UP IN FLAMES: Firefighters respond to a fire in the Humanities Building, the first of four on campus this semester. According to campus police, these fires are the work of arson. Photo by Sam Battles
GOLDEN GATE XPRESS //
HAUNTED HALLS SPOOK STUDENTS BY CHARLOTTE BOUDESTEIJN | cboudest@mail.sfsu.edu
STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER PROUDLY SERVING THE SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY SINCE 1927.
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OT MANY THINK OF SF State as the perfect setting for a horror movie or a true ghost story. Eric Michael Jones and Catherine Anne Copeland were found dead in Copeland’s room on the third floor of Mary Ward Hall in 1994. Jones and Copeland had dated briefly, but had broken up. According to an LA Times article, Jones shot Copeland and then turned the gun on himself. Eighteen years later, their ghosts are said to haunt the third floor. “The first week people were telling me it’s haunted, but I haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary. I feel normal in there,” said Alejandro Adame, 18, who lives in the infamous dorm room. The rumors of the supernatural seem unreasonable to Adame, who is double majoring in international relations
New Gator faces final rebound BY GERARDO RECINOS | grecinos@mail.sfsu.edu
A HITTING THREES: Decensae White takes a shot against Cal State Monterey Bay Dec. 1. White has scored 79 points in the season so far. Photo by John Ornelas
GAINST ALL ODDS, Decensae White was determined to pave his own way. After three years of Division I basketball, he found his place as a Gator. White, 24, has gone down the road less traveled on his way to SF State. A former blue chip college recruit, the Pacifica native was raised to be a basketball player. White started attending basketball camps as early as second grade, including his first camp, hosted by SF State alumnus Paul Clay, a former collegiate All-American. From there, White moved on to playing Amateur Athletic Union basketball with the most talented young competition in the nation. In eighth grade, White had his mind set to attend and play basketball for Archbishop Riordan High School. However, after watching a game between the the school’s Crusaders and the Junipero Serra High School Padres, he had a change of heart. “I met with coach Chuck Rapp (who still coaches SEE REKINDLING ON PAGE 10
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and French. The murder-suicide that occurred in his room doesn’t bother him, but sometimes his guests become unnerved after hearing the tale. “People are like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m so scared being in here. What if something happens?’” Adame said. English major Steven Tindle lives across the hall from Adame. “I know a boyfriend shot his girlfriend there and killed himself after,” Tindle said, referring to the 1994 incident. “It sounded like there were people in our room once around 3 or 4 a.m., but when I opened the door there was nothing. I also heard knocking on the inside once or twice.” San Francisco is the ninth most haunted city of America, according to the Huffington Post, and SF State has its fair share of stories. SEE STUDENTS ON PAGE 3
SF’s District 7 victor named BY ELLIE LOARCA | emloarca@mail.sfsu.edu
Counting ballots took longer than usual in the race for District 7 supervisor, but Norman Yee, president of the San Francisco Board of Education, snagged the open seat left by Supervisor Sean Elsbernd. Yee is a product of the public school system and earned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from UC Berkeley, then his master’s degree in education from SF State. “Having chosen District 7 as the place to raise my family 25 years ago, I am pleased that San Francisco State is located in my community. It’s great to see the energy and vitality that San Francisco State students bring to the nearby merchant corridors,” Yee said. While the race was close between FX Crowley and Yee, it took officials more than a week to SEE WINNER ON PAGE 11