UVSC College Times, 1999-08-04

              WEDNESDAY August 4, 1999 Volume 27, Issue 42 INSIDE Sports First-class Delivery r I7i Tvrvr Tt ?rM rr Inside the Quad Welcome to UV Rage via the Presidents Outside the Quad "The Haunting" provides little Sports "Jacque'mg for position Opinion The Obsession with the Kennedy legacy Marketplace Jib of ads for a really good 4 5 6 i JA L , 4 VA : J $ ;t J The Mailman signs a deal mat nearly doubles his previous salary with the Jazz. See Sports p. 6 IS , 7 u 0 Temperatures reached record highs and the death toll skyrocketed (mainly in the elderly population) as a sweltering heat wave engulfed much of the nation. Many cities are finally seeing relief as cooler temperatures slowly seep in. BENN1E M . CURRIE Associated Press Writer CHICAGO (AP) The heat wave death toll kept rising today even as cooler temperatures brought an ciid to iiie ficcil wave across die-Midwest, and most of the East. The Oklahoma Medical Examiner's Office reported today that the state's heat-related death toll had reached eight with the deaths of four people in their 70s and 80s. That number, plus two more reported today in South Carolina and 30 names added to Chicago's list on Sunday, brought the nationwide total since July 19 to at least 197. Chicago authorities said they were sure the number of deaths there would go even higher. A cold front that pushed across the region during the weekend brought much-needed relief, dropping high temperatures by 10 degrees to 20 degrees from last week's levels. Chicago's high on Sunday was just 84. compared to Friday's high of 104. By late morning today, temperatures were in the 70s across most of the Ohio Valley into the Northeast. In Wisconsin, the mercury had slipped to an almost crisp 59 degrees when Bill Hansche left for work. 'Today, it's just perfect." Hansche said Sunday as he headed for the Maple Grove County Club in West Salem, Wis. "I wish you could box these up and bring one out every day you need one." In Louisville, Ky., the afternoon temperature was down to 78 from a high of 104 on Friday and 99 on Saturday. In Missouri, where 44 peo- Ras h of PAT R I C Associated A J. MAYS Press Writer ATLANTA (AP) Two decades after the first bodies were found in what became known as the Atlanta child murders, violence has once again thrust this city into the national eye. This time, during a month of bloodshed, few parts of Atlanta have been spared: Shootings have struck in the-suburbs. the inner-city and even in the wealthy Buckhead district. The victims have been white, black, Asian, f '4 W toy The coffin of Mychelle Barton, a victim of the latest Atlanta shooting, is carried from the White Columns Chapel in Lithia Springs, Ga., Monday following services for Mychelle and her brother Matthew. Mychelle and her brother Matthew were allegedly killed by their father Mark O. Barton before he went on a shooting spree last Thursday in the Buckhead section of Atlanta. . Christian, Jewish, Muslim, middle-class, rich. poor, young, old; they have ranged from helpless children to SWAT team officers. "It's just mind-boggling," said Georgia Hall, who lives across the street from the house where a July 12 murder-suicide left seven dead. "It's almost unbelievable that these tragedies are just happening all together. You get to the point where you wonder what's next?" That slaying was the worst Atlanta mass killing of the century. It held the mark for just 1 7 days, when it was surpassed by Mark O. Barton's shooting spree Thursday in the city's Buckhead commercial district. In July alone, 23 people including three gunmen have died in mass killings in Atlanta. The toll is apparent on Mayor Bill Campbell, who appeared solemn as he recounted the most recent tragedy to reporters and asked the nation to pray for his city. "These are unspeakable tragedies. From Colorado to Atlanta, these things occur. We don't know why." Campbell said. "In the span of 10 days, two deranged individuals have killed 17, perhaps more. I don't know if there's any f explanation for it." Campbell has been one of the most vocal proponents of gun con- r v J s r I 1 pie died, temperatures returned to seasonable levels. "This feels wonderful." sai Scott Kissel as he took a Sunday morning walk along Brush Creek near Kansas City's Country Club Plaza shopping district. "It's been nutty. A hundred and six! That's a little much. This is a lot better." Deaths were reported in 20 states and many shared a tragic thread: People most at risk from Slayings tun Atlanta cers was buried, gunfire transformed the tinted office buildings and neatly manicured lawns of Buckhead into a field of chaos and violence. In addition to the nine dead in two day-trading offices, 13 were injured before Barton, a chemist turned stock trader, fled to an Atlanta suburb and shot himself five hours later as police closed in. "It's been a tragic year for the metro Atlanta area." said Tim Brazie, 27, a paramedic who responded to the Buckhead killings and the Cobb County police shootings. "I've never experienced a year like this before, not this many tragedies in this short amount of time." The spate of irol, filing one of the first lawsuits by cities against the gun industry. But much of the state is pro-gun rights and the Georgia Legislature passed a law blocking cities from filing such suits. Campbell has said he will challenge the state law in court. Some think he may have more support because of the recent rash of shootings. Among the crimes he can point to: On May 20, 15-year-old T.J. Solomon opened fire on classmates, injuring six at Heritage High School in Conyers, just east of Atlanta. None of the injuries were fatal. Solomon faces a hearing this month to determine if he will be tried as an adult. On July 12 in southwest Atlanta. Cyrano Marks fatally shot his live-in girlfriend, her sister and four children aged 9 to 1G before killing himself. Family members said Marks was upset over his girlfriend's intent to break up with him. The only survivor in the house was an 1 1- ' year-old Santonio Lucas, who hid in a closet for eight hours after being shot in the elbow. On July 23. a police sniper shot and killed gunman Greg Smith while he was trying to escape from police by climbing out a bathroom window in an Austell home. Officers said they feared Smith, who had wounded one. officer and killed two, was a threat to them and his elderly mother still in the house. The worst was yet to come. Six days later, the same day one of the offi- killings conies exactly two decades after a string of violence that began in 1979 and left 29 young blacks dead. The killings ended ers. City officials are quick to point out that in the current crime spree. pry (33 V o 1 Aiw N 'r See ATLANTA pg 3 A layout of AHanta's mosrecent fatal shooting, 4 killed, 9 injured. WEEKEND WEATHER 92 61 HIGH LOW 92 62 HIGH LOW Thursday Friday 91 60 HIGH LOW Saturday Isolated Thunderstorms, Outlook not good. It's looking pretty bad Unfortunately, it'll be muggy again. yet again, and don't get your hopes up for Sunday either. THIS WEEK INSIDE "Mystery Men" pulls out .ill the stops in its hilarious spool on the superhero medium. See I'agc T QUOTE OF THE WEEK "I lc had amazing o'aco." Sen. Fdward M. Kennedy on the life of his famous nephew John F. Kennedy jr.. in an emotional eulogy given at the Church of St. Thomas More. i 7