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Show The Salt Lak D2 FO8THERECORD Elizabeth Smart kidnapping appeared in court Tuesday to answer charges of evading police. Bret Michael Edmunds’ Radioactive waste fight puts matter in court BY JUDY FAHYS attorney, Gre Skordas, requested a continu: so multiple charges could be con. solidated. Edmunds’ next hearing was scheduled for Aug. 8 at 2 p.m before 3rd District Judge Sheila McCleve. Police launched a man. hunt for Edmunds, 26, after re The around the time the 14-year-old girl was abducted. Police never considered Edmunds suspect The manhunt ended June 20 when West Virginia hospital. O LINK TO MISSING WOMAN Uintah County authorities say items found on Diamond Moun tain could be connected to the dis: appearance of a Vernal woman nearly 15 years ago. Rhonda Fae Karren was 31 when she vanished Sept. 28, 1987. Officials from the Uintah County and Moffat County. Colo,, sheriff's departments con ducted a dig July 13 on the moun tain, about 30 miles northeast of Vernal, after conductinginter views, said Uintah County Sher ifs Sgt. Robert Roth. Several unidentified items were collected and sent to the state crime lab for analysis, he said Ly of cats in the Avenues, Conserva Roach examined the bodies oftwo cats foundlast week in the Salt La a tyr anny over urbanones is nowin the hands of the state SupremeCourt cide whether thetimeis right to take a ity neigh borhood, and photographsofoth ers Tuesday. Roach said he found only two injuries that could indi cate a possible predator pune ture wounds on one cat’s head, and rounding offof the ribs on the same cat, Salt Lake County Ani mal Services spokeswoman ‘TemmaMartinsaid investigators aren't ruling out a predator, but are continuingto searchfora sus pect. Four possible mutilations are being investigated. Q CHARGESIN KIDNAPPING An 18-year-old Riverdale man was charged with molesting a4 door-to-door, signature-removal drive in rural counties. Last week, the initiative’s backers asked the court for an emergency review ofthestate's citizen initiative law. First, however, the court must decide whetherit has jurisdiction to hear the lawsuit, andif so, whether it should put the the proposed wasteact on the Nov. 5 ballot. “It's an issue that’s time has come,” said Deno G. Himonas attorneyfor waste act proponents, during oral arguments Tuesda The Radioactive Waste Restric tions Act would ban nuclear waste more potent than that already allowed NASAworker,arrested in scheme,is U. student BY GREG LAVINE THESALT LAKE TRIBUNE, “Orb Robinson” posted antalizingoffer on a Belgian mineralogy club Web site May 9: “Priceless Moon Rocks NowAvailable!!!” The only snag with this amazing deal is that the rocks weren't really available. They were in a safe at NASA, whichcollected the rocks ing six Apollo moon missions, from 1969 to the early 1970s. Andno one can buy orprivately own any of them Robinson identified by FBI agents in a criminal complaint as Thad Roberts, a University of Utah physics student soon heard from a potential investor in Belgium. However, the would-be buyernoti to knock onthedoors of rural-county Utahns who had signed the petitions their names removed. Last week, backersof the proposed state’s ballot initiative process, and both sides appeared Tuesday to make oral arguments. As with many cases that land on thejustices’ desks, the discussion on this one swung back andforth between legal technicalities and questions about fairness and the proper role of government Do rural Utahns get a “bigger” vote than voters registered in the state's biggest communities because of the tough county-by can ‘Signature re quirement in Utah's waiver last week Lawrence and her boyfriend, Rich 23, tors, addedthat the case should instead goto state court or the couri of public opinion, the 2004 statewide Proponents thought they election, where the signatures collected this year couldbe usedagain to hoist theinitiative onto the ballot. Theinitiative’s backers countered that neither more facts nor more time wouldresolve the fundamentalissue that Utah's initiative law prevents had people from enjoying their right of “one man, onevote. Lisa Watts Ba: in, drafter of the wastelaw, suggested the j tices had a natures evaporate during the opponents’ monthlong, door-to-door camn urging voters to get their signa- responsibility to e: e the lopsided provisions in‘Utah’s law. Otherwise, s removed. In the end, the she said, lawmakers will have suc measure had sufficient signatures only in 14 counties, missing its mark by 147 votes in Beaver, Daggett, Gar- ceeded in lashing back at the exasper- ated voters who resorted to direct field, Kane, Piute and Waynecounties. lawmaking, the initiative process provided by the Utah Constitution, because lawmakers were unwilling to address an important public concern. Sahys@sltrib.com In effect, proponentssaid, those 147 ofthestate, decidedtheissueforall of monthafter the deadline for signature Utah. rural voters, orone fifteen-thousandth Roberts, summeremployeeat the Houston spacecenter, thought he had found abuyer willing to work around the law, accordingto court papers. An eemail e: xchange sometimes cordial, s ranoid unfolded over as the twoparties hag- gled. In a May27 e-mail, the FBI witness: offered as muchas $800 a gram forthe rocks. Roberts reportedly suggested prices of $300 to $8,000 per gram NASA places the value of the stolen lunar samples aboutfive ounces or 42 gra at about $1 million. s aining proceeded, the Belgian suggested that someU.!S. rel atives could serve as conta face-to-face meeting. A rende: wasset for Orlando, Fla., met an Italian restaurant near Disney World, court papers state. In prey tion for the transaction, Robert: accused of orchestrating a uments filed in U.S. District Court in enter, where they worked. On played for the undercoveragents his from moving the safe, and the agents said they had $100,000 to pur: chasesomeofthe lunar samples. When Roberts, who would be a THESALT LAKE TRIBUNE Workmanraised the ire of County Council members this week when she said it was too Jate to keep sheriff's ispatchers from merging with the Valley Emergency Communications Center (VECC). But council members cooledoffaf ter hearing the mayor had not cinched county dispatchers with the new VECC facility in West Valley City because the council had not objected to the move by a July 1 deadline. ‘It required a vote not to go,” she said, noting the council never resur“We're now going forward.” But on Tuesday, Workman's top aide, Deputy Mayor Alan Dayton, said in noway near being set in yet,” Dayton said. “Wefully plan to get the council's full approval.” Workman's initial comment set off council members opposed to joining VECC, including Councilman Joe Hatch. “There is some misunderstanding in the mayor's office,” Hatch said “Otherwise why would the mayor ake such a statement?” Hatch urged the mayor’s office to keep the council in the loop about VECC. Councilman Michael Jensen agreed. “We need to be kept abreast ofthe negotiations,” said Jensen, who is a county firefighter. “It's only right since w the bodythat ultimately decides.” Hatch plans to add VECC to Tuesday's council agenda. The confusion comes on top ofa eport by the sheriff's office that arns the county needs to changeits his boss mayhave been speaking with limited information. He noted the proposed merger has not received fi current dispatch system to prevent nal approval yet, although the mayor's “potentially disastrous inefficiency.” course of the Apollo missions are don MeWorter, 26, the FBI reported. Saur was arrested in Houston the same day.It was the 33rd anniversary of Neil Armstrong'sfirst stroll on the moon. The moonrocks were recovered. property of the U.S. government,”said Eileen Hawley, a spokeswoman at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. (There was one exception to the private-ownership rule. President Ri Special Agent Sara Oates, a spokeswoman forthe FBI's Tampa office, said the rocks are being held as evidence for court proceedings. Rob- chard Nixon distributed some moon rocksto various headsof state as peace offerings, Hawleysaid.) Hawley said that Roberts wasserving in a co-op programat the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory. Thelabfeatures a massive swimming pool that simu- erts, Fowler and McWorter were charged with conspiracy to commit the theft of government property and transportation in interstate commerce of stolen property. Saur was charged on the conspiracy count. Oates said the conspiracy charge carries a maximum5-year sentence, but lates weightlessnessfor astronauts. Roberts, whovolunteeredhis time at the U.’s astronomical observatory, served three previous NASA co-op toursin the Earthsciences and human she wasnot sureabout transportation charge. Roberts, described as a promising exploration divisions. Fowler was a summerinterninbi- ological systems, while Saur was an intern in structural engineering. All physics student and an aspiring astronaut, faces a bail hearing this three werefired becauseof the alleged moon rock scheme. Hawley said the Apollo missions netted NASA 2,200 moon samples, weighing a total of 842 pounds. Small bits of lunar material are lent to uni- tos all AbD nae rocksin the United States. This obviously has not dis- couraged mesince live in the United States. However, I must be cautious VECC Deal Will Include County Council Salt Lake County Mayor Nancy in that I am not publicly exposed.” “All samples brought back over the to get the samplesto be sold, he was arrested, along with Fowler and Gor- the Orlando dinner meeting. Hedis: Now, Roberts and three others that this deal is handled withdeli cy seniorat theU. this fall, went toa hotel ‘Tampa on Monday. seller orsellers. rected the issue by the cutoff date. ACTIVE BLAZES IN UTAH including a half-dozen state legisla- enoughsignatures in 28 counties, but then watched thousandsof those sig- The FBI states that Roberts apparently knew that selling moon rocks pressingforward with plans to merge WILDFIRE WATCH An attorney for opponents of the Radioactive Waste Restrictions Act, wastelaw ontheballot nearly20,000 more thanthe total required statewide. But they were barred from putting the measure on the Nov. 5 bailot becausetheinitiative did not have at least one-tenth as manysignatures as the numberof voters whocast ballots in 20or moreofUtah's 29 counties. afternoon. rested in Hurricane on July10. nody been unfair in the process. Elections officials certified July 3 that 95,975 registered voters signed petitions saying they wanted the Suhrday, Roberts showed up late for May about the potential deal. FBI agents persuaded the Belgian to be- Chouquer is being held at Purga tory on a Florida warrant for mur citizen initiative onto the statewide ballot. The stage was set for the lawsuit earlier this month. comea witness to catch the moon rock e-mailinlate a VECC deal without them. On Monday, Workmansaid she was der. The couple traveled to Utah af ter allegedly dumping the child's tiative procedures because lawmakers had simplycarried out their administrative responsibilities and had not derstate elections officials to put the Did lawmakers statins citizen initiatives bysetting the deadline for opponentsto get signatures removed a BY THOMAS BURR Fifth District Judge James L. Shumate has given Florida author ities until Monday to collect a woman accused of being an acces: sory to the killing of a 2-year-old boyin that state.Amandy Dawn Lawrence, is beingheldat PurgatoryCorrectional Facility on a Florida warrant. She signed anex. they then mustrule on whetherto or- fany Fowler, 22, and ShaeSaur, 19, al. legedly teamed to steal a 600-pound safe on July 13 from Johnson Space fied the FBI in Tampavia EXTRADITION DEADLINE ard Michael Chouquer, backers got more than enough signa. tures on a petition to get the matter on the November ballot But Utahns Against Unfair Taxes backed by Envirocare of Utah, the Tooele Countylandfill that would be most affected by the act sent people Asst. Attorney General Thom Roberts, arguing for the state Elections Office, said there was no reason for justices to strike downthestate's ini- Justices must decide by Tuesday Belgian ‘Buyer’ Helped FBI in Moon Rock Case stand tradition revenues from hot waste to public school and homeless programs. Its wasteactfiled a lawsuit attacking the NASA moon rock heist. FBI officials outlined thecase against themin doc: preliminary hearingin that case is whether they havethejurisdiction to handlethe case. If they decide they do, tive Waste Restrictions Act, the law by-citizensinitiative that was bound for this fall's ballot until it was de year-oldgirlafterluring herto an set for Monday gathering? is permitted and direct a portion oftax and asked them to demand to have apartment to look at a litterof kit tens. Casey Russell Bird was charged in 2nd District Court with child kidnapping and aggravated sexual assault of a child in connec tion with the July16 incident. A July 24, 2002 in Utah. It also wouldraise taxes on the low-radioactivity waste that now look at what happened to the Radioac UNLIKELY CAT KILLERS A state Divisionof Wildlife Re: sourcesofficial said Tuesday it is unlikely a wild animal was respon: sible forthe killing and mutilation Mike question of railed by opponents who mounted a iidmundschecked himself into a tion officer constitutional whether rural Utah voters have But first the five justices must de ports that a milkman had seen someone drivinga car similar to Edmunds’ in the Smarts’ neighbor hood in the early hours of June 5, Wednesday 0 Rural Votes Count Morein Utah? w EDMUNDS COURTDELAY A man police questionedin the UTAH Tribune versities for research purposes and to museumsfor public display. NASA's moonhaulhasbeen divided into more than 100,000 samples. The eight-page report, penned by Sheriff Aaron Kennard’s staff, spells out the pros and consofjoining VECC. The goal of VECCis to bringall the valley's emergency dispatchers under Judge Stands _ By Ruling on - Tribune Reins county fire units, but not sheriff's | one roof. VECC now dispatches deputies. That arrangement can ham- per response times, according to the sheriff's report, when VECC is forced to transfer emergencycalls to sheriff's dispatchers Joining VECCalso could save the county nearly $1 million a year, al though startup costs would top $850,000and the county would haveto abandon its “model” computer system Thereport says the council could choose to pull the county’s fire dispatch from VECC and unite it with the sheriff's office. That plan also would save about $1 million with minimal startupcosts. Kennard, for his part, says he is a proponent ofthe mergeras long as the new systemcanbeeffective.“I still feel pretty strongly there are some advans to merging,” he said. thurrasitrib.com A federal judge refused Tuesday to reverse his decision forcing the descendants ofthe historic owners of The Salt Lake Tribuneto relinquish contro] of the newspaper to a Denver-based newspaper chain next week. Followingbrief arguments from lawyersfor Salt Lake Tribune Publishing Co. and MediaNe Inc., U.S. District Judge 1 art said, “The court has heard nothing to persuadeit that the order issued [Monday] was not appropriate.” Tribune Publishing lawyer Steve Marsden said after the hearing that the company will file an appeal today with the10thU.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver. Unless the appellate court over. turns Stewart’s ruling, Tribune Publishing managers will have to turn the newspaper over MediaNews Group on Aug.1. Son Ordered to Trial in Mother’s Slaying BY ASHLEY BROUGHTON 6 THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE A mentally ill 25-year-old Salt Lake City man believed he was savinghis mother from torture by killing her Active acres: 108,200 Acres burned this year: 236,900 1 ~ County Line (30 miles north of Green River): 2,400 acres, 75 pe rcent contained Rugged terrain is hampering ntainment accordingto court testimony Tuesday to take medication, Michael Gall said. want her to go to the torture cham. LennyGall told police heplanned to 4 Rattle Complex (20 rd District Court Judge he wasn’t as abusive. He was fun to be around,” Michael Gall said. Lenny Gall, who had been found Tuesday guilty Tuesday. He is also charged with theft for allegedly taking his William W. trial ona first-degree murder charge next monthin the Dec. 14 deathof his mother, unite School District teacher in Gall, 58. Susan Call's death, which followed miles northeast o acres, 70 percent Groen River) 94,300 nitainad Crows were lighting a5,000 acre back burn to stop the fire's westward advancetoward the Ute Indian Reservation her slong efforts to seek help for her son, resulted in the passage of a bill creatinga legislative task force to study Utah's laws regarding involun. tary commitment Thee Balt Lake Trib “Whenhe was on medication well, but not home detective Barrett ordered Lenny Gall to stand Sequoia (26 miles southwest of Cedar fens, who madethe initial traffic stop, said Lenny Gall confessed to killing his mother, but explained he “didn't 3 City): 7.700 acres, 60 percentcontained Steep terrain is hampering containment mother had asked Lenny Gall to move out of her home a couple of months beforeher death because ofhis refusal Blanding): 3,800, 85 percent contained. mond(15 miles northwest of stopped taking medication to control the delusions he experienced. His campusa few hoursafter Susan Gall’s death. He was driving his mother’s car, which had been reported stolen. University police Sgt. Duke Stef. withan ax in her homelast December, kill his younger brotheras 21-year-old Michael Gall was at the timeof the slaying, a added After hearing testimony efforts his brother was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at about age 18, and had Michael Gall testified Tuesday that competent to stand trial, pleaded not mother’s car after the slaying. His trial is set for Aug. 26. Michael Gall testified he called 911 upon returning home andfinding his mother’s car gone anda bloody ax and knife in a bathroom sink. The state medical examiner's office report showed Susan Gall died from multiple chopping” injuries to her head and neck University of Nevada-Reno police took Lenny Gall into custody on ber.” He believed several celebrities were searching for his family and wanted to torture them, Steffens said. University police Detective James Schreiber said Lenny Gall told him during an interview that he hadconsidered committing suicide, but afraid no one would be left to protect his family, so he had planned to kill his mother and brotherinstead. Salt Lake County sheriff's Detective Todd Park said five identical letters, addressed to different recipients, were left on the computer printer in Susan Gall's home. In the letter, signed “Lenny Gagoo,” the author talks about killing himself and his family to avoid a torture chamber, Park said. aebroughton@sttrib.com to Tribune Publishing which runsthe state's largest newspaper under a contract that expires on July 31 asked Stewart again Tuesdayto maintain the status quo beyond the contra expiration date. Stewart refused, saying Tri bune managers had not provided sufficient newevidence to warrant a stay. Tribune Publishing sued to reverse AT&T Corp.'s January 2001 sale of The Tribune to MediaNews, and to validateits option to buy the newspaper after July 31. Stewart has ruled Tribune Publishing holds a valid option to buy The Tribune, but also that the LDS Church owned Deseret News must consent to any sale of 7ribune stock in their shared production company. Newspaper Agency Corp, Last month, the News boardsaid it will withhold its consent Ste again pressed all sides to continue efforts to negotiate a settlement of the remainingclaims of the suit, saying a trial will hurt everyone. “It’s just sad thatat thislate date you are finally ing together,” he said. Michael Vigh POOR |
