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The Daily Northwestern Friday, January 25, 2013
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Tisdahl supports bill banning assault weapons
Harsha Maddula
Family withholds toxicology report EPD says death was probably accidental, influenced by alcohol by CAT ZAKRZEWSKI
daily senior staffer
Although Harsha Maddula’s toxicology report is now complete, police still cannot conclude exactly how the McCormick sophomore died. A spokesperson from the Cook County medical examiner’s office said Tuesday the medical examiner’s written report is pending due to additional ordered tests. The results of the toxicology test are only available to family members at this time. The cause of death — drowning — was announced the day after Maddula’s body was found. The manner of death remains undetermined. “There does not appear to be any foul play at this time,” Evanston Police Department spokesman Cmdr. Jay Parrott said. “Most likely the death was There accidental in nature with does not a contributappear to be ing factor of alcohol. We’re any foul play at waiting on this time. Most that report to find out if likely, the death there were any was accidental other contribin nature. uting factors.” In Novem- Cmdr. Jay Parrott, ber, Parrott Evanston Police said additional spokesman thorough examinations are routine when dealing with a death of a young person and when there are no signs of foul play. Maddula was last seen early Sept. 22 at an off-campus party where witnesses reported he was drinking. His body was found days later in the Wilmette Harbor after a campus-wide search effort. Family spokesperson Padma Sonti declined to release any information regarding the toxicology report. She said the family has hired an attorney. “I think it’s just common sense,” Sonti said Thursday. “They just need someone to make sure all the T’s are crossed and I’s are dotted.” Sonti said because the family lives in a different state, hiring an attorney closer to campus made sense. The Maddulas have hired Timothy Tomasik of the Clifford Law Offices of Chicago. Tomasik is no stranger to cases touching the NU community. He represented the Sunshine family after the alcoholrelated death of their son, freshman Matthew Sunshine, in 2008. In the multimillion dollar settlement in 2010, NU took no liability in Sunshine’s death but implemented provisions to rein in drinking on and around campus, such as the Red Watch Band training program.
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czak15@u.northwestern.edu
Meghan White/The Daily Northwestern
FAIREST OF THEM ALL Communication senior Lillie Cummings (center) and Communication junior Nick Day (right) play Eliza Doolittle and Henry Higgins in the 71st annual Dolphin Show’s production of “My Fair Lady.” The show opens in Cahn Auditorium at 8 p.m. Friday and runs through Feb. 2.
Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl expressed support Thursday for a U.S. senator’s legislation to ban assault weapons. The Assault Weapons Ban of 2013, introduced Thursday by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), would ban more than 150 military-style assault weapons, according to the senator’s website. “We have too many guns in our communities, and we must work together to get them off the streets,” Tisdahl said in a news release. The bill, which was cosponsored by 16 other Democrats, would also ban ammunition magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds. Should it pass, assault weapons legally possessed before the ban’s start date would be exempt from the ban. After last month’s Newtown, Conn., shooting, Tisdahl joined a coalition of “Mayors Against Illegal Guns” to call for background checks and other measures that would make possessing guns difficult for dangerous people. “As a mayor, I am bestowed with the duty to keep my community safe, and these common sense solutions will help go a long way in fulfilling that solemn responsibility,” she said. — Manuel Rapada
City examines institutional racism Third Evanston dialogue encourages discussion of race By EDWARD COX
the daily northwestern
Evanston residents discussed racism in education, law enforcement and other institutions Thursday at the last of three dialogues on race hosted by the city. The city hosted the series of discussions, called “My Evanston, My Neighbors: Constructive Dialogues on Race, Understanding and our Hopes for Evanston,” after a concerned citizen approached Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl about the issue of race, said Godwin Chen, the dialogue organizer. “As you know, we just didn’t come here to observe the world,”
said Lionel Jean-Baptiste, a Cook County judge and former Evanston 2nd Ward alderman. “We are trying to change it. We are trying to invest ourselves in the process, whether it’s organized effort or on your own with others, to make sure we are addressing racism.” About 70 Evanston residents broke off into discussion groups to share stories about their experiences with racism in various institutions. Topics shared ranged from concerns about racial profiling by police, a lack of diversity on local school boards, as well as Northwestern’s role in addressing the issue of race. Weinberg junior Danya Sherbini, who attended the dialogue, said NU students should increase their awareness of city concerns. “As an NU student you will not always see the other side … we are kind of in our own NU bubble, and I thought it would be cool to see
what is going on in this city,” Sherbini said. Participants raised concerns over the lack of diversity among school board members i n Ev an We are trying to ston-Skokie District invest ourselves 65. S ome in the process ... argued the of to make sure we makeup the school are addressing board is not representaracism. tive of stuLionel Jeandent demoBaptiste, graphics. Cook County judge Ald. Delores Holmes (5th) said she needs to balance her role as a city official with her desire to support diversity on the boards. Evanston resident Maria Flynn said she is concerned about how schools admit students into the
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D65’s Two-Way Immersion program, which provides instruction in two languages. Some Latino parents have contested the program, arguing their children would be better served in English-only classrooms. “My concern is that Hispanic students are not being respected,” said Flynn, who said she supports admitting such students into the TWI program. “I hope that people of privilege will use their privilege, I hope that people with money will use that money to make a better community.” Toward the end of the meeting, organizers encouraged residents to discuss solutions to alleviate the city’s racial tensions. Residents appeared hesitant to address issues that Jean-Baptiste called embedded in American institutions. Holmes proposed residents join neighborhood watch groups to learn » See DIALOGUE, page 7
Chinese students learn, live in Evanston Beijing elementary schoolers spend two weeks in local school By JIA YOU
the daily northwestern
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, sixthgrader Zhang Yichi packed toiletries for homeless people in Highland Park with his fellow classmates. Unlike most of his other classmates, however, Zhang just arrived in Evanston on Saturday. Zhang is one of 10 primary school students from Beijing, China, visiting
Serving the University and Evanston since 1881
the Dr. Bessie Rhodes Magnet School of Global Studies in Evanston. The Chinese students and three of their teachers are spending two weeks learning with their American classmates and living in their homes. “I signed up for the trip because I want to learn more about American culture and practice speaking English,” Zhang said. After introducing a global studies focus two years ago, Rhodes is using the program as its latest effort to develop a globally-oriented curriculum, said Wendy Woodward King, a parent member of the Rhodes Advisory Committee. The school already started offering » See KIDS, page 7
Photo courtesy of Wendy Woodward
WELCOME WAGON Students from Dr. Bessie Rhodes Magnet School of Global Studies welcome their Beijing friends at the airport.
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