Daily Egyptian

Page 1

DE Since 1916

Daily Egyptian THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 VOLUME 98 ISSUE 109

St. Louis to forgive warrants for nonviolent offenses Nicholas J.C. Pistor St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Offenders of the city’s municipal laws with outstanding warrants soon will get a free pass. St. Louis officials plan to announce that the city’s municipal court will automatically clear outstanding warrants for nonviolent traffic violations and allow offenders to reset the court dates without a fee so long as they act by year’s end, making it the most progressive warrant forgiveness program in the region. About 220,000 outstanding warrants

Historic judge inspires students

issued before Oct. 1 in the city will automatically be forgiven, according to Jeff Rainford, the chief of staff to Mayor Francis Slay. Rainford said the novel approach comes from conversations in the wake of the unrest in Ferguson, where many advocates of the poor complain that some residents are burdened by steep court fines and saddled with warrants for minor offenses. “In light of Ferguson, we were thinking of how we can be more fair,” Rainford said. Bench warrants are typically issued when

someone misses a court appearance, meaning the offender can be arrested and forced to pay several hundred dollars for bail in addition to their underlying ticket. Now, those with an outstanding warrant issued prior to Oct. 1 stemming from nonviolent municipal offenses in St. Louis, usually for failure to appear in court, will receive a postcard in the mail informing them that the warrant will be cleared until Dec. 31. If offenders don’t come to the municipal court by the end of the year and schedule a new court date, then the warrant will be put back into place.

Giving a clean smile

Sean Phee

Daily Egyptian

History was made this year when President Obama nominated Staci M. Yandle to serve as a federal judge for Illinois’ Southern District. Yandle came to the Lesar Law Building Monday for an event coordinated by SIU’s Paul Simon Public Policy Institute. She shared her perspective on growing up in southern Illinois, and becoming an accomplished attorney. Born and raised in southern Illinois, Yandle is the first African-American judge to serve this position. She is also one of few openly gay judges on the federal court, and the first in the Seventh District. The presentation caused one man in the crowd to ask who had inspired her to accomplish what she has. “It takes a village; it takes more of a village depending on the individual. It took all the village leaders for me,” Yandle said. “My parents were both teachers in the East St. Louis School District. I couldn’t do anything and get away with it.” She credits the community atmosphere in southern Illinois as an aid to her accomplishment, she said. When asked about how young people can make a difference and promote positive change, Yandle said it takes action. “You have to care,” she said. “You have to get together with like-minded individuals and do more than talk the talk. Figure out what it is that you can actually affect and come together. Excuse my language; you just have to give a damn. That’s where it starts, with young people like you.” She also spoke about her new role as federal judge, especially in regards to a decision by the U.S. Sentencing Commission that will have a huge effect on the nation. The decision can retroactively reduce the sentences for more than 46,000 nonviolent drug offenders in federal prison. Next November, when the prisoners are eligible for release, there will be an unprecedented number of people leaving prison, Yandle said. The population of the United States has grown nearly 33 percent since 1980, while the federal prison population grew 800 percent mostly because of harsher sentences for drug crimes, according to Attorney General Eric Holder. Holder attributed the increase in prisoners to mandatory sentencing guidelines. The decision will also give judges more leeway in deciding future drug cases, Yandle said. Jeffrey Nowacki, assistant professor of criminology, said he supports the decision to give judges more discretion. “Judicial discretion is good for society,” Nowacki said. “I think more discretion, within reason, is a good thing to have.” Yandle said the public needs to be aware of the coming release. “Release is the beginning of the story, we need to get people the resources and services necessary to reenter society. It is already a concern,” Yandle said. Please see JUDGE · 3

I an M ullen D aIly e gyptIan Ashton Ursini, a senior from Paducah, Ky. studying dental hygiene, has her teeth cleaned by Jody Beeler, a junior from Paducah, Ky. studying dental hygiene, Wednesday at the SIU Dental Hygiene Clinic. Beeler has been interested in dental hygiene from a young age. “My mom was in the [oral surgeon] business for 39 years,” Beeler said. Friday is World Smile Day, which was created by commercial artist Harvey Ball after his publishing of the yellow Smiley face. The day is made to celebrate acts of kindness, friendliness, smiling and making others smile.

Series of events to benefit library

Gabriella Scibetta Daily Egyptian

Morris Library will be the focus of a fundraiser-filled month for new additions for the building. The Friends of Morris Library will hold many fundraisers throughout October, including a gala, a brunch, a one-man play and multiple tours. Some events revolve around the late R. Buckminster Fuller, a former SIU professor and inventor. Rob Jensen, president of the Friends of Morris Library board, said the group’s function is to provide funding for renovations that cannot be done with of the library’s regular operating budget. Jensen said the group has sponsored events such as constitution day, workshops, sponsored lectures and more during the last year. He said the group has purchased equipment needed in the library such as a new microform reader, digital camera and support equipment for the printers. Carl Rexroad, a member of the

Friends of Morris Library Gala planning committee, said library funding is critical to the university. “The library is the heart of the university and for it to succeed really helps everybody,” Rexroad said. “The library has changed so much over the last few years, it’s continually reinventing itself, and anything that we can do to help the library be successful ultimately makes the university better, too.” “We used to just buy books for the library and now a lot of it is involved in the new technology,” Rexroad said. He said the five power stations where students can charge their devices are the most recent additions. Jensen said the group is supporting the installation of flat screen monitors in two of the library’s study rooms. Jensen said the group wants to raise $10,000 at the gala held at 6 p.m. Oct. 18. There is a brunch on Oct. 19, which gives attendees an opportunity to see hundreds of objects created by Fuller, which have

never been publicly viewed. On both days there will also be tours of Fuller’s home. The home is a refurbished geodesic dome, in which Fuller lived during his time in Carbondale. Barb Martin, director of the SIU press, said the group put money toward more than the library’s basic needs. “They put that money toward the essential extras that help run the library beyond just academic mode,” she said. “Sometimes fulfilling needs [beyond the] academic mission of the library.” Jensen said, the group began fundraising for the patio located on the southeast corner of the building five years ago, which cost more than $100,000. Students, staff, faculty and community members can sign up for the gala on the Morris Library website. Gabriella Scibetta can be reached at gscibetta@dailyegyptian.com, on Twitter @gscibetta or at 536-3311.


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.