Show Monday Morning — February 9 1987 Section B Page 1 t Jialt £ akr ®ribunr Utah House Senate Trade Immunity Bills By Paul Roily Tribune Staff Writer The 1987 Legislative session may be referred to as the “Year of the Tax Increase” or the “Year of the Budget Cuts" or simply the “Year of Disas- ter ” It might also be called the “Year of ” Immunity The Senate and House traded bills last week that immunize businessmen and governments from most types of negligence suits The Senate passed and sent to the House a bill that immunizes corporate boards and officers from liability in negligence suits filed by disgruntled shareholders who believe basic stupidity led to their financial losses And the House passed and sent to the Senate a bill that would broaden the definition of a “governmental function” — the element usually used to determine whether governments are legitimately exempted from negligence suits The governmental immunity standard usually doesn't immunize governments completely from lawsuits but it limits the amounts governments would have to pay and it limits the reasons for which they can be sued Both bills are symptomatic of the continuing reaction industries and governments have had to the “liability insurance crisis” that shocked the U S earlier this decade when insurance companies stopped underwriting policies for most things they considered too risky The insurance industry said it was reacting to billions of dollars of losses suffered in the area of liability insurance in the early 1980s because of the trend of large jury awards in negligence suits The targeted industries and state and local governments that saw their premium rates increase by several hundred percent reacted to the insurance companies by going without insurance or by forming their own insurance pools Now they’re trying to protect themselves through new legislation But opponents to immunity — which means they can’t be sued or that damages are limited in such suits — say the reaction is an overre-actio- n They say if such bills pass the ultimate loser will be the innocent victim of governmental or corporate carelessness “The frightening thing about this House Bill 16 is that it changes the definition of what a governmental function is” said Salt Lake lawyer George Haley who has represented several plaintiffs in claims against government ‘‘Under this bill governments would be exempt from virtually anything they do even services they provide where they are competing with private industry So the private industry guy who has a water slide or a swimming pool has to pay a lot of money for liability insurance while the local government competing against him doesn’t have to worry about that business expense because it is immune from lawsuit ” Governments are immune from negligence suits traditionally when it is shown their action that brought about the injury was a “governmen tal function or a function unique to government" said Mr Haley He said that included the running of prisons building roads operating sewer systems etc "But this bill would extend that immunity to golf courses swimming pools water slides ferns wheels ” you name it Dave Spatafore spokesman for the Utah League of Cities and Towns however said the argument against the bill is overblown "In the first place" he said “only one municipality in Utah operates a water slide and it is in the process of turning that over to a private business So the argument against is moot " In cases of swimming pools golf courses and the like he said where See B-- 2 Column 1 !r1IP Trooi)er Suspended During Probe Woman Takes Patrol Car Alleges Sexual Threat By Christopher Smart Tribune Staff Writer Utah Highway Patrol trooper has been suspended with pay during investigation of a charge by a Salt Lake County woman that he asked for sexual favors in exchange for dropping a public intoxication charge The woman got away in the trooper’s patrol car early Sunday morning and empty shell casings from the trooper’s weapon were found at the site of the incident A spokesman for the Salt Lake County Sheriffs Office said Sunday evening that the trooper has denied the allegation Both the Salt Lake County Sheriffs Office and the Utah Highway Patrol have launched investigations Utah Highway Patrol officials huddled Sunday night to discuss the charges Col Dennis Nordfeldt said the matter remains under investigation He said the Utah Highway Patrol will hold a press conference Monday at 10 30 a m According to information compiled by investigators from the Salt Lake County Sheriffs Office a UHP trooper picked up a young woman walking in the downtown area Sunday about A 4 30 — Tribune Staff Photos by Dan Miller old Ryan Francis undergoes physical therapy with Karen DiLello to Eleven-yea- r help bring normal function to his leg and foot He hopes to play football one day Surgery Offers Hope for Better Foothold To Children Crippled by Cerebral Palsy By Anne Palmer Tribune Medical Writer Until several weeks ago Ryan Francis could walk Not like other kids but he could walk Because of cerebral palsy Ryan lumbered on the toes of his feet knees sloping inward Brain damage resulting from his premature birth affected his muscle control and though Ryan was able to run and play football he also fell down a lot Then a Primary Children’s Medical Center physician cut a numbe of the nerve rootlets m Ryan’s spinal column Ryan is starting over with the mere hope of recovering more normal function "The hope is he can get his foot down flat and stop rotating his legs inward” according to physical therapist Sally Another was a victim and two were head trauma patients Whether it will work is too soon to tell but the boy’s family and the hospital staff who work with him are optimistic Ryan is rather jiismterested m the whole affair “I don’t notice much difference I just go along with it” he says while Ms helps him stretch out on a floor mat Refinement of the treatment method known as selective dorsal rhizotomy appears to be effective for certain people with spasticity The majority of those who have undergone the operation at Primary Children’s have been patients with The operation involves finding and severing the sensory nerve rootlets which fire abnormally — in Ryan’s case those which kept his rigid muscles from relaxing Dr Marion L Walker the pediatric neurosurgeon who performed the operation explained how cutting the nerve rootlets causing abnormal contractions can restore the balance between excitation and inhibition reflexes and produce smoother muscular movement Ya-ma- Ya-ma- ¥ cerebral palsy near-drowni- It calls for separating the lumbar vertebrae and using an electric probe to test the responses of Ryan Francis enjoys swimming therapy with occupational therapist Yolanda Cochran He’s making slow daily progress each nerve fiber Up to 30 rootlets may be cut Dr Walker says the technique which he learned at the University of Capetown from South African neurosurgeon Dr Warrick Peacock could help between 10 and 25 percent of children with cerebral palsy All Ryan knows is that the five-hooperation Jan 12 left him with a scar down his spine he charges his friends $1 to see And instead of physical therapy once a day which Ryan says he has done “ever since I can remember” he now has two sessions plus occupational therapy at noon It’s hard work stretching and developing leg and trunk muscles which have never worked properly But his Janna Francis mother Constables Say County Hurts Their Business says Ryan’s strength is developing so gradually that it can hardly be noticed from day to day Early to Bed Early to Rise Makes the Milkman Wise By Cathy Free Tribune Staff Writer Four hours before sunrise on a Wednesday morning Bill Kuhn slides out of bed stumbles into the bathroom picks up a comb looks in the mirror and sighs realizing the comb won’t do any good slips on his sneakers and a green uniform with his name on the left pocket and drives four miles to Winder Dairy It’s 4 22 am — a time most of us don’t see unless we wake up thirsty and feel our way to the kitchen to get a glass of water We cam look out the window yawn and go back to bed There just doesn’t seem to be anything worth looking at when it’s 4 22 a m At least that’s what we think Twenty-seven-year-o- Bill Kuhn knows differently He’s a milkman He’s a member of a dying breed in an age of plastic milk bottles and football field-size- d supermarkets For 10 Bill has shut off his alarm in years the middle of the night so the rest of us can have milk with our breakfast cereal when we shut off our alarm clocks at 7 or 8 a m Bill doesn’t have milk with his breakfast cereal He doesn’t have time for breakfast Not when there are 220 customers to deliver milk to and it’s already 4 22 am Bill parks his car takes another mirlook at his hair in the rear-vieror (he can’t help but feel silly — after all who is going to see him’) then heads for the dairy Parked in neat rows next to the loading dock are 27 bright yellow milk trucks with pictures of cows milk bottles and the drivers’ names painted on the sides There would be 40 trucks but 13 drivers got out of bed earlier than Bill and —Tribune Staff Photo by Jeff Allred of milk and everything else from carrots to compost on his daily milk route He Bill Kuhn delivers 450 half-gallp- already have a start on the day's milk run “I used to get up earlier too” says Bill "but it just got too excruciating You think four in the morning’s bad you ought to take a look at 2 a m Personally I think it’s better all around to come to work at 4 By the time you’re out on your route some of your customers are out and about and you get to talk with them get to know them It’s good public relations ” At 4 22 a m however he's not doing much thinking about public relations Truck No 121 is waiting to be loaded with the day’s inventory 450 of milk 62 dozen eggs 49 containers of yogurt 23 pounds of cheese 37 loaves of bread and too half-gallo- many quarts of fruit punch chocolate milk buttermilk whipped cream and half and half to count Bill heaves the goods into the back of his truck stacks everything neatly in gray milk carts and m 36 minutes is ready to roll Truck No 121 creeps slowly out of the parking lot the bottles swaying and clanking lightly in the back as Bill maneuvers a tricky turn onto the highway It’s shortly after 5am — time for all good milkmen to be on the road Bill has the Emigration Canyon and Foothill Drive area routes — good routes he says because “people have money ” "I have a lot of rich customers who drink a lot of milk" he says swinging usually begins day at am and doesn’t finish until 1 pm Then he goes home to sleep before starting it all again 4 onto Kennedy Drive past Hogle Zoo and heading for a cluster of high-ris- e condominiums “We work on commission so every bottle means a profit There’s one doctor up here who orders 36 gallons of milk a week The way I figure it he’s either got a whole lot of kids a whole lot of cats or is just pretty darned healthy ” An account book listing all of Bill's customers in the order of their addresses rests on a makeshift wooden table in the truck next to the gearshift Bill follows the list closely — he doesn’t want to miss a single stop "Of course I have most of my customer’s addresses memorized by now” he says “but their orders change so often it pays to double check One month they might want five of milk twice a week Another month they might of skim Anytime want 10 they want something extra like raisin bread or orange juice they just fill out an order form leave it in their milkbox and I see that they get what they need I always carry extra stock — you never know when you’re going to need it " half-gallo- half-gallo- It seems the milkman doesn't just deliver milk anymore Bill could be called a donut man a honey man a sausage man a detergent man a carrot man and a compost man as well He keeps customers supplied with ev- See B-- 2 Column am Sheriffs Sgt Dick Carlson identified the woman as Amy Schaefer but authorities Sunday would not identify the accused trooper Ms Schaefer told sheriffs investigators the trooper said he would give her a ride to her Holladay home However the woman claims the trooper took her to a freeway construction site at about 6800 South and 1300 East where he told her he would arrest her for public intoxication if she would not have sex with him After a struggle Ms Schaefer locked the trooper out of his patrol car and drove away Col Nordfeldt confirmed Sunday night that Ms Schaefer communicated with a UHP dispatcher over the patrol car radio He said he could not comment on that conversation He noted however that it is on tape Sgt Carlson said as many as 13 pistol shell casings were found at the site Neither the car or the woman were hit by bullets Details of the incident and investigation were sketchy Sunday night Col Nordfeldt said Sunday night that he could not comment on how the woman gained control of the patrol car or if the trooper had fired shots at the auto and Ms Schaefer 4 By Jack Fenton Tribune Staff Writer Some elected constables claim Salt Lake County is depriving them of the ability to do their jobs by withholding court work until they sign contracts to do the tasks at cut rates Neither Betty Bates whose Precinct 2 stretches from 2100 to 4800 South between 1100 West and 1300 Ken the East nor her Murray constable could sign contracts if they wanted to because the state’s Police Officer Standards & Training contends they haven’t met training requirements “You have overstepped your authority” Ms Bates warned commissioners in a long letter delivered last weekend by constables “Nowhere in Utah law does it require the constable to contract for work that he is elected by the citizens to do In fact the law specifically states that the constable shall attend to his court ’’ She gave commissioners 10 days to answer her complaint or face civil rights charges in federal court Elected constables would ask the court to order restitution of fees they claim are theirs Constables justices of the peace court administrators and POST representatives will join commissioners Monday in an attempt to resolve the conflict “Election makes them entrepreneurs” Commission Chairman Bart Barker said of the constables “It entitles them to beat the bushes for business ” Ralph Crockett a deputy county attorney who’s been the focus of the constables’ attacks points to a 1983 state law that authorizes governing bodies to buy those services from any locally elected constables “for any mutually agreed upon” amount He said Utah law demands Police Officer Standards Training for constables “before they can serve as police officers ” But that’s a matter between constables and the state The county isn’t part of that squabble Constables’ fees are set by the Legislature Ms Bates told commissioners If contracting is done it should be by sealed bids She would bill at rates set by the lawmakers |