THE INDEPENDENT DAILY NEWSPAPER FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA COMMUNITY SINCE 1868
Thursday, March 27, 2008
INSIDE
Life in the
decorative lane
The house-hunting frenzy
is on, and many Iowa City
hot spots are lax on flashy
décor — but it doesn’t
have to be that way. Check
out how creative folk are
padding their pads with
wonder. 80 Hours, 1C
LOOK AT OUR
CALENDAR
If all caps doesn’t work, it’s
your loss — nothing will
get your attention. For you
lucky folk, check out the
80 Hours calendar, 2C.
Ferentz anxious to
move forward
Football coach Kirk Ferentz
said he hopes the Hawkeyes
can move on from a tumul-
tuous off-season and shift
their focus toward spring
practice. Sports, 1B
One-hitters propel
softball sweep
The Iowa softball team used
a pair of remarkable pitching
performances to shut out
Northern Illinois. Sports, 1B
Who could ask for
anything more?
The Iowa Legislature is
mulling two sunshine laws to
push for more transparency
across the state. State, 5A
Costly keg cups
Much like bar owners, hosts
of house parties could be
liable for their intoxicated
underage patrons’ actions.
State, 7A
dailyiowan.com
For photos, videos, audio, blogs,
and more, check us out online
at: dailyiowan.com
Daily updates
Now check back at
dailyiowan.com during
the day for the latest news
on the UI and Iowa City.
Daily Iowan TV
To watch Daily Iowan TV,
go online at dailyiowan.com
or tune into UITV. The
15-minute newscast is on
Sunday through Thursday
at 9:30 and 10:30 p.m.,
with reruns at 12:30 and
1:30 a.m. and 7:45 and
8:45 a.m. the following day.
Today’s webcast
• Kirk Ferentz’s press
conference
• Update on Sueppel deaths
• Best of Tom Brands
WEATHER
Blustery winds,
80% chance of rain,
sleet, snow, etc.
If Mother Nature had
a kitchen sink, she’d
throw that in, too.
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41 5C 28 -2 C
INDEX
Arts 1C Opinions 8A
Classifieds 4B Sports 1B
Crossword 6B
Blunt force led to deaths
Authorities are wrapping up their
investigation into the slaying of five
members of the Sueppel family.
By Kurtis Hiatt
THE DAILY IOWAN
Steven Sueppel beat to
death his wife and four
children, who died of numerous
injuries from blunt-force trau-
ma to their upper torsos and
heads, officials at the Iowa
Photographs of the Sueppel family are taped to a sign outside the Sueppel family home at 629 Barrington Road on Tuesday. On
Wednesday, state medical examiner officials said Sheryl Sueppel and her four children died from numerous blunt-force-trauma injuries.
A loving, caring teacher
By Brian Stewart
THE DAILY IOWAN
Students of Sheryl Sueppel
remember her as being an car-
ing teacher in the classroom
and a dedicated role model
outside her school.
“I absolutely loved her,” former
student Katie Snyder said. “I
thought she was one of the sweet-
est ladies — one of my favorite
teachers in elementary school.”
Iowa City police discovered
the bodies of Sheryl Sueppel
and her four children in their
home on the morning of
Loh named provost Surgeons:
Wallace Loh
• Born in China, raised in Peru
• Undergrad degree from
Grinnell College in psychology
• Master’s in psychology from
Cornell University
• Ph.D. in
psychology
from the
University of
Michigan
• Law degree
from Yale
• Dean of the
University of
Washington Loh
Law School new UI provost
in 1990
• Started as academic affairs
vice chancellor and law professor
at the University of Colorado in
1995
• Appointed the dean of the
College of Arts and Sciences in
1999 at Seattle University
State Medical Examiner’s
Office reported Wednesday.
Husband and father Steven
Sueppel, who authorities say
they are sure is responsible for
the slayings, also died of blunt-
force injuries he sustained
after he intentionally crashed
his minivan on I-80.
Sheryl Sueppel’s teaching career was
defined by caring actions, both in the
classroom and after school hours.
Monday. Police said Sheryl
Sueppel’s husband, Steven
Sueppel, beat them to death
before killing himself.
Snyder, who was in one of
Sueppel’s fourth-grade classes
at Penn Elementary in North
Liberty, said Sheryl Sueppel’s
kindness became evident
when talking about her class
Loh hopes to work with more with
undergraduate education at the UI.
By Ashton Shurson
THE DAILY IOWAN
Wallace Loh of Seattle
University has been appointed
the new UI provost and executive
vice president, UI President
Sally Mason announced
Wednesday.
Loh, 63, will replace former
UI Provost Michael Hogan —
who left in September 2007 to
head the University of Connecti-
cut — and he will start Aug. 1.
“It feels wonderful,” Loh
said. “I’m so thrilled and happy.
I feel honored.”
He was one of five finalists
who interviewed for the posi-
tion. Mason flew out to Seattle
on March 22 to offer the job,
said Loh, who is the dean of
arts and sciences and professor
Examiners did not identify a
weapon involved in the slayings,
but police have said two baseball
bats may have been involved.
“The injuries were consistent
with … what Steven Sueppel
had said and the evidence
recovered, which involved the
ball bat,” Iowa City police Sgt.
Troy Kelsay said.
Authorities had also said at
a press conference Tuesday
that Steven Sueppel initially
took his children — Ethan, 10,
Seth, 8, Mira, who would have
turned 6 on Tuesday, and
to a later boyfriend with a dif-
ficult childhood.
“Her family really took him
in by spending nights with
him, having family dinners
with him, and really being a
second family to him,” she
said. “That shows how they
were and how sweet she was.”
When Emily Winckler’s sister
of public service and psychology
at Seattle University.
Mason praised the entire
pool of candidates but said
Loh’s ability to connect in a
meaningful way with different
groups on campus distin-
guished him from the rest. She
also said she enjoyed hearing
his “wonderful” stories about his
first days in the United States
and specifically at Grinnell
College, where he received a
bachelor’s degree and an hon-
orary Doctor of Laws.
In addition, Loh was the
director of policy for Washington
Gov. Gary Locke, the vice
chancellor for academic affairs
and professor of law at the
SEE LOH, 4A
Family died from Sueppel slayings-suicide
blunt-force trauma timeline of events
Watch Daily Iowan TV at
dailyiowan.com for more Police have released more times for
on the latest autopsy results
for the Sueppel family.
the events on Sunday and Monday.
Picture of a killer
For more about what types of personality
traits and experiences lead to mass
killings, 5A.
Eleanor, 3 — into the home’s
garage in an attempt to
asphyxiate them with his
vehicle’s exhaust fumes.
SEE INVESTIGATION, 3A
Roughly 8 p.m. Sunday
Friend visits the Sueppels at their 629
Barrington Road home, sees at least
one of the children alive.
11:30 p.m. Sunday
Steven Sueppel leaves voice mail at
his father’s and brother’s law firm;
tells them his family is “in heaven.”
3:45 a.m. to 4:01 a.m. Monday
Sueppel calls his home and Hills Bank
and Trust, leaves voice messages.
6:31 a.m. Monday
Sueppel calls 911 to tell authorities to
immediately respond to his residence,
then hangs up.
6:37 a.m. Monday
Sueppel intentionally crashes his
minivan on I-80, killing himself after
the vehicle is engulfed in flames.
6:45 a.m. Monday
Authorities enter the Sueppel resi-
dence and find Sheryl Sueppel and her
Peter Klopfenstein/The Daily Iowan four children dead, all in different
rooms of the house.
Tuesday
Autopsies are performed on the six
Sueppels, finished in the evening.
Wednesday
Authorities release the results of an
autopsy, showing Sheryl Sueppel and
died of cancer during her
fourth-grade year, her teacher, her four children died of blunt-force
Sheryl Sueppel, was more trauma after being beat to death by
than supportive. Steven Sueppel.
“She took me under her
wing,” she said. “She did a
great job of informing other
kids in my class and made sure
they were treating me OK.”
Sueppel remained after class
with Winckler one day to help
her write a poem after the loss
of her sister, which the teacher
then framed with a photo of
Winckler and her sisters.
SEE SUEPPEL, 3A
Links legal
By Zhi Xiong
THE DAILY IOWAN
‘When they get to the
Some say kickbacks — illegal
bottom of the royalty
and synonymous with bribery agreements, they’ll find
— is a strong word.
For several years, federal
they were totally legal
investigators have probed and without any issues.’
whether companies that produce
artificial joints violated anti- — John Callaghan, consultant
kickback laws in their payments for DePuy Orthopaedics
to orthopedic surgeons. Recently,
they turned the spotlight on the
Hospital spokesman Tom
surgeons who act as consultants
Moore said Joseph Buckwalter,
and put the parts into patients. head of the Department of
The change in focus surprised
Orthopaedics and Rehabilita-
some at the UI, where three
faculty members in the
tion, had not heard of the new
update until Monday.
orthopaedic-surgery depart-
ment have ties to several of the
five companies involved. SEE ORTHOPEDICS, 4A

dailyiowan.com for more news
Report: Sueppel killed family
INVESTIGATION
CONTINUED FROM 1A
But examiners said Wednes-
day that carbon-monoxide
poisoning and asphyxiation did
not contribute to the deaths.
Now, authorities are “wrap-
ping up loose ends” in their
investigation, Kelsay said,
adding officers are no longer
holding the crime scene at
the Sueppels’ home, 629 Bar-
rington Road. They have not,
however, finished looking at
the Sueppels’ minivan. He
‘She was always there
to talk to; she was
very caring.’
— Emily Winckler,
former student
Ex-students
recall teacher
SUEPPEL
CONTINUED FROM 1A
“She was always there to talk
to; she was very caring,” Winck-
ler said, noting that Sueppel
also took her out to lunch after
the family tragedy.
Winckler, now majoring in
elementary education at the
University of Northern Iowa,
said Sueppel affected her deci-
sion to become an educator.
“What she did for me, I want
to do for kids, too,” she said.
Outside of the classroom,
Sueppel was a mother to four
children, all adopted from
South Korea. Winckler said
staff at Sueppel’s school threw
parties to welcome the children
to Iowa City and the Sueppel
family.
In addition to teaching at
Penn, Sueppel, a City High and
UI graduate, taught at Wick-
ham Elementary during her 10
years with the Iowa City School
District.
Students said Sueppel was a
devoted teacher, who looked for
the best in each student.
said he didn’t know when
authorities would close the
investigation.
Authorities have pieced
together a general sequence of
events — though exact times
are largely unknown — through
voice-mail messages and a
lengthy, handwritten letter
Steven Sueppel left for family
on a kitchen table:
Steven Sueppel killed wife
Sheryl Sueppel first in their
master bedroom, then took his
children into his home’s
garage to kill them and com-
mit suicide, probably by
‘She was a very
sweet lady, very patient.
She didn’t deserve this.’
— Jodie Schreiber,
former student
“When [the girl who became]
my best friend Sarah first came
to Penn as a student, Mrs. Suep-
pel had me help her and show
her around,” former student
Jodie Schreiber said. “She pret-
ty much introduced me to my
best friend.”
Schreiber noted that Sueppel
often helped her with school-
work Schreiber struggled to
complete.
“She was a very sweet lady,
very patient,” she said. “She did-
n’t deserve this.”
Winckler said the news of
Sueppel’s death left her
“shocked” and “very tearful.”
She created a Facebook group
for Sueppel’s past students — a
place she said they can share
their memories and sorrows
with others now living across
the country.
“It hurt a lot knowing that
she was there for me in my time
of need, and not only can I not
be there for her in her time of
need, not even her family can,”
she said. “It was unbelievable.”
E-mail DI reporter Brian Stewart at:
brian-stewart@uiowa.edu
asphyxiation from a vehicle’s
exhaust fumes.
That failed, and the children
were then killed separately in
bedrooms and a “toy room” in
the house. Officers who entered
the home at 6:45 a.m. Monday
found the bodies.
After the killings, Steven
Sueppel drove to the Iowa River
at Lower City Park to try to
drown himself but was “not able
to sink,” authorities have
learned.
At 6:31 a.m. Monday, Steven
Sueppel called 911 to tell
authorities to “go … immediately”
Shuttle Endeavour returns
The shuttle makes a rare nighttime
landing after a brief weather delay.
By Marcia Dunn
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. —
Space shuttle Endeavour and its
crew of seven returned to Earth
on Wednesday, making a rare
nighttime touchdown to wrap up
“a two-week adventure” at the
international space station.
The shuttle swooped through
the darkness and landed on
NASA’s illuminated runway at
8:39 p.m., an hour after sunset.
“Welcome home, Endeavour,”
Mission Control radioed. “Con-
grats to the entire crew.”
Replied Endeavour’s com-
mander, Dominic Gorie: “It was
a super-rewarding mission,
exciting from the start to the
ending.”
The shuttle’s homecoming
was a bit delayed.
Endeavour was supposed to
land before sunset, but at virtu-
ally the last minute, clouds
moved in. As the astronauts
took an extra swing around the
planet, the sky cleared enough
to satisfy flight controllers and
— after asking Gorie for his
opinion — they gave him the
green light to head home.
to his home before disconnect-
ing. By 6:37 a.m., according to
an Iowa State Patrol crash
report, Steven Sueppel
slammed his minivan into a
sign post on I-80.
Between Sunday and Mon-
day, he also left numerous short
voice mails at Meardon, Suep-
pel, & Downer — a law firm at
which Sueppel’s father and
brother work — his former
employer, Hills Bank & Trust,
and his home between 11:30
p.m. Sunday and 4:01 a.m. Mon-
day.
In a call to the law firm,
It was only the 22nd space
shuttle landing in darkness.
Fewer than one-fifth of all mis-
sions have ended at nighttime;
the last one was in 2006.
Endeavour blasted off March
11 — also in darkness — on an
ambitious, intense space-sta-
tion construction mission that
had even its commander won-
dering at times how everything
would go.
In the end, Gorie and his
multinational crew accom-
plished everything they set out
to do during their voyage,
which spanned 16 days and 6.5
million miles. The astronauts
installed the first piece of
Japan’s Kibo lab, put together a
giant Canadian robot named
Dextre, tested a shuttle repair
technique, and more.
NASA Administrator
Michael Griffin said he told
Gorie after touchdown that “he
had really flown two missions
in one for us.”
“I can’t imagine that the mis-
sion could have gone any bet-
ter, and they made it look easy,”
Griffin said.
The space station is now 70
percent complete, thanks to the
The Daily Iowan - Iowa City, Iowa - Thursday, March 27, 2008 - 3A
Steven Sueppel said his family
was “in heaven.”
Police said Sueppel apolo-
gized many times in his mes-
sages, voicing despair about his
legal troubles and embarrass-
ment of losing his job as a vice
president at Hills Bank &
Trust.
Sueppel had been accused of
embezzlement and money
laundering. A federal grand
jury in Davenport indicted
him Feb. 12, and he was to
stand trial April 21 for report-
edly embezzling nearly
$560,000. While he pleaded
latest additions, with a mass of
nearly 600,000 pounds.
Ten more shuttle flights to
the space station — spread over
the next two years — will round
out the numbers. NASA hopes
to have its share of the orbiting
outpost finished in 2010 and its
three shuttles retired, so it can
focus on human expeditions to
the moon.
“This has been a two-week
adventure,” said Gorie’s copilot,
Gregory Johnson, before land-
ing. “It’s been a pleasure and an
honor to be on it.”
Discovery is scheduled to fly
to the space station in late May,
carrying up Japan’s enormous
Kibo lab. The fuel tank for that
mission arrived at Kennedy
Space Center on Wednesday,
later than planned, and Griffin
said that almost certainly will
mean a launch delay of at least
a few days.
Subsequent fuel tanks also
could get backed up because of
all the design changes necessi-
tated by the 2003 Columbia
disaster.
NASA expects to have a bet-
ter idea in another month
News
not guilty to the charges, he
also allegedly admitted to
stealing $219,000, using most
of it to buy cocaine, an investi-
gator has reported.
Funeral services for all six
Sueppels are scheduled for 10
a.m. Saturday at St. Mary’s
Catholic Church, 302 E. Jefferson
St. A vigil service is scheduled
at the same church at 7:30 p.m.
on Friday. Friends can call after
3 p.m. on that day.
DI reporter Olivia Moran contributed
to this report.
E-mail DI reporter Kurtis Hiatt at:
kurtis-hiatt@uiowa.edu
whether it can keep the year’s
launches on track. Space shut-
tles are supposed to soar four
more times in 2008, which
would mean six missions for
the year, a flight rate not seen
since 2001.
Up on the space station,
meanwhile, the three occu-
pants are gearing up for next
week’s arrival of the European
Space Agency’s supply ship,
Jules Verne. The unmanned
cargo carrier — the first of its
kind — rocketed away from
French Guiana this month
with a load of food, water, and
clothes.
Less than a week after that,
on April 8, the Russians will
launch a fresh space-station
crew from Kazakhstan.
NASA couldn’t be more
pleased with this space station
traffic jam.
Returning aboard Endeav-
our was French Air Force Gen.
Leopold Eyharts, who spent 1
1/2 months aboard the space
station, and Japanese astro-
naut Takao Doi, who accompa-
nied his country’s space station
contribution to orbit.

Monday, February 11, 2008
INSIDE
Bluder notches
win No. 500
Lisa Bluder earns her 500th
career win, and the
Hawkeyes win their
eighth-straight game for sole
possession of first place in
the Big Ten. Sports, 1B
Guard unit
receives federal
funds
Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa,
and Rep. Dave Loebsack,
D-Iowa, present $13 million
to build a new readiness
center for a local National
Guard unit. State, 2A
Identification,
please
A local man is charged with
producing and distributing
fake IDs, along with
attempting to grow
psychedelic mushrooms.
City, 5A
Advanced
placement,
reduced cost
Some lawmakers want all
Iowa high schools to offer
advanced-placement courses
and for the state to reduce
or eliminate their fees.
State, 6A
Va va voom
DI reporter Louis Virtel
reviews Robert Wilson’s
much talked-about art
exhibit. Arts & Culture, 11A
dailyiowan.com
For photos, videos, audio, blogs,
and more, check us out online
at: dailyiowan.com
Daily updates
Now check back at
dailyiowan.com during
the day for the latest news
on the UI and Iowa City.
Daily Iowan TV
To watch Daily Iowan TV,
go online at dailyiowan.com
or tune into UITV. The
15-minute newscast is on
Sunday through Thursday
at 9:30 and 10:30 p.m.,
with reruns at 12:30 and
1:30 a.m. and 7:45 and
8:45 a.m. the following day.
Today’s webcast
• Iowa City homicide
• DI 80 Hours Editor Paul
Sorenson’s movie review
• Courtside
WEATHER
Cloudy, windy, 90%
chance of snow; wind-chill
fun in the morning and at
!
14 -10 C 7 -14 C
INDEX
Arts 11A Opinions 10A
Classifieds 4B Sports 1B
Crossword 6B
THE INDEPENDENT DAILY NEWSPAPER FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA COMMUNITY SINCE 1868
Man charged in death
A day after discovering Jerome August ‘Patrick’ McEwen dead in his home, police
arrest 21-year-old Curtis John Fry and charge him with second-degree murder.
The apartment of Jerome August “Patrick” McEwen, 513 S. Van Buren St., is shown on Sunday. Police say it was the scene of a homicide
on Feb. 7 and that McEwen’s door showed signs of forced entry.
By Olivia Moran
and Kurtis Hiatt
THE DAILY IOWAN
Brent Davis knows exactly
what everyone is thinking
about his cousin after he report-
edly beat a 75-year-old man to
death: He
should be
locked up.
“ ‘[He] deserves
to go down for a
long, long time,’ ”
Davis said. “I
know people are
thinking that,
but knowing Fry
him, I don’t feel charged
that way at all.”
Curtis John Fry, 21, of Wilton,
Iowa, was charged Feb. 8 with
second-degree murder. As of
Sunday, he was still being held
at Johnson County Jail on a $1
million cash-only bond.
Davis’s aunt and uncle are
Fry’s parents, Cathy and Jim
Fry. Davis, 28, of Bettendorf,
said he’s known Curtis Fry his
whole life, and sees him about
three or four times a year.
Man arrested in Jema attack
The accused has an prior criminal record, and he is being held
at Johnson County Jail on a bond of more than $1.5 million.
By Kurtis Hiatt
THE DAILY IOWAN
Authorities arrested a man
Feb. 9 after an eight-month
investigation, alleging that he
broke into an Iowa City resi-
dence in June 2007 and kid-
napped, beat, and sexually
assaulted a 50-year-old woman.
Micah Sherif Matthews, 32,
address unknown, faces three
felonies in the alleged incident,
first-degree kidnapping, first-
degree sexual abuse, and first-
degree burglary, police reported.
Iowa City police arrested
Matthews — who was already
in Johnson County Jail for an
unrelated charged of violating a
domestic-abuse protective order
— after a joint investigation by
officers and the Iowa Division of
Criminal Investigation, where
two “very important” DNA
“I never ever could picture
him being a violent person. Peri-
od,” Davis said. “He’s just that
likable type of person. That
laughable type of guy who can
get along with anybody.”
The alleged homicide
Iowa City police arrested
Curtis Fry the afternoon of Feb.
8 for reportedly beating to death
Jerome August “Patrick”
McEwen at his residence, 513 S.
Van Buren St. Apt. 1.
Lauren Nestor, a UI senior,
lives in an apartment near
McEwen’s. Around 1:30 or 2
a.m. on Feb. 7, she said, she was
about to go to sleep when she
heard noises in the building.
“You kind of get used to
things like that,” Nestor said,
adding that it wasn’t until the
afternoon of Feb. 7 that a neigh-
bor came to tell Nestor some-
thing was wrong.
Nestor followed her neighbor
to McEwen’s apartment, where
she found him dead. Autopsy
results later determined that he
had died because of numerous
blunt-force fractures in his face,
samples linked Matthews to the
crime scene, Iowa City police
Sgt. Troy Kelsay said.
As of Sunday, Matthews was
being held at Johnson County
Jail on a $1.5 million bond.
Authorities reportedly were
able to piece together a detailed
series of events from June 5,
2007, when Matthews allegedly
forced entry into the residence
on Jema Court, armed with a
handgun, and woke the woman
around 4 a.m., demanding
money.
According to police:
The woman told Matthews
she had “very little cash” in her
home, police reports said.
Matthews then forced the
woman to drive him to the UI
Community Credit Union on
Mormon Trek Boulevard to
withdraw cash.
When the woman was unable
Timeline
Feb. 7
1:15-2:30 a.m. — Curtis Fry
reported missing by his brother
1:30-2 a.m. — Patrick
McEwen’s neighbor says she
heard noises in the building
1:30-3 a.m. — Fry allegedly
calls an acquaintance and says
he feared McEwen was dying
3:44 p.m. — Iowa City police
find McEwen dead at his resi-
dence
Feb. 8
5:48 p.m. — Police announce
that Fry has been charged with
second-degree murder
7 p.m. — Fry’s bond is set at
$1 million
a thyroid-cartilage fracture,
bleeding in the brain, a frac-
tured left rib, and “apparent
defensive wounds to his hand,”
police reported.
Nestor and her neighbor
called police, who responded
around 3:44 p.m. Feb. 7.
SEE HOMICIDE, 4A
Micah Sherif
Matthews
The charges:
• First-degree
kidnapping,
Class A felony,
punishable by
life in prison if
convicted
• First-degree
sexual abuse,
Class A felony, punishable by
life in prison if convicted
• First-degree burglary, Class B
felony, punishable by up to 25
years in prison
to make a withdrawal at the
ATM, police said Matthews told
her he would sexually assault
her if she didn’t give him money,
then forced her to drive him
back to her residence.
Chris Vanderwall/The Daily Iowan
IC homicide
Watch Daily Iowan TV at
dailyiowan.com for more on
the homicide of Jerome August
“Patrick” McEwen.
Upon returning to Jema Court,
the woman tried to flee, running
through the garage and into her
home. Matthews followed, kick-
ing the door open and catching
the woman as she tried to escape
up the stairs, and ordered her to a
bedroom with him.
The woman refused, and
Matthews “pistol-whipped her
across the face,” fracturing
three facial bones and causing
the woman to fall onto a piece of
furniture in her front room.
Matthews sexually assaulted
the woman where she fell and
later fled.
The woman called 911 at 6:21
a.m. — more than two hours
after Matthews first entered
her home. She was taken to the
UI Hospitals and Clinics for
“numerous injuries.”
SEE MATTHEWS, 3A
Doubt
cast on
biofuels
By Samantha Miller
THE DAILY IOWAN
Two new studies examining
biofuels, a popular energy alter-
native to fossil fuels, find that
the supposedly eco-friendly
energy source may actually be
detrimental to the environ-
ment, causing some to take a
second look at the struggling
2007 U.S. Farm Bill.
The studies, both published
in this month’s Science, report
that the destruction of some
lands — such as rain forests,
savanna, and grasslands — in
order to produce cropland for
biofuels, causes more green-
house gases than it reduces by
displacing fossil fuels.
By using the renewable ener-
gy source — a highly touted com-
ponent in the congressionally
approved but executively stalled
Farm Bill — more harm than
good is inflicted upon the envi-
ronment, the studies conclude.
“Biofuels are a potential low-
carbon energy source, but
whether biofuels offer carbon
saving depends on how they are
produced,” reported one of the
studies, titled “Land Clearing
and Biofuel Carbon Debt.”
UI civil-environmental engi-
neering Professor Jerald
Schnoor said this study takes a
new perspective by examining
the role the land selected to har-
vest biofuels plays — specifically,
how it was previously utilized.
“If the converted land from went
from already being put to good use
to an intensive use for ethanol pro-
duction, there may be negative
implications for net greenhouse
production,” Schnoor said.
SEE ETHANOL, 3A
Schools
might
see
more $
By Kelli Shaffner
THE DAILY IOWAN
Iowa City schools will likely
see a 4 percent increase in edu-
cation funding after the Iowa
Senate passed a $112.6 million
measure.
Toni Cilek, the Iowa City
School Board president, said
the funding, which amount to
an additional $222 per student,
were what local officials expect-
ed. The money will be used
durng the 2009-10 school year.
“We know [the Legislature]
had a tight budget, so we’re
thankful that it provided our
budget,” she said. “We’re
pleased that it followed through
and that we have an increase.”
The increased funds won’t be
enough to boost Iowa out of its
teacher-salary slump, said Mar-
garet Buckton, an associate
executive director of public pol-
icy for the Iowa Association of
School Boards. The state gov-
ernment would need to increase
the Iowa City budget by 6 per-
cent for two or three years.
But Sen. Brian Schoenjahn,
D-Arlington, the chairman of
the Education Committee, said
the 4 percent increase for ele-
mentary and secondary schools
is the best lawmakers could do.
SEE EDUCATION, 3A
4A - The Daily Iowan - Iowa City, Iowa - Monday, February 11, 2008
News
Homicide shocks neighbor
HOMICIDE
CONTINUED FROM 1A
“It was obvious it was too
late,” she said, noting that
McEwen had no pulse.
A subsequent investigation
by the Iowa City police and
Iowa Division of Criminal
Investigation revealed that
McEwen’s door showed signs of
forced entry. Authorities discov-
ered what they believe to be
Curtis Fry’s wallet, jacket, and
a pair of blood-stained jeans in
McEwen’s bedroom and around
the crime scene.
Police said Fry called an
acquaintance between 1:30
a.m. and 3 a.m. on Feb. 7, telling
the acquaintance he “hit ‘a guy’
who was ‘freaking him out
because he was gurgling,’ and
Fry thought the ‘guy was dying,’
” reports said.
“The injuries discovered dur-
ing McEwen’s autopsy could
cause the victim to make a gur-
gling sound as he was dying,”
police reported.
Fry’s brother reported Fry
missing to the police twice on
Feb. 7 in the area of South Van
Buren Street, once at 1:15 a.m.
and again at 2:30 a.m. Fry’s
brother eventually found Fry,
who, police said, was not wear-
ing his jeans or jacket but was
dressed in two coats the brother
did not recognize, authorities
said.
‘It’s just not fair’
Nestor, one of McEwen’s
neighbors, described the 75-
year-old as good neighbor and
gentle person.
“He was just a very peaceful,
quiet person, and he enjoyed it
whenever anybody gave their
time to him,” Nestor said. He
attended synagogue every
week, she said.
McEwen didn’t talk much
about his family but liked to
ask Nestor questions and talk
about his life when he was
younger, Nestor said.
Jerome August
‘Patrick’ McEwen
Funeral Services
Where: Agudas Achim
Congregation, 602 E.
Washington St., burial at
Agudas Achim Cemetary
When: 11 a.m. today
Lensing Funeral and
Cremation Service is handling
arrangements.
McEwen had nurses visit to
help take care of him, but
Nestor said she often asked
him if he needed anything and
remembered helping him in
April 2006 during the tornado.
Nestor said McEwen would
often leave his door open to
hear what was going on around
the apartment building.
“I just liked living across
from him,” she said. “He was
different than living by … col-
lege students.”
Growing up in Wilton
Curtis Fry attended Wilton
Jurnior/Senior High and played
football, baseball, and golf.
“He was the jock type,” Davis
said. “If you were to find people
he graduated with, they would
all be in shock.”
On Fry’s MySpace page —
which was removed two days
after he was arrested — he lists
his workplace as “Boys Ranch.”
His parents operate the non-
profit, Christian-based Mira-
cles Can Happen Boys Ranch
Inc. in Wilton.
According to the elder Frys’
website, the ranch is a correc-
tional facility aimed at teaching
Christian values for troubled
boys between 14 and 18.
Boys stay at the ranch for
roughly two-and-a-half years,
and “receive consequences
according to their behavior.
“Digging a hole for not getting
along with someone at home or
school, loading manure is proba-
bly the worst consequence,” the
dailyiowan.com for more news
website states.
A family blog shows that
Curtis Fry was actively
involved mentoring the ranch’s
residents. When the family let
go of a boy after only eight
months, his mother wrote,
“Curtis said [to the boy], ‘You
hurt me bad it really hurt me
but … I forgive you, and I love
ya, man.’ ”
Fry attended St. Ambrose
University in Davenport. A
football roster from 2005 shows
Fry was a defensive back as a
Contributed photo by Wilton Junior-Senior High School yearbook
freshman.
He dropped out after first Curtis Fry played right field for Wilton High’s 2005 state champion
semester of freshman year, an baseball team, which finished 42-0.
acquaintance at the school said.
In August 2007, Fry began
working outside the family’s
ranch but continued to reside
there and occasionally milked
cows, the blog said.
On Feb. 9, family members
declined comment.
‘A good Catholic boy’
The night of McEwen’s death
was also Curtis Fry’s 21st birth-
day. Iowa City police Sgt. Troy
Kelsay said whether alcohol was
involved “is a logical question.”
One of Fry’s acquaintances
from St. Ambrose — who said
she socialized with Fry a few
times — said she didn’t remem-
ber him as a drinker in college.
“The impression I got from
him was a good Catholic boy,”
she said. “I remember him as a
kind, friendly, gentle person.”
Fry would often opt out of
partying, she said, staying in to
do homework.
Davis had the same impres-
sion as Fry’s acquaintance.
“I would never have known Contributed photo by Wilton Junior-Senior High School yearbook
him to go out and drink. He was Curtis Fry graduated from Wilton High in 2005.
underage,” he said. “That was a
very big no-no.”
Fry was also listed as a non- degree murder, a Class B his life away,” Nestor said. “I
drinker on his MySpace page, felony, Fry could spend up to hope that he gets as much
and he has no prior criminal 25 years in prison. time as he can.”
record according to Iowa online Those involved have differ- “It’s a personal nightmare,”
court records. ent outlooks on the future. Davis said. “Many people’s
“[McEwen] was an older lives are ruined now.”
The consequences person, but it still obviously E-mail DI reporters at:
If c onvi c t ed o f second- wasn’t his time. Curtis took daily-iowan@uiowa.edu

Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Flag at
half-staff
The Old Capitol
flag will be
lowered today
in honor of
Ronald Keech,
a professor in
pediatric
ophthalmology and visual sciences,
who passed away on Oct. 16;
Howard Nicholson, a research
assistant in the College of Public
Health, who passed away on Oct.
17; Melissa Ann Brendes, a UI
student who died in a car accident
on Oct. 18; and Patrick Ridenour,
a UIHC communications specialist,
who passed away on Oct. 17.
INSIDE
Marin did kill
women, both
sides say
Opening statements in the
Kyle Marin trial didn’t focus
on whether he killed two
18-year olds, but rather if
he is not guilty due to
insanity. State, 2A
Blowin’ in the
Iowa City wind
Bob Dylan returns to Iowa
City with co-guitar hero Elvis
Costello in SCOPE’s first
Carver-Hawkeye Arena show
in more than two years.
Campus, 3A
21-ordinance bad
for Iowa City
But it might not be for the
reasons you think.
Opinions, 6A
Walters’ rehab an
extensive one
Redshirt freshman volleyball
player Becky Walters will
have a grueling six-month
rehab before hopefully
returning full-strength from
a devastating knee injury.
Sports, 1B
UI Symphony
Orchestra
It might not be so popular as
football, but the music
ensemble performing tonight
at Hancher boasts one of the
least expensive tickets in
town. Arts & Culture, 7A
dailyiowan.com
For photos, videos, audio, blogs,
and more, check us out online
at: dailyiowan.com
Daily Iowan
Television
To watch Daily Iowan
Television, go online at
dailyiowan.com or tune into
UITV. The 15-minute newscast
is on Sunday through
Thursday at 9:30 and 10:30
p.m., with reruns at 12:30 and
1:30 a.m. and 7:45 and 8:45
a.m. the following day.
WEATHER
Mostly sunny, windy
!
!
59 15 C 32 0C
INDEX
Arts 7A Opinions 6A
Classifieds 4B Sports 1B
Crossword 6B
THE INDEPENDENT DAILY NEWSPAPER FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA COMMUNITY SINCE 1868
THE 19-21 DEBATE
Third in a three-part series
Party specter looms
If bars are off-limits,
underage drinkers are
likely to go to house
parties in the various
neighborhoods.
21 only?
For more on The Daily Iowan’s
21-ordinance package, watch
Daily Iowan Television at
dailyiowan.com.
By Amanda McClure
THE DAILY IOWAN
The boom of house parties
that some say may spread
across Iowa City causes con-
cern among citizens and city
councilors alike.
Supporters of the vote to
ban underage people in bars
on Nov. 6 say it may bring con-
sequences to Iowa City’s
neighborhoods.
Those who oppose the ordi-
nance say that relocating
drinkers to unsafe neighbor-
hoods will have a detrimental
effect on the number of
assaults and drinking-related
incidents in the community.
“A goal of this ordinance
may be to stop underage
drinking, but it will mainly
move the party to a more dan-
gerous location,” said City
Councilor Bob Elliott.
There are two sides to the
ordinance argument, he said.
The first is that limiting access
leads to limited consumption,
and the second concerns the
moral debate surrounding
underage drinking.
“It’s not just about people
under 21,” he said. “It’s also
about the people who aren’t
mature enough to handle
themselves.”
Police Chief Sam Harga-
dine said it’s not the responsi-
bility of the bar or the city to
watch drinkers.
“Drinking is a personal
responsibility regardless of the
location,” he said. “Bars don’t
police themselves.”
Terry Maslowski, a UI sen-
ior and an employee of Liquor
Downtown, 315 S. Gilbert St.,
believes the ordinance will
bring about safety concerns.
While he acknowledges that
the 21-ordinance will help
boost liquor sales at local
stores, he feels it will also
increase binge drinking at
uncontrolled house parties.
Nightlife a city moneymaker
Two UI students hoist a trophy awarded for winning a beer-pong tournament at an Iowa City residence
on Sunday.
In a 2006 Statemaster
report, Johnson County
ranked fourth in the state for
binge drinking, consuming 2.8
gallons of alcohol per person
12 and over in that year.
“From an economic stand-
point, I’m sure it would help
business, but looking at the
The local nightlife scene proves
to be a profitable money-making
source for the city.
By Brian Stewart
THE DAILY IOWAN
A giant pot of gold is at one
end of Iowa City’s proposed
21-ordinance rainbow. A big
pot o’ gold called Iowa City’s
general fund.
For some UI students, a
night out on the town can end
up costing more than just a
few $1-you-call-its at a Pedes-
trian Mall bar. In fact, the
cost of an alcohol-related
offense issued by an Iowa
City police officer can tack
hundreds of dollars onto a
night of partying.
And a hefty chunk of that
ticket money makes its way
back into the city’s hands.
“I don’t think [the propo-
nents of the 21-ordinance]
have any understanding of
the financial consequences,”
said Leah Cohen, the owner
issues, I don’t believe that it’s
best for our community,”
Maslowski said.
Many of the local bars order
hundreds of bottles of alcohol
at a time from his store, he
said, and that if the ordinance
passes, that number would
probably be reduced.
of Bo-James, 118 E. Washing-
ton St., and co-head of Bloc21,
an organization opposed to
the 21-ordinance.
A Daily Iowan analysis of
PAULA tickets issued by the
Iowa City police from Janu-
ary 2002 to September 2007
showed that 85 percent of vio-
lations were at business loca-
tions, primarily local bars. As
of Sept. 30, only 20 percent of
PAULAs in 2007 were issued
at non-business locations.
A first-offense PAULA will
cost $314, and subsequent
violations total $710 after
surcharge and court costs,
Iowa City police Sgt. Troy
Kelsay said. This means that
from 2002 to September, at
the lowest, police dolled out
$2.48 million in PAULA tick-
ets in Iowa City businesses.
SEE MONEY, 4A
Robin Svec/The Daily Iowan
With the prospect of stu-
dents shifting their focus to
house parties as the new out-
let for underage activities, city
landlords have started meas-
uring their options. Steve
Baker, an Iowa City resident
SEE PARTIES, 4A
Early voting and
registration
will be available every day this
week at various UI
locations. Here is where the
satellite voting stations are for
the rest of the week:
• Today: Burge from 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
Main Library from 4 p.m.-10 p.m.
• Thursday: IMU from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Hillcrest 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
• Friday: Mayflower 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
THE 19-21
DEBATE
Inside this edition:
• Anti-21 pulls in more money
than pro-21, 3A
• 21-only a boom for fake ID
makers, 5A
• Officials split on relationship
between 21-only and OWI, 5A
Little Hawk
story roils
school
By Kurtis Hiatt
THE DAILY IOWAN
Administrators at City High
have yanked October’s Little
Hawk newspaper after
officials broke up three fights
reportedly caused by a front-
page survey that included
students’ views of blacks,
Principal Mark Hanson said.
But Adam Sullivan, the news-
paper’s executive editor, said
pulling the newspapers isn’t the
solution, and newspaper staff
wanted to show that bigotry is
prevalent at the school.
“We can’t just sweep it under
the rug,” he said. “By pulling the
paper, they’re trying to hide the
elephant in the corner.”
Hanson defended the decision
to take the newspapers.
“It was absolutely in the name
of safety,” he said. “There was
pretty compelling evidence that
the article in the paper was caus-
ing [fights] to happen.”
Taking the newspapers was
“absolutely the last option” Han-
son said.
SEE LITTLE HAWK, 4A
The Oct. 19 issue of the City High
Little Hawk (above) featured a
front-page survey that included
students’ views toward whites,
blacks and homosexual/bisexu-
al/transgendered students.
Two
charged in
Southeast
incident
Officers are unsure if
a student brought a
gun into Southeast
Junior High School.
By Kurtis Hiatt
THE DAILY IOWAN
Police charged two Southeast
Junior High students Tuesday
after one reportedly stole a
handgun from a relative and
passed it off to another student,
Iowa City police Capt. Matt
Johnson said.
Connor Fulton, 14, is charged
with first-degree harassment,
carrying weapons, and making
weapons available to a minor.
Sam Aschenbrenner, 14, is
charged with trafficking in
stolen weapons.
Johnson said he did not know
if Fulton had the gun on his per-
son or even if he had brought
the gun into the school at any
time. He said there was an
investigator still on the case.
“We haven’t made the connec-
tion there was a weapon there,”
Johnson said. “It’s early to be
talking about that.”
Police received a report of
harassment from school officials
SEE SOUTHEAST, 4A
4A - The Daily Iowan - Iowa City, Iowa - Wednesday, October 24, 2007

News dailyiowan.com for more local news

School yanks THE 19-21 DEBATE

papers after fights
LITTLE HAWK
CONTINUED FROM 1A
The content in question was a
survey of 350 City High students
of every grade, sex, and ethnicity
about their views on blacks,
homosexual/bisexual/transgen-
der students, and whites in an
Oct. 19 issue of Little Hawk. The
newspaper found that 13, 28,
and 2 percent of students had
unfavorable views of those
groups, in that order.
The results translated into
four pie graphs, dominating the
newspaper’s front page under a
picture collage of Martin Luther
King Jr., a Ku Klux Klan mem-
ber, and Abraham Lincoln.
Inside, the staff ran school offi-
cials’ reactions to the survey’s
results and emphasized the need
to work together to combat big-
otry in its staff editorial.
Still, the content didn’t bode
well with some students.
Hanson said he and his
administrative team unani-
mously decided to gather the
newspapers after three fights —
in the math, science, and main
foyer areas of the school —
erupted in response.
“That was enough at that
point,” Hanson said. Roughly 40
students were adversely affected
in some form by the survey, he
said.
Jeff Morris, the Little Hawk
adviser, said he understands
administrators’ decision to nab
the newspapers.
“I can’t slight [Hanson] for
pulling them,” he said. “If he
thinks they’re going to stop
doubts whether there’s anyone
in the school who didn’t hear
about the survey, and a lot of stu-
dents support the newspaper, he
said.
The staff ’s intent likely got
lost in the newsprint, Morris
said.
“My staff was really looking to
do good,” he said. “They wanted
to be able to say, ‘Let’s talk about
this at City High.’ ”
The staff wasn’t trying to sin-
gle out a certain group, and con-
troversy is OK, he said.
The staff discussed the survey
with Hanson, and he suggested
that the newspaper not run it,
Hanson said. Morris said he dis-
agreed with running the survey
but said he can’t always “take
the easy way out.”
“A lot of stuff I don’t agree
with,” Morris said. “It’s me being
older and grouchier.”
The decision rested with the
staff at press time, who also
showed the page to Hanson and
other administrators, Morris
said.
Sullivan said he didn’t see any
valid reason for the administra-
tion to collect the newspapers,
and students overreacted.
“It’s just the thing of the day to
get mad about,” he said.
Morris said some of the
school’s black students will meet
with the newspaper staff Friday
to discuss the survey and the
staff’s intentions and come to an
understanding on the issue.
Vanessa Shelton, a UI adjunct
assistant professor of journal-
ism, said Hanson used one of the
reasons an administrator can
control speech in a high-school
newspaper in claiming it report-
Third in a three-part series
Critics: 21 means parties
PARTIES
CONTINUED FROM 1A
and landlord, opposes the ordi-
nance from both a safety and
economic standpoint.
“Vandalism is my main con-
cern if the ordinance passes,” he
said. “Kids are going to be kids,
and with no social outlet like
bars, house parties are going to
become more dominant.”
Baker said that if the ordi-
nance passes, his job will get
much tougher.
“I will definitely become a
more present landlord,” he
said. “But with taxes and main-
tenance fees as high as they
are, it makes it very hard for
the little operations to survive.”
Another concern that stems
from the ordinance is the
potential increase in neigh-
borhood disruption and riots.
Iowa State University report-
ed escalated numbers of riots Robin Svec/The Daily Iowan
and neighborhood complaints Partyers participate in a beer-pong tournament at an Iowa City residence on Sunday.
after Ames turned 21-only.
“Riots could definitely hap-
21-ordinance and sexual on the ordinance, Elliott said the bars, he said.
pen, but we cannot solve the
assaults are not related. he is not sure which way he “All I know is that it’s a lim-
problem,” Elliott said. “We can
only hope to lessen it.” “The more people concen- will vote because he said he ited prohibition,” he said. “I’m
While those who condemn trate in one area, the less like- sees both positive and nega- old enough to know that not
the ordinance say that it will ly an attack will happen,” he tive sides to the issue. only did national Prohibition
put more young women in jeop- said, noting that there has not An underage drinking ordi- not work, but it created enor-
ardy in Iowa City’s neighbor- been a sexual attack in more nance would limit the amount mous difficulties.”
hoods, Hargadine disagrees, than a month. of young people coming from E-mail DI reporter Amanda McClure at:
remaining firm that the Although he’s eager to vote surrounding areas to drink at amanda-mcclure@uiowa.edu

Alcohol tickets mean money

fights, I really can’t speak ill of
reasons like that. I think that’s a
good reason to pull them.”
Sullivan said he and his staff
are still “really angry” about the
decision.
“I think that just the idea
behind censorship … is just out-
rageous,” he said. The adminis-
tration’s snatching the newspa-
per during the middle of the day
caused a bigger disruption than
the survey, he contended.
Despite officials’ efforts, he
edly disrupted school activities.
Shelton emphasized the news-
paper was directing attention to
an issue and performing a serv-
ice to the school by covering a
problem such as prejudice, but
staff could have interpreted the
results more thoroughly.
“You have to admire those stu-
dent journalists … for taking
this on,” she said.
E-mail DI reporter Kurtis Hiatt at:
kurtis-hiatt@uiowa.edu
MONEY
CONTINUED FROM 1A
Each PAULA offense is bro-
ken down into three parts: the
basic fine, of which the city
receives 90 percent, the crimi-
nal surcharge, of which the city
going to have such an impact
that we’ll write fewer,” he said.
“Right now, I’m just as confi-
dent that after 11 o’clock on a
Thursday, Friday, or Saturday
—especially on a home football
weekend — I could put every
officer on foot patrol and there
would be no shortage of them.”
Kelsay said the potential of
spotting underage patrons in
bars might be easier if the ordi-
nance passes.
“Roughly half of [the Sum-
mit’s] crowd are underage per-
sons right now,” Kelsay said,
choosing one of the more “popu-
lar” and “large capacity” bars as
“completely fictitious ID,” he
added, can be a serious
misdemeanor, punishable by
jail time.
“I don’t think we’ve had a
real serious problem with fake
IDs,” said Cohen, noting that
could change if the ordinance
passes. “I’ve heard all sorts of

Two Southeast
retains 5 percent, and the clerk
costs, which are pocketed by
the state, along with the
remains of the first two
amounts, said Assistant City
Iowa City City Councilor Bob
Elliott said the city’s finances
are not the point of the pro-
posed ordinance.
“This is not a financial ques-
an example. “If that is the pond horror stories already.”
and 50 percent of the fish in She also maintained the city
there are keepers, it’s pretty
will see financial strains if the
easy for officers to go down
ordinance passes.
there and catch those fish.”

students charged Attorney Eric Goers. “There’s no question that

SOUTHEAST
CONTINUED FROM 1A
around 7:44 a.m. Oct. 16. Fulton
had reportedly made “verbal
threats towards other students,”
police reported. Southeast Prin-
cipal Deb Wretman said officers
have been investigating the
harassment charges since Oct.
16 and were finally able to file
that charge, along with the oth-
ers, today.
Johnson said though Fulton’s
charges look extensive, they are
all linked in some way. The
harassment charge stems from
his alleged threats to other stu-
dents, and officers allegedly
were able to determine Fulton
carried the handgun and passed
it to Aschenbrenner, making the
handgun available to another
minor.
Aschenbrenner is charged
because officers were able to
determine that he knew the
handgun was stolen.
Wretman said that Fulton
and Aschenbrenner are not
tion,” he said. “This is a ques- If the ordinance passes,
The city’s PAULA profits are tion of health. Whether there Cohen said she expects to see within a three-year period of
then deposited into the city’s are financial repercussions or an increase in “far more serious time there will be a drastic
general fund, which helps not — that’s almost irrelevant charges” than PAULAs, includ- reduction in rent, which in turn
finance a variety of city opera- causes a reduction in the net
currently attending school, and to me.” ing drunk driving, bootlegging,
worth of the buildings and
the district is following its disci- tions, he said. No fine exists if a person house party-related, and fake-
pline policy. But Kelsay said he doesn’t between 19 and 21 is in a bar ID offenses. taxes on the buildings,” she
The offending students’ par- think the 21-ordinance would after 10 p.m., but if the ordi- A fake-ID charge amounts to said. “I think that will all snow-
ents were informed, she said, have a significant effect on the nance passes, Kelsay said fines $182 for misuse of a state- ball. [The ordinance] will not go
and they have been cooperated without financial effects.”
number of PAULAs issued by could mirror the cost of the cur- issued ID or driver’s license in
with officials. his department. rent fine for an 18-year-old in a an alcohol-related incident, E-mail DI reporter Brian Stewart at:
Johnson said the incident is “I can’t look ahead to say it’s bar after that time — $380. Kelsay said. And use of a brian-stewart@uiowa.edu
atypical for Iowa City, and offi-
cers don’t deal with it often.
Police reported there were no
injuries as a result of the inci-
dent, and there are no imminent
threats.
First-offense trafficking in
stolen weapons is considered a
Class D felony. First-degree
harassment is an aggravated
misdemeanor, and carrying
weapons and making weapons
available to minors are both
serious misdemeanors.
Wretman said she doesn’t
think the incident will start a
trend of similar offenses.
“This is a combination of fac-
tors that probably won’t come
together like this again,” she said.
E-mail DI reporter Kurtis Hiatt at:
kurtis-hiatt@uiowa.edu
 In the belly of the beast
For one Playwrights’ Workshop
student, the Abu Ghraib
experience was all too real. 1C
THE INDEPENDENT DAILY NEWSPAPER FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA COMMUNITY SINCE 1868

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2007 WWW.DAILYIOWAN.COM 50¢

Senate takes step toward stem-cell research

Watershed move could help BY MASON KERNS
THE DAILY IOWAN
UI researchers apply stem In a 26-24 vote following an hour of
contentious debate, the Iowa Senate
cell-related treatment to on Wednesday moved the state one
step closer to repealing its ban on
patients, but the opposition therapeutic cloning, the precursor to
embryonic stem-cell research touted
stem-cell researchers could apply their
findings to Iowa patients, paving the
way in the future for the possible treat- A TIGHT, PARTISAN FIGHT
ment of ailments ranging from Parkin- Will the state Legislature repeal Iowa’s therapeutic-cloning ban?
son’s and Alzheimer’s to burns and SENATE (30 Democrats, 20 Republicans): Voted 26-24 to repeal ban
spinal-cord injuries. The move would
evade a roadblock currently limiting
FOR: 26 Democrats
AGAINST: 20 Republicans, 4 Democrats:
the scope of a pending Center for
Regenerative Medicine on the UI cam- • Tom Hancock of Epworth

says therapeutic cloning will as a juggernaut against the most

debilitating diseases.
pus, one of the first major proposals
Culver hopes to actualize.
• Bill Heckroth of Waverly
• Brian Schoenjahn of Arlington
Should the House pass the measure • Joe Seng of Davenport
lead to “playing God” and Gov. Chet Culver sign it, embryonic SEE STEM CELL, BACKPAGE

N.M. ELEMENTARY-SCHOOL TEACHER SKIP GORSCH — Working for 33 years in a profession dominated by women

faculty
back
Hay
A current UI
administrator
is now in a
head-to-head race
for the presidency
at University of
New Mexico
BY MATT NELSON
THE DAILY IOWAN

In a review of presidential
candidates for the University of
New Mexico, faculty members
bestowed a unanimous vote of
confidence on UI Vice President
for Research Meredith Hay.
Hay, who had been one of five
candidates for the job, now
faces only Robert McGrath of
Ohio State University for the
chief spot at the university,
which is held by interim Presi-
dent David Harris. Rachel Mummey/The Daily Iowan
New Mexico faculty members Skip Gorsch, known as “Mr. G,” calls on eager first- and second-graders in his class to play Heads Up Seven Up at Shimek Elementary on Wednesday. Gorsch, who
responded positively to Hay’s
visit to their campus in Albu- is one of 61 male elementary school-teachers out of the 350 grade-school teachers in the Iowa City School District, says, “Kids really respond to a male teacher.”

AFTER 3 DECADES, STILL A RARE BIRD

querque last week.
“She came across very well in
the faculty
forum,” said
Beverly Burris,
a New Mexico BY KURT HIATT during a particularly dramatic part District, 201 are male, said Jim Peder- according to the National Education
sociology profes- Association’s most recent data.
THE DAILY IOWAN in the tale — sending most of the son, the district’s human-resources
sor present at Pederson said he believes pay is
the unanimous children into a fit of giggles. director. And as the pupils get younger,
A cluster of first- and second- It’s no secret why Gorsch, a long- the number of men teaching them dwin- the reason a scant number of men
vote on Tuesday. are teachers.
“People were graders are huddled in a semicircle time teacher at Shimek Elementary, dles — with 61 male elementary teach-
around “Mr. G,” raptly listening to “The teaching position is a second-
impressed with calls himself a “novelty.” Males are ers out of the 350 grade-school teachers
Hay ary income,” he said. “We live in a
her. She their teacher narrate a colorful ver- uncommon in the teaching profes- in the district, roughly 17 percent. society, even though it’s changing,
engaged well UI Research sion of “James and the Giant Peach.” sion — both in Iowa City and across But compared with the national where men still have the potential to
with faculty.” vice president With legs crossed and a green pen- the nation, officials say. average, that number is high. earn more money than women.”
The faculty cil tucked behind his ear, Skip Of the roughly 600 regular classroom Just 9 percent of elementary-school
members have sent their Gorsch startles a boy sitting nearby teachers in the Iowa City School teachers nationwide are men, SEE TEACHERS, PAGE 5A
endorsement to the New
Mexico state Board of Regents,
which aims to consider the fac-
ulty’s opinion and select a can-
A UI board OKs
Study to probe adult, teen pot use
didate by Feb. 23.
Louis Caldera was the previ-
ous president of the University
of New Mexico, but resigned in research examining
January 2006.
“I would say that I’m humbled
at the support of the faculty at
brain activity BY DANE SCHUMANN
THE DAILY IOWAN
participate in the investiga-
tion as test subjects.
other will solicit marijuana-
using adolescents between the
reaction time, in nonusers ver-
sus marijuana users. UI
the University of New Mexico,
and [it] is a fantastic university
in adolescent UI researchers will soon
One study — which will use
marijuana from the University
ages of 12 to 17, none of whom
will be allowed to smoke dur-
researchers will use a func-
tional MRI scan to monitor
with a great future,” Hay said
and adult launch two studies that will
examine the effects of mari-
of Mississippi under contract
from the National Institute on
ing the research.
Each study will probe cogni-
blood flow to their respective
brain regions.
juana on the brain — culling Drug Abuse — involves adults tive functions, such as short-
SEE HAY, BACKPAGE marijuana users adolescent cannabis users to from a range of ages, while the and long-term memory and SEE MARIJUANA, PAGE 5A

HOLM, SWEET HOLM THAT BUCKLING FEELING COUPLED INDEX

!!

9 -13 C Other Hawkeye tennis players may State lawmakers are considering A few local couples see a Arts 1C, 7A
get the media attention, but Greg lot of each other while on Classifieds 4B
Partly cloudy, a bill that would make Iowa’s
-2 -19 C
windy, another Holm’s teammates know how much of seat-belt law stricter. 4A the job, too. 7A
Crossword
Opinions
6C
6A
wind-chill day a leap he’s made this season. 1B Sports 1B
 The Daily Iowan - Iowa City, Iowa - Thursday, February 15, 2007 - 5A

NEWS

Teacher of 33 years enjoys being ‘novelty’

TEACHERS
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1A
Gorsch — who will retire this
spring after his 33rd year of
teaching — agreed. He said he
probably would not have
remained in the profession if he
had started his family earlier. But
there are “more rewards than
money,” the bald 55-year-old said.
Local school officials are
working to balance the gender
gap. A district initiative is
shooting for 20 percent of ele-
mentary-school teachers to be
male, Pederson said.
As part of the district’s equity
plan, if a male and female with
the same credentials inter-
viewed for the same elementary
teacher position, the male
would be hired, he said.
“The male teacher could pos-
sibly reach those young people
who don’t have a male in their
home,” Pederson said.
No matter their sex, teachers
need passion. Gorsch went into
teaching partly because of his “ter-
rible” years in elementary school,
he said as he sat in his Shimek
classroom, which is stuffed with
colorful pictures and popsicle-stick
creations. Resting in the back of
the room was a massive tractor
wheel lined with blankets — a
reading cove for the youngsters.
“You really have to love what
you’re doing. That’s the bottom
line,” the teacher said, noting that
the days are often exhausting,
and summer break is hardly a
vacation.
After starting his career as a
fifth-grade teacher, Gorsch slow-
ly made his way down to the 6-
and 7-year-olds. He added that
he’s had five different teaching
jobs over his career, and noted it
was probably easier to get hired
because he was male.
“Kids really respond to a male
teacher,” said Gorsch, wearing a
black button-up shirt embla-
zoned with fishing images and
two gold earrings in his left ear.
Benjamin Tweedt, a UI histo-
ry-education major, said more
women are elementary teachers
because they are “generally
great nurturers.”
But the 22-year-old male still
hopes to teach fifth- to eighth-
graders after graduation.
“Students need to see teach-
ers of both sexes so that they
can appreciate the full spectrum
of how gender roles are fulfilled
in today’s society,” he said.
Whether the teacher is a man
or woman, the kids in Gorsch’s
class aren’t discriminatory.
“[There’s] no difference,” sec-
ond-grader Garrett Highly
piped in when asked if he pre-
ferred a female to male teacher.
With Mr. G’s guidance, he and
his classmates will still learn
their three R’s and hide their
faces while playing “Heads Up,
Seven Up.”
E-mail DI reporter Kurt Hiatt at:
kurtis-hiatt@uiowa.edu

MARIJUANA STUDY

File photo/The Daily Iowan

A marijuana cigarette lies in an ashtray next to a lighter and a roach clip inside the “smoking” chamber
at the UIHC on Sept. 8, 2005. Robert Block, an associate professor of anesthesia, will conduct studies
on the effects of marijuana on the brain.

UI to study pot, brain

MARIJUANA
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1A
“Blood flow is pretty well-cor-
related [to specific brain func-
tions],” said Robert Block, a UI
associate professor of anesthe-
sia and the study’s principal
investigator.
The user group of adults will
stay at the hospital, sleeping off
the effects of a marijuana joint
and completing a series of tests
— repeating the whole process
the next day, he said. The con-
trol group of nonusers will take
the tests around the same time
but won’t smoke any marijuana.
The second study will involve
a control group of adolescent
nonusers, and a second group of
teens who smoke regularly.
But recruiting subjects for the
adolescent study has been diffi-
cult, Block said. In order to partic-
ipate, a teen and a legal guardian
must give their consent.
“The problem with recruiting
adolescent subjects who use
marijuana is getting them to
come forward,” Block said.
To counter that, the
researchers are looking to
recruit adolescents from drug-
counseling centers in Cedar
Rapids, Iowa City, and Burling-
ton, because the parents of
those teens would already know
about their children’s drug use.
One of Block’s previous stud-
ies, published in 2000, exam-
ined the effects of marijuana
use on the brain in adults and
“support[ed] an association”
between its use and decreased
brain function. Block said this
new study should answer ques-
tions about how marijuana
affects a younger population.
“We’re looking to see if use
during development affects
brain development itself,” said
Jordan Zuccarelli, a UI research
assistant working on the proj-
ect. “They’ll go through a two-
hour screening interview to
make sure they’re strictly mari-
juana users [and to look at med-
ical history].”
The teen users will be asked
to avoid marijuana for at least
seven days and to take a urine
drug test before they are
allowed to participate. The
researchers hope to recruit 12
users and 12 nonsmokers to fill
the adolescent group.
While she couldn’t specifi-
cally comment on Block’s
research, Martha Jones, the
director of the UI Human Sub-
jects Office, said her office and
the Institutional Review
Board, which she also heads,
have already given the study
the green light.
The UI review board is typi-
cally composed of at least
eight core members, including
several physicians and scien-
tific experts. The panel also
includes a non-UI affiliated
individual.
Jones said the board reviews
roughly 2,500 active studies
per year at the university.
E-mail DI reporter Dane Schumann at:
dane-schumann@uiowa.edu