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Show Gunman opens fire at university Today is Friday, Feb. 15,2008 Breaking News FEMA is evacuating Gulf Coast hurricane victims out of nearly 35,000 governmentissued trailers because of formaldehyde fumes. lit limit mm* I I I I I I B U H D D O ff~ff »"»»1 B O B * « ff 0 fl B D D D D D- fl ft'B D 0 ™ "I ~ 0 0 fl B a B B B S R H H M I I I R RHfl Campus News A reporter for NPR takes a deeper look at the common problems in society. Page 3 DEKALB, 111. (AP) - A man dressed in black opened fire with a shotgun and two handguns from the stage of a lecture hall at Northern Illinois University on Thursday, killing five people and injuring several others before committing suicide, authorities said. University Police Chief Donald Grady confirmed the deaths following a news conference, according to local newspapers. It was not clear whether the dead victims were among the 18 people school President John Peters had reported as wounded. He wouldn't confirm any fatalities other than the gunman. Witnesses in the geology class said "someone dressed in black came out from behind a screen in front of the classroom and opened fire with a shotgun," Peters said. The gunman shot himself on the stage after a brief rampage that sent terrified students screaming, crying and running for the doors around 3 p.m. "At this point I'm being told it was less than two minutes," Grady said. "This thing started and ended in a matter of seconds." Grady said the gunman was not a student at the school. "It appears he may have been a student somewhere else," he said, adding that police had no apparent motive. Seventeen victims were brought to Kishwaukee Community Hospital in DeKalb, according to Theresa Komitas, a spokeswoman. Three were in extremely critical con- By MELISSA MCROBERTS staff writer It's more than just teeth with this oral „ surgeon. Page 6 : * • $ * ( " / • • > ; Sports usu gymnasts stretch physically and mentally to prepare for meets. ^ 10 I N T H I S P H O T O provided by the student-run Northern Star newspaper, rescue workers carry an unidentified victim from the scene of a shooting at a lecture hall at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, III., Thursday. A man dressed in black opened fire with a shotgun before killing himself. AP photo dition. Five were airlifted to other hospitals, including a female with a chest injury and two other victims with head injuries. One patient there died, a male but not the shooter, Komitas said. George Gaynor, a senior geography stu- dent, who was in Cole Hall when the shooting happened, told the student newspaper the Northern Star that the shooter was "a skinny •I See SHOOTING, page 3 NPR reporter speaks of elections, gangs Features • www.utahstatesman.com Logon, Utah Utah State Universit] The College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences welcomed Mandalit del Barco, a National Public Radio reporter, to discuss topics ranging from urban street gangs, immigration and race relations doling political elections. Her lecture "Diversity, Media, and Politics" was held in the Performance Hall Feb. 14. Barco has done extensive research and reporting throughout the Latino communities in the United States but said she has placed an emphasis on the Los Angeles based street gang, Mara Salvatrucha, also known as the MS gang. She said the formation of this gang began when young latino immigrants had no family or cul- tural outlet, who either came to America alone or had had family deported back to Mexico. "They formed gangs for solidarity and protection," Barco said. What began as an outlet for family and friends, she said, turned into much more. Several of the MS gang members as children joined guerilla warfare in their home countries where they learned how to fight for their lives. She said this lifestyle then shifted over into their teenage and adult lives. These gangs, she said, are known world over for their violence and can sometimes be identified with the amount of tattoos that cover these individuals. The MS gang members are covered head to toe in tatoos, she said. There isn't a single spot on their body where they aren't tattooed. Barco also spoke of the consequences these gang members faced. "In order to stem the violence, the U.S. began to deport the reported gang members,11 Barco said. They are deported and are placed in prison in El Salvador, Mexico. Some members are shipped to El Salvador even if they don't speak Spanish, she said. They grew up in California and MS was all they knew. Barco said she visited eight different prisons in El Salvador to meet with former MS gang members. Not once was she afraid or nervous to confront these prisoners, she said. "They were actually all very nice," Barco said. In one of the prisons, Barco said she saw a painted mural of MacArthur Park in L.A. "That's how close the ties are from L.A. to El Salvador," she said. Barco said she has also experienced the life of a Mexican immigrant. As a journalist, she crossed the border of Mexico to witness the struggle, defeats and success of people illegally crossing the Mexico- BARCO U.S. border. During her border crossing, she said she ran over hills, walked through the sewers of Tijuana, climbed fences and outran border patrol helicopters. \M See NPR, page 4 Valentine's Day special Opinion "While many Americans are concerned about terrorism from abroad, there seems to be plenty of internal terrorism to worry about. Like all forms of terrorism, it is hard to predict and hard to combat." Page 13 Almanac Today in History: In 1898, an explosion aboard the USS Maine, one of the first American battleships, kills 260 and sinks the ship while it.was in harbor at Havana, Cuba. High: 35 Low: 11° Skies: Sunny in the morning, partly cloudy in the afternoon. Archives and breaking news f* always ready for you at, itahstatesman. LOVE W A S E V E R Y W H E R E yesterday as students celebrated Valentine's Day. Student clubs and organizations sold cookies, candy, roses and singing telegrams throughout the week. One club was raising money to help build houses in Mexico. BRITNEY BRENT photos |