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Show Aa TheSalt LakeTribuneUTAH/NATION Sunday, September10, 1995 Exxon Alleges Juror Misconduct, Asks for New Valdez Spill Trial THEASSOCIATED PRESS ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Ex- xon Corp. wants a new trial in the Exxon Valdezoilspill case, claiming that some jurors disobeyed the judge’s instructions about discussing the case outside court and may have been coerced into reaching last year’s $5.3 billion verdict Theoil giant wants a newtrial on two questions: whether recklessness by Exxonand tanker cap- tain Joseph Hazelwood caused the spill, and whether punitive damages were warranted, spokesman Tem Cirigliano said Saturday. The papers were filed on Wednesday. The federal jury ordered Exxon to pay $5 billion in punitive damages to commercial fishermen, Alaskan natives, property owners and others harmed by the 1989spill. Exxonis not contesting a sepa- Blood: 200 Units Not Properly Tested @ Continued from A-1 In the past decade only eight donors at the LDS Hospital Blood Bank have tested positive for HIV. “That's eight of 350, 000 d onor THC’s Salt Lake Walley hospitals. He noted that the suspect blood amounts to less than 1% ofall units donated since 1987. Still, he added, ‘Weare taking appropriate steps to comply and we are making no excuses for what occurred. We take the FDA guidelines very seriously, and we want to ensure an adequate and clean blood supply to the pubiic,” To make sure that blood is properly screened for HIV, blood banks follow federal procedures developed after a nationwide blood supply contamination scare in the 1980s. Thefirst line of defense is a donor questionnairethat eliminates peoplewith histories of homosexual sex, hepatitis, intravenous drug use or previous rejection by other blood banks. The second step is a test for HIV antibodies called ELISA. This is a fast but sensitive procedure that typically produces a smail number of false positive readings. (Flu shots or a person’s blood type can cause the test to falsely reflect HIVinfection). If the ELISAis positive, technicians repeat it to eliminate false readings. If the second ELISA is negative, the donated blood is used. Butif the second ELISAis positive, the bloodhits the third line of defense — a foolproof HIV test called the Western Blot. Andthat is where the LDS Hospital Blood Bank messed up.Its technicians did not conduct the Western Blot, which Schwitzer characterized as “the definitive test.” The majority of the units in question failed the two ELISA tests. Rather than test those units rate $287 million verdict meant to compensate fishermanfor actual losses from the 11-million-gallon spill in Prince William Sound. In June, U.S. District Judge H Russel Holland and lawyers for both sides questioned 10 of the 11 jurors individuaily, asking whether they disobeyed his instructions to avoid discussing the case and seeing or reading media accounts. They deniedit. Exxon sought the questioning after American Lawyer magazine and the Anchorage Daily News published stories about the verdict and deliberations. Several jurors told the paper that they read articles or heard newscasts about the trial, and some said they discussed the case with relatives. One told the paper that she found three dead salmon in her yard during deliberations, but it did not influence her. using with the Western Biot, as required under federal regulations, blood-bank employees simply performed a third ELISAtest. In eachcase the results came back negative — and the blood was used. The blood bank also violated federal guidelines byfailing to wait six months before accepting blood from donors who previously tested positive on the ELISA, yet tested negative on the Western Blot. A monthlong FDAinvestigation found “numerousserious violations of federal regulations and standards designed to ensure the safety and quality of blood and blood components. The agency has no indication atthis time that any of the donations resulted in the transfusion of HIV-infected or hepatitis B-infected biood. Nevertheless, FDA takes very seriously any breaches in overlapping safeguards that protect the U.S. blood supply.” Utah officials are not concerned about hepatitis contamination because a separate test for that disease was performedin all eases. The state Department of Health also is allowing the LDS Hospital Blood Bank, which supplies Utah with 85% ofits blood needs,to continue shipping within state boundaries. The blood bank has responded to the scare by: WVoluntarily suspending all tests on donated biood untii the Utah Department of Health has determined all guidelines are being followed. @Shipping donated blood for testing at two other sites that meet federal guidelines —- McKay Dee Hospital in Ogden and Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo. @ Reviewing donor records where guidelines were not met overthepast eight years, drafting a corrective plan of action in consultation with the FDA, and performing an internal audit of all Divers Are First to Touch Famous Shipwreck ByJerry Falistrom 53, was aboard the EdmundFitzgerald onits ORLANDO SENTINEL last voyage. Tysall likened the risky expedition to reach Two decades ago, the violent waters of Lake Superior becamethe gravesite for 29 sailors who perished in one of the best-known maritime disasters of all time. Now, seuba divers Terrence Tysall of Orlando, Fla., and Mike Zee of Chicago have become the first people to touch the freighter EdmundFitzgerald since it sank during a ferocious storra Nov. 10, 1975. “We reached out and grabbed one of those rails,” said Tysall, a partner in the Orlando Dive Center, a scuba training facility. “No one’s touched that wreck with human hands since it went down.” Zee, who runsa dive tour operation on Lake Superior, said laying hands on the Edmund Fitzgerald was an “awesomefeeling.” Butrelatives of the dead say the two divers needlessly treaded on the icy underwater burial ground during a Sept. 1 expedition that a shipwreck historian said was motivated by “macho.” “Our men are buried there. That’s their resting place, and it should be respected as such,” said Chery] Rozman of Gwinn, Mich. Herfather, watchman Ranfom “Ray” Cundy, the 729-foot ship — thelargest vessel everlost on the Great Lakes — to conquering Mount Everest. Thefreighter, immortalized by singer Gor- said. The divers said it couldn’t have been done without their support crew, including Ken Furmanof Orlando, shop manager at the Orlando Dive Center, and Marion County (Fla.) Fire Lt. Mauro Porcelli. don Lightfoot in his 1976 No. 1 hit “The The dive was made possible by advances in gear, and gas mixes neededto survive in such They, like others, can’t believe the sturdy depthsin frigid water. Butrelatives of the dead crewmen and a nade historian said the dive was ill-ad- Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” has long intrigued Tysall and Zee. vessel, built in 1958 and laden with 26,000 tons of taconite ore peliets en route to Detroit from Superior, Wis., could have sunk. The exact cause of the sinking remains a mystery. What’s known is that a gale pounded the freighter with 30-foot waves and winds exceeding 90 mph. To this day, locals say it was oneof the most violent storms they've seen. Fortheir historic dive, Tysall and Zee each donned tanks weighing about 320 pounds to descend 530 feet, where the sunken ship rests in bone-chilling 34-degree water. Tysali and Zee became the first divers to reach the Edmund Fitzgerald withoutthe aid of submersibles. They also set records for the deepest scuba dive on the Great Lakes and the deepest dive on a shipwreck, diving experts vised. “What they did wasreally in bad taste,” said Tom Farnquist, executive director of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society. But Tysall said he and Zee —- both experienced shipwreck divers — took pains not to disturb the ship or to search for bodies. “The most profound impressions I have of the wreck are of extreme darkness, cold and isolation,” Tysall wrote of the expedition. Other than gripping the ghostly rail on the ship’s bow momentarily, they observed it from a distance, illuminating the vessel with handheld lights. Both tock video footage. “All of us have sufferedloss,andit’s not an easy thing,” said Tysall, 29. “We did it to pay our respects.” LIZ CLAIBORNE FALL HOSIERY SALE September 11 through 23 policies and procedures. The blood bank also has destroyed all products that were not tested properly. Officials have screened donors who gave blood during 1995 and half of 1994, and nonehad the virus. LDSwill continue backtracking through 1987, asking recipients to comein for an HIV test. i Year Mec) Guarantee i Beery fen to rent es ee ye at oypaket : ou;MASTERCRAFTe's eae DORaye CK 25% off Osteoporosis Save onail your favorite styles from Liz Claiborne. Selection varies by store, but here’s example of someofthe values: you'll find in our Hosiery department: Bi eesat PARK CITY & OGDEN, -800:450-7336 - — Study — Many womenare at risk for osteoporosis — brittle bones. You mayeven have this condition without knowingit. 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