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The Chronicle T H E I N D E P E N D E N T D A I LY AT D U K E U N I V E R S I T Y
WWW.DUKECHRONICLE.COM
XXXXXDAY, MMMM WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY XX, 2013 26, 2014
Judiciary, DSG locked in power struggle
ONE ONE HUNDRED HUNDRED AND AND EIGHTH NINTHYEAR, YEAR,ISSUE ISSUEXXX 91
West Union crumbles
by Patton Callaway
by Elizabeth Djinis The ChroniCle
The ChroniCle
The Judiciary is considered a branch of Duke Student Government—but this branch seems to be snapping off the tree during recent conflicts over the Judiciary’s expanded role. The DSG Judiciary is responsible for resolving disputes that arise under the DSG constitution and bylaws, but the addition of a bill of rights to the DSG constitution last year increased the scope of their responsibility. The bill of rights, spearheaded by senior Patrick oathout, senator for services, was added to the DSG constitution after students voted in favor of the bill on the undergraduate Young Trustee ballot last February. The bill protects students’ freedoms, including their freedom of expression, ideology, privacy and the right to vote—and the Judiciary ensures that DSG upholds these established freedoms in its legislation. “Before the bill of rights, the Judiciary was a regulatory organization to settle disputes amongst clubs or amongst clubs and members,” said sophomore Max Schreiber, who is currently standing in as chief justice following senior Daniel Strunk’s resignment. “Post bill of rights, that same role still exists, but we have the additional responsibility to protect students’ rights listed clearly in the bill of rights. our scope has been significantly widened.” This newfound judicial power has caused conflict between DSG and the Judiciary in two major cases during the past year: Dinner and Wang v. Board of See JUDiCiarY, page 3
Unknown male enters room in Few
SOPHIA DURAND/THE CHRONICLE
Skanska, the team in charge of the renovation of West Union, began the demolition phase of the building’s core Tuesday morning.
An unlocked room on the second floor of the Few building was entered by an unknown male Tuesday morning. Sophomore Catherine White and sophomore Kimberly* woke up at around 5:40 AM to find the man standing over their beds. White’s roommate questioned the stranger as to why he was there and he offered various excuses, first claiming to be in the wrong room then telling Farmer that he had a cab for her outside, using her name that he had seen written on the door. Both girls told the man to leave the room and he left. “i was dumbfounded because i didn’t really know what was going on and i’m still pretty asleep and i looked over to my right and my roommate was awake and she was asking him questions like ‘Why are you here?’” White said. initially, Kimberly believed the man’s statement and assumed he was a student simply in the wrong room. it took her a second glance to realize he was too old to be an undergraduate and his presence in her room was not an accident. “After i got a good look at him and [saw] ‘oh, this isn’t a student,’ i was very much caught off guard,” Kimberly said. “i didn’t really realize what to do. he wasn’t leaving our room.” Following the incident, White and Kimberly contacted the Duke University Police Department, alerting them of what had happened. Two officers came to their door soon after, asking them about the man and reminding them to lock their doors. “They kind of ended it trying to teach us a lesson—you just have to lock your door,” See FEW, page 4
Rence Nemeh draws upon cross-campus experiences in DSG platform by Hayley Trainer The ChroniCle
aBBY FarLeY/The ChRONICLe
Nemeh said he would like to see the relationship between DSG and the student body change.
Junior rence nemeh plans to use his experience in “cross-campus student collaboration” to serve the Duke community as the next Duke Student Government president. nemeh, a candidate in the 2014 DSG presidential campaign, said that he is uniquely qualified for the position because of his experience in many student life sectors, including Duke University improv, Duke University Union, Sabrosura, DefMo and DukeAfrica. he noted that these collaborations have given him a thorough understanding of the University.
“We need to break down what types of experience matter,” nemeh said. “i collaborate with almost every inch of our campus and am the only candidate with these first-hand Duke perspectives.” nemeh emphasized the importance of his relationships with Duke administrators, especially Dean of Students Sue Wasiolek. “i have both co-hosted theater departmental shows with Dean Sue and yelled at her in Sabro promo videos, but at the end of the day we are just two pickles in a jar,” nemeh said. “A jar large enough to fit only two pickles, so we’re pretty close.” in the future, nemeh said he would like
to see the relationship between DSG and the student body change, allowing for more open discussion and accessibility. he said the DSG president should take responsibility for students’ rights and represent their interests. “i would like to see DSG...as a resource for students and not an ambiguous entity of suits in a room,” nemeh said. “i would enthusiastically open executive office hours, give out my personal number and be on call 24/7 and continue to attend and collaborate with as many student organizations, events and causes year-round.” See nEMEH, page 4