Show -‘- W- r '' r U Page 18 Tuesday November 15 1994 The Herald Journal Logan Utah Retiring school board member deserves thanks Public service especially at the local level can be a thankless job in today's d society With controversy popping up around every corner elected leaders arc forced to make lough decisions that often leave someone out there with an axe to grind The perks arc few in public service the peaks can be fewer and (he pay? Well the pay is almost conflict-dominate- non-existe- nt Carol Funk will step down in January from the Cache County school board a thankless position if ever there were one But Funk often a controversial figure should leave feeling proud of her 12 years on the board She epitomizes the selfless good will of public duty and perhaps more important somewhere in that OUT VI 6 W somc-times-gr- personality of hers is a lesson for other leaders for all people really If people didn't already know it Funk taught them that leadership takes guts It nt always-to-lhc-poi- takes courage for leaders to make the tough calls that certainly will anger their constituents in this case neighbors and friends But that’s what has to be done Carol Funk was never afraid to stand up and say loud and dear: “This is my vote Here’s where I stand!” She never left things unclear and was never afraid to take a stand She got things done from out front in other words leading the way When the financially stressed district needed money to build new schools she supported a voted leeway tax and bond elections even though tax hikes are never d popular with voters She supported school when she thought it was the year-roun- best course to take then she abandoned it whcn she felt its time had passed She stood tall and took her shots during the firestorm that raged after the cancellation of Sky View High School’s football season because of the locker-roohazing incident of 1993 And she tackled everything from school dress codes to threatened teacher strikes There will always be plenty of critics That is a certainty And while some of the criticism may have been deserved over the years Funk’s decisions have without fail always been made with one overriding goal She always did what she m thought was in the best interest of the dis- trict: its students its teachers its parents The public cannot ask for anything more from its public servants Funk stood tall during her tenure and she should j stand tall now She has always been a leader and one expects that she always1 will be a leader in whatever she does She deserves a thank you from the pub-lie she has served so well The Herald Journal tJurVtow represents the opinion of the newspaper Editorial Board: Pub- - Ileher Bruce Smith Managing Editor Pat McCutcheon end Chy Editor Jennifer Hines Letters to the editor : Olsen thanks supporters - To the editor: f r I would like to thank those who supported me in the recent election Also thanks to those who worked in my campaign in any way It would 2 have been difficult without your support President Ginton in a news conference the day after election said “The people have spoken They want smaller government less regulation and lower taxes” This has been my goal for 16 years as it will be 4 the next two years I hope to represent everyone in District 5 and would welcome a call ion any issue J Again I thank you for your support 1 - Evan L Olsen I Young Ward jSLC panhandler targets Cache residents 'To the editor: I would like to call your attention to a panhandler in Salt Lake who targets cars from Cache County by their license plate decals He then approaches the driver with the same general story “I’m out of gas” or “I ! left my wallet in a gas station in Cedar Gty and only need a $20 loan so ! I can get to work at Gossner’s Cheese and I’ll pay you back” ! He approached me at the Salt Lake airport a year ago and a friend heard the same story also at the airport recently I gave him $10 as his story sounded so convincing My friend gave him $20 Six months ago the same panhandler gave my husband the same story at the Olympus Hotel downtowa and he atibjNetiiHC$2p77 "X7 ! J 2 Thir past Frfthy‘appafttmy thafcfe approached mydaughiaTrolky dlquarc andwheaihe-sai-d had conned three people she knew with the same story he ran away Now as we approach the season to share our bounty this kind of ‘activity makes it difficult to determine who is really in need — and this iguy is probably making more money with this story than most of us I also talked to the owner of Gossner’s Cheese who is a friend and she said she had heard of this story from others as well So let’s be careful who we contribute to as there are people who are really in need Former Justice WASHINGTON — Even in a town infaculture the story mous for its revolving-doo- r Michael Abbell of former federal is unique Justice Abbell served as a the who spearheaded Department attorney government’s efforts to extradite drug lords to the United States until he left his post in 1984 and began representing the reputed leader of Colombia’s Cali cocaine cartel Now Abbell is under scrutiny by a federal grand jury in Miami for allegedly obstructing a government probe into the activities of some of the same drug kingpins he once sought to bring to justice On Sept 9 federal agents raided Abbell’s Washington DC law office and several law firms in Miami in connection with a probe of the Cali cartel being conducted by the Southern District of Florida Among other matters prosecutors are investigating whether Abbell and other lawyers crossed the line separating legal representation and obstruction of justice on behalf of their Cali clients Although the search warrants are scaled sources say federal agents are investigating whether the lawyers advised their Cali clients regarding money laundering and how to thwart investigators No criminal charges have been filed to date Legal observers note that coordinated raids on law firms are rare and require the approval of senior Justice Department officials Investigators are said to be receiving assistance in the drug-bust- er high-ranki- Marie T Lindquist Logan Group seeks deer management comments To the editor: For the past two years the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources has been writing elk management plans as mandated by the Utah Legislature Currently the DWR is launching the same effort regarding deer management plans for the entire state This Thursday Nov 17 at 6 pm the Northern Regional Wildlife Advisory Council will meet at Mount Logan Middle School auditorium 875 N 200 East to receive input from the public concerning the deer management plans As a RAC member representing sportsmen I strongly encourage all persons interested in deer management to attend and voice your concerns If you are unable to attend please feel free to call me at or send comments to PO Box 423 Richmond UT 84333 258-50- 80 Curtis W Dent Richmond Guidelines for letters to the editor The Herald Journal welcomes letters to the editor Letters should be and no more than 450 words in length typewritten double-space- d letters will not be published offensive or libelous Potentially periIndividuals arc limited to one published letter within any y od For purposes of verification all letters to the editor must be signed and include the writer’s full address and daytime phone number 30-da- ng scrutiny Although the Spanish judge rejected his testi- - j mony Abbell helped get his client returned to Colombia where he was later freed US offi- -' Jack cials say Rodriguez and his Cali associates now control over 70 percent of the world’s cocaine trade In an interview with our associate Dean probe from Harold Ackerman a Miami vegBoyd earlier this year Abbell said his decision etable importer convicted in 1993 of smugto represent Rodriguez was no different than gling 22 tons of cocaine into the United States that of countless other prosecutors who have in shipments of frozen broccoli and concrete departed government to represent criminal fence posts Last year Ackerman’s seized defendants: computer records led agents to some 5 tons of “It’s no different than representing any other cocaine concealed in coffee packages accused defendant He’s entitled to legal repreAbbell declined to comment on the raids sentation just like anybody else And as a But according to a recent report in the Washlawyer I’ve never been asked to do anything ington newsletter “DOJ Alert” he has petithat is professionally improper” Abbell noted tioned the DC district court to have his that he received a waiver records returned or at least placed in court cusfrom Justice prior to representing Rodriguez tody that Abbell’s services for Other sources If charges are eventually leveled against the cartel have say extended well beyond the Abbell it would mark a stunning role reversal courtroom in recent “There’s q differyears for a the Justice veteran of Departence between protecting someone’s rights in ment who served as director and later as the courtroom and lobbying for them in Washdeputy director of the department’s office of one DG attorney ington” says international affairs In 1989 Abbell drew criticism when he lobAfter leaving the post in 1984 Abbell began bied a Senate committee to adopt amendments advising Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela the to mutual legal assistance treaties involving reputed chief of the Cali cartel on how to avoid extradition In a move that enraged his the United States and Colombia which Justice former Justice colleagues Abbell testified as officials said would benefit his Cali clients The amendments were never adopted by the an expert witness for Rodriguez in 1985 and in had been arrested Spain Rodriguez See ANDERSON on page 19 faced extradition to the United States ‘ Anderson conflict-of-intere- st 17-ye- ar Will Paula Jones be heard in any courtroom? Paula Jones has a new friend — that is the American Civil Liberties Union has filed a friend of the court brief on her behalf before Judge Susan Webber Wright in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas The lead ACLU attorney is Chris llansen an exceptionally skilled and principled civil liberties advocate In the brief Hansen emphasizes that the ACLU “takes no position on the truth or falsity” of Paula Jones allegations that the president while governor of Arkansas made unwanted sexual advances She was then working for the state and claims that when site did not succumb to those advances her employment suffered Tania Jones also insists and the ACLU agrees that the rum pvr-pof her suit is not money damages but H to redeem her reputation after all the press reports of her audience with the pntrwie Although the alleged isciJcat loch place before Ml CLston became rmi det he maiaiams that he should be granted immunity in this case to prevent his being distracted over considerable periods of lime from his crucial duties as president Furthermore adds Ginton permitting the Paula Jones suit to go forward might well encourage a parade of litigants to sue the president as a way of subverting the popular will as expressed through elections Also Clinton says through his lawyers that bombarding the president with lawsuits would erode the separation between the executive and judicial branches and most intriguingly the president maintains that such lawsuits will undermine the dignity of the presidency The ACLU points out that a judge would take account of particular demands on the president’s time and adjust the course of the case accordingly Actually there are long stretches of tunc when the principals in a cac are not needed in court at all as their lawyer duel before the jwJge As foe the norm that the preside rl mot hast purerry if the pvUr i3 is dent will be diminished Bill Ginton has noted rather plaintively that in the presence of a world leader he was asked questions by reporters about Paula Jones lawsuit Nat Hentoff not to be thwarted there is no case law supporting that imaginative contention Nor does it hold up outside the law As But as the ACLU says in its brief the dignity of the presidency cannot be effectively preserved in this context by granti- ng the president immunity from her lawsuit: “The real damage to the reputation of the president comes not from the Chris Hansen notes if Pauls Jones charges arc summsrily dismissed or court proceedings but from the factual until the end of Ginton s presi- delayed dency “the plaintiff will still be free to holtba press conference at which she makes public her grievances” She can then cite as vividly as she likes the evidence she would have la ps4 forth at trial And she will have an addi- tional pdemkal advantage by charging that the president rather than honestly dealing with her accusation has decided to tide behind presidential imseniry The same rcSr?al applies to Giston’s 4 concern that if Paula Ames’ pet forof the office of pres- ward the d pty I allegations themselves and the media attention surrounding them Fundamentally moreover “the presidency is not dignified by placing the president above the law and heyood the reach of the citizenry As for the warning that the separation of powers win be damaged by not granting the president this immunity from the court action the former professor of con- stitutional law in Arkansas should remember that the authority of the Supreme Court to rrsiew actions cf the Madison (1803) The essential case for Paula Jones getting her day in court — before so much time goes by that the memories of witnesses fade — is underlined at the end of the ACLU's amicus brief: “The nation has an interest in ensuring that our system of justice is available 10 all of its people regardless of whether the n or low party (in the lawsuit) is holds high office or does not “That interest — that compelling inter- - r cst — is far more important than the facts I of this case Thai interest combined ith ' the other interest of plaintiffs seeking redress for harm argues against adopting a rule that automatically immunizes the president from civ d suits during the dura-J lion of his incumbency" It is the granting of such immunity to! the president that would indeed kmt the J dignity cf the office high-bor- Fnr a ur esuwurwyrw erhet branches goes buck to Martury us POOR COPY |