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Show Page A10 THE DAILY HERALD, Provo, Utah, Friday, March 12, 1999 NATION Officials accused of overreacting to plot By JENNIFER BATOG Associated Press Writer Back BURLINGTON, Wis. in November, authorities boasted that they had averted a bloodbath by arresting a group of boys who planned to steal guns from one of their fathers, take high school administra- tors hostage and shoot students who had picked on them. This agricultural town of 9,500 people, best known for its chocolate factory and an annual competition for the world's best liar, seemed to have narrowly escaped the tragic fate of communities West like Paducah, Ky., Jonesboro, Ark., and Springfield, Ore. But four months later, the case is limping to a close, with police missteps forcing prosecu . tors into plea "bargains. And authorities are having to defend themselves against accusations they overreacted to the whole thing. ' At first, prosecutors wanted to charge the boys as adults, meaning they could have gone to prison for 120 years. But two boys who said they backed out of the plot were never charged. And the remaining three, once charged with conspiracy to commit murder, ended up pleading no contest to juvenile charges of reckless endangering. Those boys, all 16, ,can be held in juvenile detention for only' two years, Until they turn 18. Mark Nielsen, the lawyer for the alleged ringleader, said he was baffled as to how tough talk from a group of teen-age- who never even touched a gun became "the biggest case in America.'' "I don't think there's the slightest question about people overreacting to this case," he said. Authorities say they did the right thing, considering the school tragedies in other towns. They learned of the alleged plot from an informant, "The choice comes down to doing something and seeing what evidence there was or doing nothing and waiting to see what happens," said Ron Patla, police chief in this town about 60 miles southwest of Milwaukee. "I don't think our response was any kind of an overreaction at all." Added Burlington High School Principal Jose Martinez, , rs one of the targets of the alleged plot: "I'm grateful that the police did what they did. People want to say that we overreacted, but what was the alterna- tive?! think the students were The three boys arrested had been charged with nine counts altogether, including three of conspiracy to commit murder. But prosecutors eventually dropped all but one count of murder conspiracy against each, saying that charge would cover all of the offenses alleged. Acting on the recommendation of psychologists, prosecutors also withdrew their request to try the boys as adults. Still, the boys could have gotten three years in juvenile detention if convicted of murder conspiracy. By PATRICIA J, MAYS Associated Press Writer ATLANTA Deaths this flu season are running slightly higher than expected, the SOIL'S BEST FRIEND A CHEMICAL-FRE- government Thursday. PREMIUM COMPOST! It's time for Spring applications to get ready for this year's growing season. SOIL'S BEST FRIEND is available at 3 Utah locations: ELBERTA - Utah County 801-667-35- 00 mimo - Box Elder County RICHFIELD - Sevier County 801-782-57- 30 435-896-86- 34 BRING N&l LIFE TO YOUR SOIL natural process it is SCENT FREE! 100 ORGANIC soil enhancer No chemicals used Composition: Nitrogen, Potash, Phosphate, Calcium By deaths." Flu contributes to the deaths of about 20,000 people in the United States each year. The CDC won't release the latest total of deaths. At the end of the flu season, the agency will analyze deaths and determine how many of those attributed to pneumonia or other causes were actually caused by the flu. . An outbreak at a long-tercare facility in Santa Clara County, Calif., sickened 60 workers and 37 residents, two of whom died, the CDC said, emphasizing the need for health care workers to get flu Sodium, Iron, Aluminum, Copper Through natural heat processes it's cured & aged for over 3 months to maximize the elimination of foreign plant seeds IF YOU WANT A HIGHER YIELD, GREENER GRASS AND A CHEMICAL-FRE- ENVIRONMENTAL FRIENDLY E, reported The flu season, which runs from late October through early May, got off to a slow start but has heated up, with 43 states reporting outbreaks, the Centers for , Disease Control and Prevention said. For the week ending Feb. 27, pneumonia- - and influenza-relate- d deaths accounted for 8.1 percent of the total deaths reported in 122 U.S. cities, the CDC said. The agency had expected a rate of 7.5 percent or less: For the last three weeks in February, in fact, the rate has run higher than CDC expectations. "The death rate is higher than expected for this time of year," said Dr. Carolyn Bridges of the CDC's Center for Infectious Diseases. "We may have not yet seen the peak of influenza- - or pneumonia-relate- d SCENT-FRE-E E, PRODUCT, YOU'LL WANT 'SOIL'S BEST FRIEND' Ordering & Delivery Options: In yard pick up or delivery available Place order now for immediate delivery m Come visit our Booth at the Home Expo By KALPANA SRINIVASAN Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON ' ' shots. . d racket getting a second wind on the Internet. But federal regulators warn that cyberspace versions of these pyramid schemes are no better than the traditional ones. In the end, people will still end up throwing money into ventures that rarely live up to their promises of big returns. . Tfade The Federal Commission along with a number of state officials announced Thursday 33 law enforcement actions against 67 defendants promoting such Internet pyramid schemes. The commission also launched a sweep of the World Wide Web to locate sites that might be hosting illegal multilevel marketing scams. "We're committed to taking on the con artists who think they can use the Internet to promote illegal schemes," said Jodie Bernstein, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. The Internet has helped breathe new life into the schemes. A consumer merely has to type "get rich quick" into an Internet search engine and Web sites appear guaranteeing huge profits if they invest some of their money and can sign on others to do the same. "The first couple people may make money, but two or three levels down, the pyramid topples," said Holly Cherico, a spokeswoman for the Council of Better Business Bureaus in Arlington, Va. What distinguishes pyramid schemes from legitimate multilevel marketing ventures is that they focus on recruiting new members, not on selling products, she said. In one pyramid operation cited by the FTC, Five Star! Auto Club Inc. of Poughquag, N.Y., promised online consumers an opportunity to lease their "dream vehicle" for free while earning anywhere from $180 to $80,000. All they had to do was pay an annual fee and $100 in monthly payments and recruit others to join. But the commission alleged that those who signed up received no free lease on a car and no earnings from the deal. The FTC has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in White Plains, N.Y., against the Five Star Auto Club Inc. seeking a permanent injunction and consumer redress. A federal court already has temporarily shut down the operation. "Basically, these schemes take your money to pay off some other people," said Cleo Manuel, of the National Consumers League. f . "Ultimately, someone is going to be left holding the bag." Manuel said con artists try ttfrassure'wmsumers that the scheme is legitimate by using "shills" decoys who are paid by the company to say they made huge profits in the 1st Incoming Minute o FREE Long Distance ON WEEKENDS o SHORT TERM Plans As Low As $19.95 iMmr CELLULAR, Z:z27 CITY ''U446M dm. 288-224- 0 FREE VOICE MAIL I I WOTHU. COTTONWOOD uMlfcrtMtiM 883-229- 8 vrtLAMK MALL FREE Orj PAGING c 0G0OI 4390 to. WttMnoto 479-13- 00 BM M LOGAN 350 Ufa PROV0 1QWB CENTOI 1200 Town Cmtf 6M 7H4303 8824023 ALSO AT NEWGATE AND CACHE VALLEY MALL 1.M. KU MS 95 120 vt raqund. Tim long ONtanoa n oma pyramid schemes: Avoid any plan - that offers commissions for recruiting additional distributors. Beware of plans that ask new distributors to d spend money on inventory. These plans can collapse quickly and also may be illegal pyramids in 1. disguise. Be cautious of plans that claim you'll make money through continued growth of your 'downline" the commissions on sales made by new distribuinstead tors you recruit of through sales you make yourself. Beware of 'shills" decoy references that the prornoter pays to describe fictional success in earning money through the plan. Do your homework. Check with your local Better Business Bureau and state attorney general about any plan you're considering, especially if the claims about your potential earn-- , ings or the product sound too good to be true. high-price- ' , scheme. Officials warn that the Internet makes it easy for such fraudulent operations to hide?1' shut down or move when some' one begins to catch on. Well'-constructed Web sites might'" also give the appearance orrt legitimacy and be more cofl?1" vincing than newspaper advertisements making the same - false claims. V nffArG way to an nltoniftfiv target consumers, whihir making the schemes"more diffl-'cult for law enforcers to trace1 said Jim Lanford, df Scambusters, an online magaf zine about Internet fraud. "J "There are lots of with addresses on them. Some people just go in and harl-vefrom a news group," said Lanford. Then individuals who" buy into the operation others they know friends or members to let them family in on their big discovery. offers the possibility for easy'j mass targeting, he said. 1J I'll me miuc uiu us 4.U suiciue., It's just cheaper to do," Lanforcl; "j CD-ROM- ail st j 1 T4- - said. Officials say that as with anything that sounds too goo3 to be true, it probably is. "The only people getting rich: are the con artists," says Pete' mldreth, president of the North American Securities' Association? Administrators "Ask yourself if it's such 'sM great moneymaking idea, whyi is someone telling 100,000 of their closest friends about it oil ' r the Internet?" u , Press Writer R-Il- l., l.C. MURRAY The Federal Trade Commission offers these tips for consumers to guard themselves against illegal the federal government." Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D N.Y., a sampling advocate, said In the it was "outrageous" that-- : WASHINGTON Jatest dustup over the 2000 Republicans were "willing tfcj census, House Democrats criti- undermine the entire census tela cized reports Thursday that keep political power." ; A report in the Capitol HilL Republican leaders are planRoll Call, saicLI newspaper, a ning major campaign against Dennffi Speaker White House plans to use a mix House has enlisted fo Mil of traditional and scientific Hastert, mer Rep. Bill Paxon, to V? methods. Republicans oppose use of prepare House Republicans for" "statistical sampling." a budget fight over the censured lhe newspaper also said Paxolj-Democrats argue it will produce a more accurate account- and a team of political consul ing of the nation's population ants were mapping plans flo win over the public, including than the 1990 census. ! At a hastily scheduled news paid media campaign. "We Americab do the think ' Democrats conference, denounced a published report people need to know that anjy cerl- that said Republicans were effort to have a to the diminish" is going preparing for a budget fight sus over the census issue that could count, said Hastert spokesman j result in another shutdown of John Feehery Associated VJ CALLER ID The Associated Press By DARLENE SUPERVILLE y ZJJpf0 FREE Avoiding ccct.3 Democrats criticize reports of Republican war oh census FREE o FREE Weekends . It's an age-ol- serious." 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