'm gratified by the strong encouragement I've been receiving from a large number of leaders from all across Indiana," Fernandez said in a press release. "During the next several months, I will be traveling throughout Indiana listening to the concerns of our fellow citizens and sharing ideas on how we can build a better future for our state."\nState Sen. Vi Simpson, D-Ellettsville, chairs the Friends of Mayor Fernandez Committee; Indianapolis attorney Ann O'Hara serves as its general counsel. \nThe Democratic candidate for the seat -- held by Gilroy since 1994 -- will ultimately be determined by the party leadership and announced at their state convention in 2002. \n"It's an open seat," said Douglas Davidoff, communications director for the Indiana Democratic Party. "Because there may be more than one candidate, we tend not to get involved."\nGenerally, Davidoff said Democrats will be looking for a candidate who can generate statewide support and raise funds. \n"Mayor Fernandez is certainly a great Democrat," he said. "But that's about as far as we can go."\nFernandez's political stock has been rising in the state party.\nLast year, Gov. Frank O'Bannon tapped him for the state's attorney general position, which Jeff Modisett left to take a job in Sillicon Valley. While O'Bannon ultimately gave Karen Freeman-Wilson the nod, insider sources told Indianapolis media that Fernandez ran a close second.\nAt the time, he said he had no interest in running for higher office and would focus on the business of the city.\nThe Howey Political Report, a newsletter published by Nuvo columnist Brian Howey out of Indianapolis, ranked Fernandez 26th in its annual list of Indiana's Top 50 Political Figures. He had come in 42nd in 1999.\nThe ranking places him ahead of Rep. John Hostettler, R-8th, and former Indianapolis Mayor Stephen Goldsmith, whom President George W. Bush had reportedly considered for a cabinet post. \nIn the press release, Fernandez said his qualifications for the position include the creation of 2,300 new jobs, securing more than $143 million of private investment in the city and increasing resources for child care assistance. \n"In terms of vision and initiative, I give him high marks," said Councilman Timothy Mayer, D-At Large.\nBloomingtonians in both parties agree that Fernandez would be well-suited for a statewide office.\n"He's a formidable candidate," said former Republican county councilman Kirk White, who ran for mayor against Fernandez in 1999. "He's very well-versed on the issues. He has a good grasp of how government should be organized."\nFernandez has served as a city law clerk and city councilman. Re-elected in 1999, he is in his second term as mayor.\nIf Fernandez were to win the secretary of state race, he said he would continue to serve as mayor until sworn into the new position Jan. 1, 2003. His second term as mayor would conclude at the end of the year.\nIf he were to leave office, he would be replaced by deputy mayor James McNamara. A caucus of Democratic precinct committee members would select the mayoral candidate in the fall election.
(01/26/01 4:17am)
Sparks flew in the city council chambers Wednesday, as twenty-some residents of the McDoel Gardens neighborhood gave public comment in a meeting that stretched on until midnight.\nThe issue so hotly contested: zoning.\nEnlisting the help of the Bloomington Historic Preservation Commission, some residents petitioned the council to make the neighborhood a historic conservation district. The designation means permits will have to be sought from the historical commission as well as the city before any construction begins. \nProponents of the ordinance say it will increase the property value of the neighborhood. To preserve the neighborhood's historic fabric, limitations would be placed on demolition and relocation.\n"We want to keep our small houses and the friendly feel to out streets," said Ellen Sieber, a member of the neighborhood association, which supports the measure. "We want to maintain our pride of ownership."\nBut the proposed designation has also riled many members of the neighborhood, who worry about their property rights being infringed upon. They contend that existing zoning laws are enough to keep the neighborhood from becoming run down.\n"As a property owner, I have no plans to build, demolish or relocate," said Allen Hayes, who presented a petition of 177 residents to the council. \n"I have put blood, sweat and tears into my house, the whole bit. I've made every decision, every payment, I've put in every nut, bolt and screw. \n"I have the right to keep control over my own property."\nSupporters of the ordinance countered that concerns about property rights were misguided.\n"We always have to give up rights," said Anna Lynch, a graduate student who has lived in the neighborhood for three-and-a-half years. "In a democracy, we have to choose which rights we give up. And without this, the entity with the most money wins."\nThe opposition to the ordinance also expressed fears that it would eventually become a full historical preservation district, which would impose strict regulations on any additions or renovations.\n"There are good people on both sides of this debate," Hayes said. "There are good people in the neighborhood association, and I believe they have the best intentions. But no one can promise that it won't be run by people with different intentions five years down the road.\n"No one can predict the future."\nHayes touted his petition as a reflection of public sentiment on the matter. Those in favor of the conservation district also submitted a petition with 102 signatures. \n"It's the most accurate means available to gauge the will of the people," he said. "It shows that at least 50 percent of the residents are strongly against having their decision-making taken away and given to a governmental agency."\nBoth sides questioned the others' methods in gathering signatures, accusing the other of giving misleading information. Upon questioning from councilman Michael Diekhoff, D-District III, each admitted that only about half of the signatures were from owner-occupied homes.\nGiving only a preliminary hearing, the city council will not vote on the ordinance until its next meeting two weeks from now.\nIn other business, the council gave a unanimous preliminary vote to approve leasing space downtown to a developer to build a parking garage. City attorney Michael Flory said the move would create about 70 new parking spaces and be a boon to downtown business.\nThe city will retain the right to determine the charge to customers.\n"We want to ensure that the parking is affordable," Flory said.\nAnother measure geared toward the revitalization of the downtown stirred up more controversy. \nAlthough it had the majority's support, councilmen Chris Gaal, D-District six, and Andy Ruff, D-At Large, expressed reservation about giving a tax abatement to developer Peter Dvorak, who plans to build an apartment complex at 501 N. Walnut St.\nTax abatements are generally given when a project won't otherwise get off the ground. Dvorak asked for the abatement on the grounds that the limestone on the property increases construction costs dramatically.\nRuff and Gaal noted that developers frequently encounter limestone in Monroe County, saying they'd need further evidence to give their votes.\nBut seven of the councilmen said they would support the measure when it comes up next week. \n"I follow the local real estate market pretty closely," said councilman Jason Banach, R-District II. "And if someone wants to build an owner-occupied apartment complex across from Axis Nightclub with units going at $300,000, I say more power to them"
(01/25/01 5:57am)
The Indiana General Assembly is again considering a sales tax exemption for college textbooks. The bill is a response to a campaign led by the IU Student Association.\nState Rep. Sheila Klinker, D-Lafayette, and Mark Kruzan, D-Bloomington, have filed bills that would abolish the tax. Its proponents say the exemption would save students $20-50 per semester.\nIt has some bipartisan support -- the bill Klinker drafted is co-sponsored by Rep. Dennis Kruse, R-Auburn.\nSuch legislation failed during the last session, when the surplus was spent mostly on tax cuts and expansion of the prison system. Tax revenue had to be kept steady so the state would continue to run a surplus, said Thad Nation, a spokesman for Governor Frank O'Bannon.\nBut IUSA has revived the issue with a statewide petition drive. \nCollecting more than 12,000 signatures from students at 18 colleges and universities, IUSA presented its petition Jan. 17 at the Statehouse. It plans to rally Wednesday in Indianapolis. Student governments from other Indiana colleges have jumped on the bandwagon.\n"This state should do everything it can to support higher education," said Corey Murphy, president of Student Government Association at the University of Evansville. "Helping students' pocketbooks would be an excellent start."\nTuesday, Murphy sent about 300 signed letters supporting the exemption to State Rep. Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend. Bauer is chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, which shapes tax laws.\nIUSA is enlisting the help of other student government groups because it knows it faces an uphill battle, said junior Ben Piper, legislative relations director. \nWith a slowing economy and shrinking projected state revenues, the legislature plans to cut back on spending. And the governor made a plea for fiscal responsibility during his State of the State address last week.\n"Realistically, I think it still stands a good chance," Piper said. "We'll just have to push harder, to put the fire under their feet."\nKruzan, who said that a similar bill never received a hearing last year, said he'll use his influence as majority leader.\n"It'll be an uphill battle," he said. "But the case can be made that with education, we shouldn't tax the tools of trade."\nO'Bannon's budget flatlines higher education spending during the next two years. While it is being retooled by the House Ways and Means Committee, Kruzan said it sets the tone on spending. \nAnd textbook tax exemptions, Kruzan said, will have to compete with other higher education spending measures. \n"We don't look at this as additional spending," Piper said of the tax exemption, which would reduce revenues by an estimated $3 million. "We look at this as fixing something that's wrong. We don't believe that this tax should fall on the back on students"
(01/24/01 3:57am)
Bloomington Mayor John Fernandez announced a decrease in the city's property tax rate Tuesday, saving the typical property owner in the city about $15.\n"Our new tax rate is good news for Bloomington residents and shows that we can be responsive to our good citizens' demand for better government at lower cost," he said. "Reducing taxes is key to economic growth and enhances the business climate of Bloomington."\nThe State Board of Tax Commissioners approved the city's 2001 budget earlier this month.\nThe city is cutting property taxes despite a 6-percent increase in spending, leaving the annual budget at about $35 million. The budget includes new spending on the fire department and the parks and recreation department. Passed 8-1 by the city council last September, it also provides funding for the city's new noise ordinance, part of the mayor's quality-of-life campaign.\nCity Controller Tom Guevara said an overall increase in property value makes the tax rate decrease possible.\n"The value of total property in Bloomington has grown faster than taxes," he said. "It's partly because of new development and partly because of annexation. We raised the same amount, but the payment rate for individual homeowners is less."\nBloomington has grown by 10 percent since the 1990 U.S. Census, Guevara said.\n"The new rate," Fernandez said, "will decrease by around 7 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, which is about a third of the market value. The rate presently stands at about $3.71 per $100." Fred Prall, president of the Monroe County Taxpayers Association, said the tax cut is a step in the right direction but does not go far enough.\n"Property taxes are much too high; too much reliance is put upon them for revenue," he said. "It goes counter to logic -- the more you work to improve your property, the more taxes you have to pay. It's just terribly inequitable"
(01/24/01 3:54am)
The economic downturn has proved harsh for retailers, forcing Montgomery Ward into bankruptcy after 128 years.\nIt's also taken a toll on J.C. Penney. The chain will close four stores in Indiana, including its College Mall location.\n"The decision to close the Bloomington store was made after a careful review of store performance," said Mike Taxter, senior vice-president of the Plano, Texas-based company. "It is never an easy decision to close a J.C. Penney store, especially because of the impact on valued associates and customers."\nTaxter said other underperforming stores in Martinsville, Anderson and Indianapolis will be closed. Customers, he said, can still be served by the catalog and Web site, www.jcpenney.com.\nThe Bloomington closing reflects more on J.C. Penney than on the city's retail market, said Linda Williamson, president of the Bloomington Economic Development Corporation. Williamson noted that retail sales are up overall, and Old Navy plans to open a second Bloomington location on the west side of town in April.\n"There's always a turnover in retailing," she said. "Shopping habits change."\nJ.C. Penney has faced fierce competition from retailers such as the Gap and Eddie Bauer. The company reported that its stock dipped to less than $13 from about $70 three years ago. It reported that its third-quarter sales had dropped 3.7 percent, while catalog sales had dropped 5.4 percent.\nThe company hired turnaround specialist Allen Questrom as CEO last year, and he has shut down underperforming stores. Questrom told the Wall Street Journal the company is in deeper trouble than he originally thought, and his project of "strategic repositioning of store assets" should take two years to complete.\nBusiness experts blame the company's troubles on its lack of brand identity. It doesn't target a sharply defined market niche, they say.\n"The successful retailers are those who really know their target market and customers," said Rockney Walters, an associate professor of marketing at the Kelley School of Business. "You walk into Old Navy for example, and you know immediately who they're marketing to."\n With 102,000 square feet on two floors, the J.C. Penney store is one of the largest in College Mall.\nSimon Property Group, which owns and operates the mall, is looking to fill the space quickly.\n"College Mall is a very strong center," said Bill Scott, the company's director of public relations. "We have a lot of contracts in the industry and I'm sure we'll find a suitable replacement."\nThe store will shut its doors April 28, as will its Anderson counterpart, Taxter said. The Indianapolis outlet at Washington Square Mall will close June 2. \nKen Rue, manager of the Martinsville location since 1993, said the store won't know when it will be closing until early March.\nJ.C. Penney, Taxter said, will help employees find other job opportunities, transferring some to other locations. Some will be eligible for severance packages, he said.\nJames Cash Penney founded the company in 1902, when he opened the Golden Rule Store in a small mining town in Wyoming. It soon became a fixture in downtown locations throughout the county until the 1970s, when shopping malls became popular.\nJ.C. Penney has more than 1,100 stores across the country, employing more than 290,000 people.
(01/23/01 4:04am)
Bloomington Mayor John Fernandez lent a helping hand to low-income families struggling with high heating bills Monday.\nAt a City Hall press conference Monday, he handed a $5,000 check to Jeanne Robinson, executive director of the South Central Community Action Program.\n"We don't want our citizens to be in a position where they have to choose between food and heat," he said. "If we don't act now to respond to this problem, people will be caught in an unnecessary downward economic spiral from which they may not recover." \nCAP assists low-income families with heating bills, which are unusually high because of the coldest winter in years and rising fuel prices. Serving Monroe, Morgan, Owen and Brown counties, the Bloomington-based office offers financial assistance to families whose income does not exceed 150 percent of the federal poverty levels.\nThe high heating costs have severely drained CAP's funds, Robinson said.\n"We're unable to allocate enough per household to provide for minimal winter heat," she said. "And individual allocations have not kept pace with the price of fuel. It is still just January and our resources are lagging far behind the demand."\nRobinson testified before the Monroe County Commissioners in early January that it is fast becoming a "crisis situation." Although the office is supposed to provide assistance through March 15, Robinson said it distributed 57 percent of its funding in December alone.\nIn Monroe County, Robinson said only $301,000 of $644,740 remains.\nWithout debate, the commissioners drafted a petition asking the state legislature for more funding.\n"This is a situation as bad as a tornado ripping through here," said commissioners' president Brian O'Neill. "And it's a matter we can prevent."\nIn the hope of securing state funding, Robinson met with local legislators, including State Sen. Vi Simpson, D-Ellettsville. \n"We need to leverage revenue in whatever way we can," she said, noting that a bill offering emergency heating relief to low-income Hoosiers has already been filed in the General Assembly.\nJoking that he came up with the money "from the laser printer up in the mayor's office," Fernandez said it won't do much.\n"We hope these funds provide some immediate assistance while the flow of additional funds from the federal and state levels are being worked out," he said. "We realize our effort will not solve the entire problem. We want to stimulate other groups and persons in the community to come forward as well"