INDEPENDENT SINCE 1880
The Corne¬ Daily Sun Vol. 129, No. 2
TUESDAY, AUGUST 21, 2012
!
ITHACA, NEW YORK
32 Pages – Free
SAE Pledges Acquitted Of Criminal Charges By KERRY CLOSE Sun News Editor
and REBECCA HARRIS
Sun News Editor
A previous version of this article first appeared on cornellsun.com on June 27. Three former Sigma Alpha Epsilon pledges were acquitted of criminal charges in connection with the death of George Desdunes ’13, who died after a hazing ritual in February 2011, a Tompkins County judge ruled on June 26. Max Haskin ’14, Ben Mann ’14 and Edward Williams ’14 were charged with first-degree hazing and first-degree unlawfully dealing with a child. They had been awaiting See Page 5 for news stories the verdict since describing two of the days the four-day trial of the SAE pledges’ trial concluded on May 24. During the trial, Judge Judith Rossiter J.D. ’86 heard evidence from both the district attorney and the SAE pledges’ defense team on the events of the morning of Desdunes’ death on Feb. 25, 2011. She ruled on June 26 that the pledges were not guilty, according to Ray Schlather J.D. ’76, a defense attorney in the case. "The court determined, without reservation or equivocation, that these young men are innocent. They did not haze George Desdunes or cause his death," Schlather said. In May 2011, Haskin, Mann and Williams were indicted by a grand jury on misdemeanor charges of first-degree hazing and first-degree See SAE VERDICT page 4
DANIELLE SOCHACZEVSKI / SUN NEWS WRITER
Stone Arch Bridge | Construction workers on site Monday at the Stone Arch Bridge, which overlooks the Cascadilla gorge, begin installing a net aimed at deterring student suicides.
Construction Begins on First Bridge Net By DANIELLE SOCHACZEVSKI Sun Staff Writer
After two years of contentious debate over how to best deter suicide and prevent accidents in Ithaca’s renowned gorges, construction began Monday on the first of seven nets set to be installed
under and around campus and city bridges. University architects began Monday by working on a net under the Stone Arch Bridge on College Avenue, which crosses the Cascadilla gorge to connect Collegetown to campus. Once the net is
C-Town: ‘A Really Disgusting and Uninviting Scene’ By JEFF STEIN Sun Managing Editor
LIZ CAMUTI / SUN CITY EDITOR
Party fall | A student wades through the pile of rubble that was the front porch of a Collegetown house before it collapsed during a party at the house Sunday night.
Party Interrupted by Porch Collapse By LIZ CAMUTI Sun City Editor
When the tenants of 208 Williams Street moved into their newly renovated house this week, they never expected that despite the layers of new plaster and coats of fresh paint, their Collegetown residence was about to crumble beneath them.
But on Sunday night, during a party at the house, the porch, which had been left untouched during the summer renovations, collapsed in on itself, leaving party-goers in a pit of rubble. Most walked away unscathed or with minor injuries, but flying beer cans and screeching students — many of whom escaped through win-
dows, which became the only means of exit from the house — led to a scene of chaos in Collegetown. While the tenants did not wish to publicaly express their concerns, the house was inspected two weeks ago after the renovations were completed and was approved See PORCH page 6
Broken beer bottles line the streets like confetti. Garbage becomes indistinguishable from the sidewalk surrounding it. And a porch collapses on itself in the middle of a party. Welcome home. Thousands of students returned to Collegetown this weekend, transforming the idyllic serenity of an Ithaca summer into a hotbed of drunken mayhem. And while this picture may offer a comforting familiarity for students returning to old stomping grounds and cherished friends, for others — namely, the hundreds of Ithacans who call Collegetown their home year-round — the scarcely tamed
debauchery represents something different entirely. Take, for instance, Common Council member Graham Kerslick (D-4th Ward), a 58 year old who lives at Orchard Place, in the heart of Collegetown. Kerslick wrote to Cornell officials on Monday to lament the “appalling state” of his neighborhood. “Many streets, including College Ave., Cook St. and Catherine St., were covered with plastic cups, beer cans, broken glass and other garbage,” Kerslick said. “In many years of residence in the area, I don’t recall such widespread and blatant disregard for the community.” See C-TOWN page 6
See BRIDGE NETS page 4
News Witness Account
Gregory Wyler ’12 testifies to the events of the pledging ritual that preceeded the death of George Desdunes ’13. | Page 5
News Day in Court
A judge denies the defense team’s motion to dismiss the criminal case against three former SAE pledges. | Page 5
Opinion New Orleans, I Love You
Deborah Liu ’13 explains why her first trip to New Orleans this summer instilled in her a love for the southern city. | Page 11
Arts It’s Electric
Sarah Angell ’13 reflects on her experience at the 2012 Electric Forest music festival in Michigan in June. | Page 22
Sports Big Leagues
Former Cornell baseball star Brian Billigen ’12 gets picked up as a free agent by the Arizona Diamondbacks. | Page 32
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