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FEDERAL COURT
PUBLIC EDUCATION
Man tied to Zetas guilty
ZCISD’s new leader Trustees hire former teacher as superintendent THE ZAPATA TIMES
By JASON BUCH & GUILLERMO CONTRERAS SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS
SAN ANTONIO — A man arrested two years ago hiding out from the notorious Zetas drug gang in a North Side gated community pleaded guilty to money laundering Monday in exchange for a 2 ½ year prison sentence. Antonio Peña Arguelles, 58, a Laredo businessman and rancher who was accused of acting as an intermediary between drug traffickers and Mexican politicians, admitted to laundering dirty money from Mexico in a San Antonio federal court. U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia sentenced him to a prison term well below what federal guidelines recommended, and most of which he’s already served. Peña pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to launder money, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. As prosecutor Charlie Strauss prepared to read from a five-page factual basis, part of a plea agreement filed under seal, that outlined Peña’s crimes, defense attorney Gerry Goldstein jumped in to say his client had read the document and agreed to it. “In brief, (the factual basis) shows Mr. Peña accepted money from controlled substances and made deposits on behalf of other persons, and laundered those proceeds,” Strauss said. Goldstein added that the plea agreement also states Peña laundered “proceeds of other illegal conduct.” Neither Goldstein nor Strauss would elaborate after the hearing. Goldstein would only say, “Mr. Peña and his counsel are very satisfied with the outcome.” A court document filed Monday, however, states that Peña laundered the proceeds of drug sales, bribery and theft. Peña, who owns large ranches in northern Mexico and invested in U.S. companies and real estate, is a wellknown figure in Laredo, where he moved in powerful circles and donated to local political campaigns. The case against him is part of a much larger investigation into alleged laundering of drug money and funds stolen from the border state of Tamaulipas, which borders Texas from Laredo to the Gulf of Mexico. Prosecutors in Brownsville have charged former Tamaulipas governor Tomás Yarrington Ruvalcaba with racketeering, drug trafficking, money laundering and financial crimes. In a lengthy indictment filed last year, they accused him of organizing state police to collect bribes from drug traffickers, negotiating a peace between two gangs in exchange for a percentage of their business and taking kickbacks
See PLEA PAGE 10A
A former UISD teacher has been hired as superintendent of Zapata County Independent School District. ZCISD trustees voted unanimously late Monday to hire Raul Leonidas Nuques as superintendent of the district, which enrolled about 3,600 students and had about 515 staffers last school year. He replaces Norma
Garcia, who left the district in December. Trustees gave Nuques, director of special education at NUQUES Austin ISD, a three-year employment contract. His first day is set for
April 23. Nuques will be paid an annual base salary of $128,000, according to ZCISD attorney Stephen Trautmann Jr. He’ll also receive each year $7,200 for business expenses and $2,112 for health insurance, Trautmann said. He added that Nuques will get a one-time stipend of $3,500 for moving expenses. On March 6, ZCISD trustees named Nuques as the lone final-
ist for the superintendent position. “My next step and final step is to plan to settle in Zapata,” he said in response to being named the finalist, adding that he used to fish there when he was a student at TAMIU. “Overall it’s a great district. People are very friendly … (and) the board members are open-mind-
See ZCISD PAGE 10A
IMMIGRATION
BORDER FENCE MASS
Photo by Matt York | AP
Cardinal Sean O’Malley leads Mass on Tuesday along the international border wall in Nogales, Ariz. A delegation of Roman Catholic leaders celebrated Mass along the U.S.-Mexico border to raise awareness about immigration and to pray for policy changes.
Catholic bishops aim to highlight immigrants’ plight By BRIAN SKOLOFF ASSOCIATED PRESS
NOGALES, Ariz. — Roman Catholic leaders made a rare visit to the border and celebrated Mass on Tuesday in the shadow of the fence sepa-
rating the U.S. and Mexico, offering Holy Communion through the steel barrier to people on the Mexican side as they sought to bring attention to the plight of immigrants. Cardinal Sean O’Malley, the leader of the Boston Archdio-
cese, led a delegation of bishops from around the country and Mexico in the trip to the border, less than a week after President Barack Obama discussed immigration reform in a meeting with Pope Francis. They toured the border
city of Nogales, walked along a notorious section of the border that was once a popular crossing point for drug and immigrant smugglers, and celebrated Mass just a few
See MASS PAGE 10A
COMMUNITY
Animal shelter cuts days after financial woes By ALDO AMATO THE ZAPATA TIMES
Board members from the Laredo Animal Protective Society unfortunately saw this day coming. The nonprofit animal shelter announced Tuesday that it will now close Sunday through Wednesday because of financial reasons. The contract with the City of Laredo to impound animals, as well as its funding from the city, ended in June 2012. “It is all due to funding,” said LAPS Board Vice President Susie Druker. “This is not shocking but we are in desperate need (of) monetary donations from the community. Our daily operations and expenses are getting higher and we really need the public’s help.” According to the nonprofit’s
“
This is not shocking but we are in desperate need (of) monetary donations from the community.” SUSIE DRUKER, LAPS BOARD VICE PRESIDENT
latest tax form filed in September, the organization’s revenue dropped drastically from one year to the next. In 2012, LAPS saw approximately $428,856 in total revenue, roughly $229,000 less than the year before. Druker said it costs around $2,000 to house an animal for a year, which includes vaccinations, boarding and spay/neuter. “The vaccination costs are astronomical,” she said. “If we
could find 200 people to donate monthly, that would help. I know times are tough but I think we could find at least 100 people. We’ve done fundraisers but we need as much help as we can get.” In April 2013, the organization received a $5,000 donation from the Whataburger Corporation after receiving the most votes during a promotion. LAPS Board President Cathy
Kazen said the shelter does not want to close its doors and said the latest move is to prevent LAPS from cutting staff. “We have five very dedicated employees that pour their heart and soul into the shelter every day,” Kazen said. “We do not plan on losing them. If we cut staff, that cuts down on the amount of animals we can treat.” Besides donating to the organ-
ization, Kazen said spreading awareness about the pet population is something the public could help with each and every day. “There is a huge problem when it comes to overpopulation here in Laredo,” she said. “We are doing everything we can to educate the city and county on overpopulation and stressing to residents to spay and neuter their pets. We no longer let animals go that are not spayed/neutered.” The City of Waco recently adopted a mandatory spay/neuter ordinance. “We’ve been on our own for two years and we’ve been for the most part fine,” Kazen said. “LAPS does more than just house pets. We’re here to educate the public. LAPS is not just the shelter. It’s bigger than that.”
PAGE 2A
Zin brief CALENDAR
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014
AROUND THE NATION
TODAY IN HISTORY
Thursday, April 3
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Meeting of Los Amigos Duplicate Bridge Club. 1:15 p.m. to 5 p.m. Laredo Country Club. Call Beverly Cantu at 727-0589.
Today is Wednesday, April 2, the 92nd day of 2014. There are 273 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On April 2, 1914, British actor Sir Alec Guinness, whose roles in a 66-year career ranged from Hamlet to Obi-Wan Kenobi in “Star Wars,” was born in London. On this date: In 1513, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon and his expedition landed in presentday Florida. (Some historians say the landing actually occurred the next day, on April 3.) In 1792, Congress passed the Coinage Act, which authorized establishment of the U.S. Mint. In 1863, during the Civil War, the Richmond Bread Riot erupted in the Confederate capital as a mob outraged over food shortages and rising prices attacked and looted stores. In 1917, President Woodrow Wilson asked Congress to declare war against Germany, saying, “The world must be made safe for democracy.” (Congress declared war four days later.) In 1932, aviator Charles A. Lindbergh and John F. Condon went to a cemetery in The Bronx, N.Y., where Condon turned over $50,000 to a man in exchange for Lindbergh’s kidnapped son. (The child, who was not returned, was found dead the following month.) In 1956, the soap operas “As the World Turns” and “The Edge of Night” premiered on CBS-TV. In 1968, the science-fiction film “2001: A Space Odyssey,” produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, had its world premiere in Washington, D.C. In 1982, several thousand troops from Argentina seized the disputed Falkland Islands, located in the south Atlantic, from Britain. (Britain seized the islands back the following June.) In 2005, Pope John Paul II died in his Vatican apartment at age 84. Ten years ago: Flags of seven new NATO members from former communist Europe rose at alliance headquarters in Brussels for the first time, marking the biggest expansion in NATO’s 55-year history. Five years ago: A 19-count federal racketeering indictment was returned against former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (blah-GOY’-uh-vich); the ousted Democrat denied doing anything illegal. One year ago: Pope Francis prayed before the tomb of Pope John Paul II on the eighth anniversary of the beloved pontiff ’s death. Today’s Birthdays: Actress Rita Gam is 87. Actress Sharon Acker is 79. Singer Leon Russell is 72. Jazz musician Larry Coryell is 71. Actress Linda Hunt is 69. Singer Emmylou Harris is 67. Social critic and author Camille Paglia is 67. Actress Pamela Reed is 65. Rock musician Dave Robinson (The Cars) is 61. Country singer Buddy Jewell is 53. Actor Christopher Meloni is 53. Singer Keren Woodward (Bananarama) is 53. Country singer Billy Dean is 52. Actor Clark Gregg is 52. Actress Jana Marie Hupp is 50. Rock musician Greg Camp is 47. Rock musician Tony Fredianelli (Third Eye Blind) is 45. Thought for Today: “Failure has a thousand explanations. Success doesn’t need one.” — Sir Alec Guinness (1914-2000).
Friday, April 4 Wellness & Women Connection Monthly Business Networking Lunch. 11:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Posh Sushi & Grill, 2715 E. Del Mar. Call Abby Willette at 645-0377 and RSVP at rsvp@wwconnection.org. Christian Life Seminar: What It Means To Be A Christian. 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., every Friday until April 11. San Martin De Porres Catholic Church’s St. Elizabeth Room. Free. Light snacks served. Contact Leah Cayanan at 2860654 or leigh.cayanan@gmail.com.
Saturday, April 5 Used book sale, hosted by First United Methodist Church. 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. 1220 McClelland Ave. Hardback books are $1, paperback books 50 cents, and magazines and children’s books 25 cents.
Sunday, April 6 SCAN’s 16th Annual Children Play Day. 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Laredo Civic Center Ballroom and Grounds. Free. Games, prizes, food and refreshments. Contact Veronica Jimenez at 724-3177 or veronica.jimenez@scan-inc.org.
Wednesday, April 9 University of Texas Pan-American Social Work Recruitment event. 6 p.m. Room 10 of Laredo Community College’s De La Garza Building. Contact Jessica Villarreal at 220-7071 or jkvillarreal.jv@gmail.com.
Thursday, April 10 Meeting of Los Amigos Duplicate Bridge Club. 1:15 p.m. to 5 p.m. Laredo Country Club. Call Beverly Cantu at 727-0589.
Friday, April 11 Christian Life Seminar: What It Means To Be A Christian. 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., every Friday until April 11. San Martin De Porres Catholic Church’s St. Elizabeth Room. Free. Light snacks served. Contact Leah Cayanan at 2860654 or leigh.cayanan@gmail.com.
Saturday, April 12 Larry Hernandez Memorial 6th Annual Crime Stoppers 5K Run/Walk Against Crime. Registration 7 a.m. Race 8 a.m. Entrance of Lake Casa Blanca State Park. Pre-registration fee $15 through April 11. $20 day of event. Kids run ages 10 and under. Proceeds benefit Laredo Crime Stoppers. Forms can be picked up at administrative office, 1200 Washington St., from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., or Laredo Ciclo Mania, 611 Shiloh Road, Suite No. 2, from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Call 724-1876.
Monday, April 14 Zapata County Commissioners Court meeting. 9 a.m. Zapata County Courthouse. Call Roxy Elizondo at 7659920.
Thursday, April 17 Meeting of Los Amigos Duplicate Bridge Club. 1:15 p.m. to 5 p.m. Laredo Country Club. Call Beverly Cantu at 727-0589.
Photo by Manuel Balce Ceneta | AP
President Barack Obama, with Vice President Joe Biden, speaks about the Affordable Care Act in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington on Tuesday. After facing a rocky start and chorus of naysayers who declared his health care law a failure, President Barack Obama on Tuesday celebrated a better-than-expected 7.1 million sign-ups for health coverage.
7.1M sign up for health care By NEDRA PICKLER ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — After facing a rocky start and chorus of naysayers who declared his health care law a failure, President Barack Obama on Tuesday celebrated a betterthan-expected 7.1 million sign-ups for health coverage. “The Affordable Care Act is here to stay,” Obama declared in a feisty Rose Garden speech the day after the deadline for Americans to enroll. Obama announced the 7 million threshold that once was seen as unattainable, even as the number still could climb. People who started applying but couldn’t finish before the Monday midnight deadline can have extra time, as do potential enrollees whose special circumstances kept them from signing up in time.
California’s Powerball winner comes forward MILPITAS, Calif. — The sole winner of February’s $425 million Powerball jackpot came forward to claim his prize Tuesday. California Lottery officials said B. Raymond Buxton, a Northern California retiree, claimed the prize at the California Lottery headquarters in Sacramento. Buxton was wearing a shirt that featured a picture of Yoda and read, “Luck of the Jedi I have,” according to lottery officials. The one winning ticket for the Feb. 19 drawing was sold at a convenience store in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Milpitas, about 10 miles north of San Jose. The $425 million jackpot is one of the largest lottery jackpots in U.S. history, though far from the record. The nation’s biggest lottery prize was a $656 million dollar Mega Millions jackpot in 2012. The biggest Powerball jackpot was a $590.5 million last May.
Administration officials said they were still compiling data that will be important in determining the ultimate success of the sixmonth enrollment period, such as how many enrollees were previously uninsured and whether enough younger, healthy people signed up to offset the costs of covering older, sicker consumers. But Obama said after the initial computer problems that plagued the online insurance exchanges where people could sign up, the law was working as he had hoped. “The bottom line is this: Under this law, the share of Americans with insurance is up, and the growth of health care costs is down. And that’s good for our middle class, and that’s good for our fiscal future,” the president said. “As messy as it’s been sometimes, as contentious as it’s been sometimes, it’s progress.”
Lottery officials said Buxton chose to take a lump sum payment of $242.2 million before taxes. The ticket was sold at a Chevron station in Milpitas. Lottery officials said Buxton was getting lunch at a Subway restaurant at the station’s convenience store when he decided to buy another ticket since the jackpot was so large, lottery officials said. He bought a single Quick Pick ticket for $2 that turned out to be the winner. “‘Unbelievable!’ is all I could muster,” Buxton said, as he described the moment he found out he hit the jackpot, according to a news release from the state lottery.
Archbishop apologizes for posh residence ATLANTA — Archbishop Wilton Gregory seems to have gotten the pope’s message about modest living. Days after Pope Francis permanently removed a German bishop for his lavish spending on
a new residence, the Atlanta archbishop apologized for building a $2.2 million mansion as his residence. He bowed to criticism from local parishioners and said he’d consider selling the new home in Buckhead, Atlanta’s toniest neighborhood. Local Catholics told Gregory the price tag was outlandish, especially in light of Francis’ frugality. The Tudor-style mansion, stretching nearly 6,400 square feet, includes two dining rooms and a safe room. The archbishop said the new pope has “set the bar” for church leaders and others, and Gregory said he hadn’t looked at the project’s cost in terms of his own “integrity and pastoral credibility.” “I failed to consider the impact on the families throughout the archdiocese who, though struggling to pay their mortgages, utilities, tuition and other bills, faithfully respond year after year to my pleas to assist with funding our ministries and services,” Gregory wrote late Monday on the website of the archdiocesan newspaper. — Compiled from AP reports
Thursday, April 24 Meeting of Los Amigos Duplicate Bridge Club. 1:15 p.m. to 5 p.m. Laredo Country Club. Call Beverly Cantu at 727-0589. IBC Keynote Speaker Series presentation, “Mexico Under the ‘New’ PRI: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” by Dr. Denise Dresser, professor of political science at Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México. 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. TAMIU Student Center Ballroom, SC 203. Free and open to public. Translation services will be available. Contact 326-2820 or cswht@tamiu.edu.
Monday, April 28 Zapata County Commissioners Court meeting. 9 a.m. Zapata County Courthouse. Call Roxy Elizondo at 7659920.
Saturday, May 3 Used book sale, hosted by First United Methodist Church. 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. 1220 McClelland Ave. Hardback books are $1, paperback books 50 cents, and magazines and children’s books 25 cents.
AROUND THE WORLD NATO orders end to cooperation with Russia BRUSSELS — NATO’s foreign ministers have ordered an end to civilian and military cooperation with Russia and told their generals and admirals to devise ways to better protect alliance members that feel threatened by Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin. The alliance was reacting to its most serious crisis in years: Russia’s unilateral annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula. Secretary of State John Kerry and other ministers unanimously agreed Tuesday on a number of measures, including possible redeployment of military assets in eastern NATO nations.
Lesbian-only cemetery being inaugurated BERLIN — A burial area for lesbians only is being inaugurated Sunday in a two-centuryold cemetery in Berlin.
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Taiwan’s Buddhist association offer prayers for the Chinese passengers aboard the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, in Beijing, China, on Tuesday. The three-week hunt for Flight 370 has turned up no sign of the Boeing 777. A 400-square-meter (4,300square-foot) area of the Lutheran Georgen Parochial cemetery will be reserved as a graveyard for up to 80 lesbians, said Usah Zachau, a spokeswoman for the Safia association, a group primarily for elderly lesbians.
The association said it had created a burial area as a space “where life and death connect, distinctive forms of cemetery culture can develop and where the lesbian community can live together in the afterlife.” — Compiled from AP reports
SUBSCRIPTIONS/DELIVERY (956) 728-2555 The Zapata Times is distributed on Saturdays to 4,000 households in Zapata County. For subscribers of the Laredo Morning Times and for those who buy the Laredo Morning Times at newsstands, the Zapata Times is inserted. The Zapata Times is free. The Zapata Times is published by the Laredo Morning Times, a division of The Hearst Corporation, P.O. Box 2129, Laredo, Texas 78044. Phone (956) 728-2500. The Zapata office is at 1309 N. U.S. Hwy. 83 at 14th Avenue, Suite 2, Zapata, TX 78076. Call (956) 765-5113 or e-mail thezapatatimes.net
Local
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014
THE ZAPATA TIMES 3A
Spanish lecture focuses on Cervantes SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
Courtesy photo
Laredo native Humberto Gonzalez, Jim Hogg County judge, is recently sworn into office.
From dean to judge
Those who would like to delve into Hispanic studies and the study of Miguel de Cervantes and his literary legacy are invited to a special Spanish lecture at Texas A&M International University at 9 a.m. Friday. Dr. Robert Lane Kauffmann, associate professor of Hispanic studies at Rice University, will lecture in Spanish on José Ortega y Gasset’s “Meditaciones del Quijote” (“Meditations on Quixote”) to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the book. The lecture is free and open to the community. It
takes place in Room 101 of the Senator Judith Zaffirini Success Center. “Meditaciones del Quijote” is the first major book of Ortega y Gasset and has become seminal in Hispanic thought and literary criticism. At Rice, Dr. Kauffmann teaches the literature, philosophy, and art of Spain, literary translation, Latin American short fiction, and an introduction to the humanities. He was guest editor and contributor to a special issue of the French studies journal “L’Esprit Créateur” (Genres, Passages, Differends: Jean-François Lyotard), and has publish-
ed articles, chapters, and reviews on modern European and Latin American literature as well as literary theory in journals and collected volumes published in Europe, the United States, Latin America and Canada. His current projects include a study of the modern Spanish essay and an English translation of Eduardo Nicol’s “El problema de la filosofía hispánica” (“The Problem of Hispanic Philosophy”). For more information, contact Dr. José CardonaLópez, TAMIU Spanish professor, at 326-2690 or email cardona@tamiu.edu.
Former TAMIU dean now Jim Hogg county judge SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
After winning the Democratic primary in March without a runoff, Humberto Gonzalez, former dean of the TAMIU College of Education, is now the Jim Hogg County judge. Jim Hogg County Commissioners Court recently voted unanimously to
have Gonzalez finish the term of former Judge Guadalupe Canales, who died several weeks ago. Gonzalez is a native of Laredo. He previously served as principal of United High School prior to his tenure at Texas A&M International University. He was named professor emeritus by the Texas
A&M Board of Regents upon his retirement as a professor and dean of the TAMIU College of Education. Jim Hogg County, the county seat of which is Hebbronville, celebrated its 100th year anniversary in 2013. The Texas Legislature recognized the county’s century mark in the last legislative session.
CAMPAIGN STOP
Bash details announced SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
A local home improvement store has released more details about its 30th birthday bash, which will be held Saturday. Dr Ike’s first opened its doors in the Zapata community in 1984. “We want to thank you, our loyal customers, for your ongoing support,” a company news release
states. A ribbon-cutting by county and chamber officials will be held at 10 a.m. at the store. Light sweets and refreshments will be served from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., the public is invited to take part in a fish fry, where French fries and assorted vegetables will also be given out. A late
afternoon “merrienda” takes place from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. It all culminates in an Oscar Zamora/Don Chema show at 5:30 p.m. The Dr Ike’s Home Center is located at 430 Farm-To-Market Road 496. For more information about the celebration, call Rebekah Epstein at 210315-9664.
Photo by Danny Zaragoza | The Zapata Times
State Sen. Leticia Van De Putte speaks to veterans and local media at the Laredo American Legion Post 59 on Monday afternoon, as part of a campaign stop for her lieutenant governer bid.
PAGE 4A
Zopinion
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014
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COLUMN
OTHER VIEWS
Recall should drive reform THE WASHINGTON POST
Wondering why General Motors went bankrupt and needed a taxpayer bailout? Just consider the Chevrolet Cobalt. Introduced in 2004 as the vehicle that would finally make GM’s small cars competitive with those from Japan, the Cobalt’s mediocre performance translated into, at best, so-so sales. Beneath its shiny surface, the product was even worse than the motoring public realized. For all the money and public-relations puffery GM poured into the Cobalt’s launch, the company apparently couldn’t be bothered with such details as a properly working ignition switch. Instead, it settled for parts that occasionally caused the car to shut off while in motion, disabling both the power steering and air bags. This failing has been linked to multiple accidents and 12 deaths. Despite ample warnings from inside the company and many consumer complaints, GM swept the problem under the rug, until now. Far too late, it has recalled 2.6 million vehicles that may contain the potentially deadly defect. For GM, still struggling to shake off the “Government Motors” stigma, the fiasco is a reminder that, despite much progress, its renaissance is incomplete. The public cannot be sure that taxpayer money bought a truly new GM unless and until new chief executive Mary Barra — herself a GM “lifer” — eradicates all vestiges of the buck-passing management culture that produced the Cobalt. In that sense, GM’s fresh recall of certain Chevy Cruze models is a mixed blessing: The company is taking action, but the Cruze is GM’s small-car successor to the Cobalt.
There are lessons here for government as well. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration received indications of a problem with the Cobalt in 2007 and again in 2010 but took no action. Congress needs to know why. Meanwhile, GM was facing consumer lawsuits and settling them out of court. Details of those settlements were kept secret under confidentiality agreements — which plaintiffs and their lawyers commonly, and understandably, accept in return for prompt compensation without a trial. We can’t help but wonder whether the Cobalt’s defects might have come to light sooner — or whether GM might have felt more pressure to correct them — if the details of those lawsuits were subject to public disclosure. Under a 2000 federal law, GM and other automakers must report the existence of safety-related lawsuits and other consumer problems to NHTSA. But the agency gets more detailed information, including court documents, only if it requests it. NHTSA regulations often bar public requests for disclosure of those details on the grounds that it is “business information” susceptible to unfair exploitation by a company’s competitors. Sens. Edward J. Markey, DMass., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., are proposing legislation that would require automakers to send NHTSA the accident report or other documents that first alerted them to a fatal accident. NHTSA would be required to make those documents public unless they are exempted from public disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. The sad story of the Cobalt suggests that the senators’ idea is worth considering.
COLUMN
Reject claim THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS
It is hard to imagine anyone, from conservative to liberal, who would want their employer’s religious beliefs imposed on their workforce or insurance coverage. Religious freedom is a personal freedom, not an employer choice. For that reason, the U.S. Supreme Court should reject Hobby Lobby’s claim that providing employees with certain contraceptive coverage under the Affordable Care Act violates the company’s religious liberty. It doesn’t. A firm run by executives with deep religious convictions is not the same as a church or religious nonprofit organization. The owners of Oklahomabased Hobby Lobby and Pennsylvania-based Conestoga Wood Specialties are challenging the health care act’s requirement that their firms offer insurance covering drugs and devices that they contend end human life after conception. While the firms’ owners don’t oppose all contraceptives, they say covering such drugs and devices forces them to violate their religious beliefs against taking a human life. The deep-seated personal convictions of Hobby Lobby’s executives and Conestoga’s Mennonite owners are not in question. What is at issue is whether a private, profit-making business can dictate religious beliefs on employees, a point Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ruth Bader Ginsburg zeroed in on during oral arguments in the case last week. Sotomayor bluntly asked, “How does a corporation exercise religion?” Kagan then said corporations might claim religious objections to laws banning sexual discrimination, child labor, minimum wage and family
leave. They’re right. Extending the religious rights of individuals to corporations that don’t have an explicit religious mission would have unintended, far-reaching consequences on both secular and religious freedoms. For example, what makes a craft chain like Hobby Lobby different from a tech company or a bank, whose bosses have deep religious convictions but otherwise operate as a secular firm? Based on an owner’s leanings, some companies might deny coverage for vaccinations and blood transfusions on religious grounds, holding employees hostage to management’s personal beliefs and depriving employees of choice. With all due respect, these decisions are best left up to each employee and their own conscience. Two years ago, another dispute arose over Affordable Care Act mandates requiring the Catholic Church and other religious institutions to include birth control in health coverage plans. We urged the federal government to find a way to acknowledge the unique religious missions of those institutions while making sure their employees have access to insurance coverage, even if by a third party. Our guiding principle was fairness and balance, the same principle we think the court should apply in the Hobby Lobby case. Individuals have long cited religious reasons for opposing all sorts of laws, and the courts have worked through cases very carefully to preserve balance. Extending conscientious objector status to secular corporations would be a mistake. Religious freedom is an individual right, and the justices should affirm this principle.
COLUMN
Don’t let laptop generals wage war in Crimea By PANKAJ MISHRA BLOOMBERG NEWS
The Cold War credentialed a kind of “thinker” who cannot think without the help of violently opposed abstractions: good versus evil, freedom versus slavery, liberal democracy versus totalitarianism, and that sort of thing. Forced into premature retirement by the unexpected collapse of Communism in 1989, this thinker reemerged after Sept. 11, convinced there was another worthy enemy in the crosshairs: Islamic totalitarianism. Unchastened by a decade of expensive, counterproductive and widely despised wars, these laptop generals have been trying to reboot their dated software yet again as Russian President Vladimir Putin formalizes his annexation of Crimea. As laments about Western weakness and spine-stiffening exhortations fill the air, it’s worth recalling the legacy of the central episode of the Cold War: the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979. The invasion was promoted by the Soviets’ serious misjudgment of U.S. intentions in the region. As the United States, along with Saudi Arabia, helped consolidate history’s first global jihadist campaign in history, it came to be prolonged by actual American actions. Questioned in 1998 about the U.S. role in the making of Islamic extremists, Zbigniew Brzezinski could
confidently retort, “What is most important to the history of the world? The Taliban or the collapse of the Soviet empire? Some stirred-up Muslims or the liberation of Central Europe and the end of the cold war?” Three years later, of course, a handful of stirred-up Muslims launched the most devastating attack ever on U.S. soil, provoking the George W. Bush administration into such hubristic projects as eliminating “terror” worldwide and bringing democracy at gunpoint to the Middle East. Muslims stirred up and radicalized by these blunders have subsequently ravaged Pakistan and large parts of the Middle East and Africa. U.S. citizens, too, have had to pay a high price — the loss of civil and legal rights — to protect themselves from what was originally a small band of cave-dwelling criminals and fanatics. Meanwhile, as the events of the last month show, the Soviet empire that had allegedly collapsed has returned under a different guise. It is very likely that Putin’s land grab in Crimea will fail disastrously. As the Russian economy slows down, capital flees the country and domestic unrest grows, Putin’s position will become less than secure. The one thing certain to keep him in power longer, as well as weaken his opponents, would be a Western overreaction
like those of the Jimmy Carter and Bush administrations in 1979 and 2001. Fortunately, the Obama administration seems aware of this peril. It is also true that public opinion in today’s deeply politicized world would be very skeptical, if not dismissive, of any American efforts to undermine Russia more directly. In a recent Gallup survey of 66,000 people across 65 nations, 24 percent of all respondents answered that the U.S. “is the greatest threat to peace in the world today.” Pakistan and China trailed the U.S. significantly, with 8 and 6 percent, respectively. This may bewilder cold warriors. But then, they grew up in what Reinhold Niebuhr called “the paradise of domestic security suspended in a hell of global insecurity.” The Cold War was never cold for many Asians, Africans and Latin Americans, who experienced it as a series of devastating hot wars or brutal dictatorships propped up by leaders of the free as well as the unfree world. The U.S. suffered during these years a great loss of moral authority; it then abused its position as the sole hyperpower when it launched an illegal invasion of Iraq. It is not surprising that many Egyptians today blame the U.S. for everything that goes wrong — for supporting Hosni Mubarak, then the Muslim Brotherhood, then the army
again. Others, such as the famous Iranian actress I met last month in Tehran, want to fight their repressive regimes without compromising American support. George Kennan, America’s wisest Russia expert and the original theorist of the Cold War who later renounced his handiwork, once wrote that “the ways by which people advance toward dignity and enlightenment in government are things that constitute the deepest and most intimate processes of national life. There is nothing less understandable to foreigners, nothing in which foreign interference can do less good.” Understanding this won’t be easy for the laptop generals. Not only has the military infrastructure of the Cold War survived intact — the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, hundreds of bases around the world — but so has the intellectual-industrial complex that developed in order to make legitimate the enormous investment in national security. The hundred think tanks that bloomed, and the thousands of mediocre academics and pseudo-experts who found easy employment in the universities and the media, feel obliged to make themselves relevant and important again. But the rest of us can never forget that the Cold War was an intellectual and moral catastrophe — one in which all sides lost.
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Crime and More
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014
THE ZAPATA TIMES 5A
N. Texas man bilked schools Employee allegedly embezzled at least $2.5M By NOMAAN MERCHANT ASSOCIATED PRESS
Photo by Eduardo Verdugo | AP
National Public Safety System secretary Monte Rubido confirms that Mexican marines killed suspected drug lord Enrique Plancarte during a news conference, in Mexico City on Tuesday.
Cartel leader dead By OLGA R RODRIGUEZ ASSOCIATED PRESS
MEXICO CITY — Mexican officials said Tuesday that one of the two remaining top leaders of the Knights Templar drug cartel was killed when he refused to surrender and opened fire on marines. Monte Alejandro Rubido, the top official of the federal police, said suspected drug lord Enrique Plancarte died Monday after marines spotted him walking down a street in the central state of Queretaro. Rubido said the marines called on him to stop, but instead he tried to hide, and when marines pursued him, he fired at them with a gun. After shooting Plancarte, the marines administered first aid, but he died soon after, Rubido said. His identity was proved by fingerprints and comparisons of photographs, Rubido said at a news conference. Plancarte was considered one of four leaders of the
Knights Templar cartel, which is based in Michoacan state. The gang has been chased out of many Michoacan towns by vigilante groups that have demanded authorities go after the gang’s leaders. In recent weeks, Mexican security forces killed the gang’s top capo, Nazario Moreno, and arrested Plancarte’s uncle and Templars leader Dionisio Plancarte. Another leader Servando Gomez, known as “La Tuta,” remains at large. Mexican authorities had offered a reward of 10 million pesos ($767,000) for information leading to the arrest of Plancarte, 43. It was unclear what Plancarte was doing in Queretaro, a fairly quiet state neighboring Michoacan. But it confirmed fears that Knights Templar leaders and gunmen may have fled to nearby states following an offensive by federal forces and armed vigilantes to evict the cartel from Michoacan.
On Monday, authorities announced they had arrested another leader of a vigilante “selfdefense” force in Michoacan and accused him of participating in the killing of a rival. It was the second such arrest in less than a month. The arrests come amid a broadening government crackdown on the vigilantes, who took up arms a year ago to fight the Knights Templar. The groups became popular in many towns because they were able to kick out the cartel, whose gunmen had demanded extortion payments from local residents, farmers and businesses. The vigilantes have demanded that authorities arrest the top leaders of the Knights Templar as a condition of laying down their weapons. The self-defense groups brought their own form of lawlessness to largely agricultural Michoacan, with rivalries, alleged thefts and possible links to a rival drug gang based in the neighboring state of Jalisco.
PLANO, Texas — A North Texas school district employee helped to embezzle at least $2.5 million by approving fake invoices for safety checks, collecting money that instead went to pay for trips to Louisiana casinos, federal authorities said Tuesday. Kris Wilson Gentz pleaded guilty to taking part in a conspiracy against the Plano Independent School District, where he was a security manager until late last year. Prosecutors accuse Gentz and two conspirators of stealing
thousands of dollars each month for a decade by approving invoices for work supposedly done by two shell companies under their control. The shell companies, named Fire System Specialists and Digital Security Solutions, were supposedly checking buildings’ safety systems on a regular basis. Another district employee noticed a questionable invoice in November and contacted the district’s security director, who then called police. John Malcolm Bales, the U.S. attorney for Texas’ eastern district, said Gentz appeared to
have spent most of his share of the stolen money on gambling. “We will seek every dollar there is,” he said. “But the sad truth is, we think ... most of the money was gambled away,” Bales added. Bales said it did not appear any schools were placed in danger due to missed safety checks, and that the work Gentz was billing the schools for was unnecessary. Gentz faces up to five years in prison. A sentencing date has not been set. Gentz did not have an attorney listed in court records.
Man found guilty in death of officer Officer suffered brain trauma when he was struck by car driven by man, 22 ASSOCIATED PRESS
ROCKWALL, Texas — A jury has found a 22-year-old man guilty of murder in the hit-and-run death of a Northeast Texas police officer last year. The jury in Rockwall County deliberated for about four hours Monday before finding Justin Miles Sanders responsible for the death of Texarkana officer Jason Sprague. The Texarkana Gazette reports
sentencing was scheduled for Tuesday and Sanders faces either five to 99 years in prison or a life sentence. The 30-year-old Sprague responded in June to a Texarkana park on reports of fighting and drug use. Sprague had just exited his patrol vehicle when he was struck by a car driven by Sanders, who was fleeing a possible marijuana arrest. The officer suffered a severe brain trauma, multiple fractures and other injuries. He died a day later.
PÁGINA 6A
Zfrontera
Agenda en Breve ZAPATA 04/05— Dr. Ike’s Home Center celebra 30 años en Zapata con una fiesta abierta a toda la comunidad, en sus instalaciones ubicadas en 430 Farm-To-Market Road 496, a partir de las 9 a.m. La ceremonia oficial será a las 10 a.m.; el Show de Don Chema y Oscar Zamora será a las 5:30 p.m.
COTULLA 04/02— Taller de Seguridad en Oleoductos en el Centro de Convenciones de Cotulla, de 9 a.m. a las 2 p.m. Autoridades y expertos discutirán la seguridad en oleoductos y la concientización del público. Reserve su lugar escribiendo a Michelle Joseph a mlsjoseph@hotmail.com.
LAREDO 04/02— Celebración de Vida se llevará a cabo en el Salón de Recitales del Center for the Fine and Performing Arts de TAMIU, a las 6:30 p.m. Informes en el 326.GIVE (4483). 04/02— El Departamento de Salud de la Ciudad de Laredo estará llevando a cabo una clínica de vacunación para aplicar la vacuna contra la rabia en las instalaciones de Laredo Animal Care, ubicado en 5202 de avenida Maher, de 6 p.m. a 7 p.m. El costo de las vacunas contra la rabia es de 12 dólares; microchip 10 dólares y el registro 5 dólares. Vacunas adicionales estarán disponibles al ser solicitadas con un costo adicional. 04/02— El astrónomo Karl Gebhardt, profesor de astrofísica de la Universidad de Texas, ofrecerá la conferencia “Black Holes, Dark Matter and Dark Energy”, en el aula 102 del Centro de Siencias Lamar Bruni Vergara de TAMIU, a las 7:30 p.m. Evento gratuito. 04/03— Nonagésima cuarta (94) Reunión Anual de la Sección Texas de la Asociación Matemática de América se realizará en Texas A&M International University, hasta el 5 de abril. Pida informes sobre cuotas al 326-2594. 04/04— Seminario de Vida Cristiana: ¿Qué Significa Ser un Cristiano?, de 6 p.m. a 8:30 p.m., cada viernes, hasta el 11 de abril, en la Iglesia Católica San Martin De Porres, Aula St. Elizabeth. Evento gratuito. Se dará un refrigerio ligero. Más información en el 286-0654. 04/04— Laser Spectacular presenta The Spirit of Michael, a Live Performance Tribute (El Espíritu de Michael, un Tributo Actuación en Vivo) a las 8 p.m. en el Club Annex de Laredo Energy Arena. Costo: 23 dólares y 30 dólares. Adquiera boleto en taquilla de LEA. 04/05— Autismo en Acción se realizará a las 8 a.m. en Laredo Energy Arena. Habrá carrera/caminata y ciclismo; Zumbathon; Zumbatomic para Niños; así como música y diversión para la familia. Inscripción 20 dólares. 04/05— Venta de libros usados en First United Methodist Church, 1220 McClelland Ave., de 8:30 a.m. a 1 p.m. 04/05— La Asociación Laredo Northside invita al Mercado de 9 a.m. a 1 p.m. en el área de juegos del North Central Park. Habrá venta de productos naturales, de jardinería, comida, manualidades y ogranizaciones comerciales y sin fines de lucro. 04/05— Laser Spectacular presenta Pink Floyd a las 8 p.m. en el Club Annex de Laredo Energy Arena. Costo: 23 dólares y 30 dólares. Adquiera su boleto en taquilla de LEA.
MIÉRCOLES 2 DE ABRIL DE 2014
CBP
Nuevos agentes TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
WASHINGTON—Aduana y Protección Fronteriza (CBP, por sus siglas en inglés) anunció la asignación de 2.000 oficiales de CBP adicionales para mejorar la seguridad y el nivel de servicio en determinado puertos de entrada del país, entre ellos los de Laredo, de acuerdo con un comunicado de prensa. De igual manera se anunció una nueva autorización para Servicios Reembolsables y Aceptación de Donaciones que facilitaría los viajes esenciales para la creciente economía de EU. Como resultado de la financiación prevista en el presupuesto del
año fiscal 2014, CBP también dio a conocer la asignación de 2.000 nuevos agentes de CBP en los puertos aéreos, terrestres y marítimos de todo el país. Entre las ciudades que verán un aumento de personal en sus puertos locales están Nueva York, Los Ángeles, Detroit, Buffalo, Houston, Dallas, Chicago, Las Vegas, Laredo, Nogales, Arizona y Nueva Orleans. Cuarenta y cuatro puertos en 18 estados recibirán la dotación de personal adicional, quienes buscarán reducir los tiempos de espera, y ayudar a acelerar el flujo de bienes y personas en el país. CBP asignó los oficiales adicionales utilizando su Modelo de Per-
sonal de Trabajo, una herramienta de análisis que identifica objetivamente las necesidades de personal en todo el país. El Departamento de Comercio calcula que el índice de viajes a Estados Unidos se incrementará en un 3,4 a 4,3 por ciento anual en los próximos años. Ese crecimiento representará un adicional de 17 millones de visitantes en comparación con 2012 números. CBP ha implementado una serie de iniciativas y está trabajando en propuestas para aumentar la capacidad de la fuerza laboral a través de: Maximizar el uso de los recursos actuales para aumentar la
capacidad de la fuerza de trabajo mediante el aumento de la matrícula en los programas de confianza de los viajeros; El empleo de la tecnología móvil para agilizar los procesos y aliviar ciertas limitaciones de infraestructura; El aumento de la segmentación del riesgo a través de las iniciativas de mejora de la orientación/previos a la partida, ya través de nuevas prácticas automatizadas de programación; Continuar aplicando iniciativas de transformación del negocio para reducir y mitigar las necesidades de personal, tales como la automatización de la forma I- 94.
DEPORTES
BALACERA
MARATÓN INTERNACIONAL Muere soldado tras agresión TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
Foto de cortesía | Gobierno de Tamaulipas
Se realizará el “Maratón Internacional Reynosa 2014”, evento que forma parte de los festejos por el 265 Aniversario de la fundación de Reynosa, México. En la fotografía dos de las participantes del año pasado.
Evento forma parte de festejos por aniversario TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
El domingo 6 de abril se llevará a cabo el “Maratón Internacional Reynosa 2014”, evento que forma parte de los festejos por el 265 Aniversario de la fundación de Reynosa, México. El evento atlético, que cuenta con el respaldo de la Federación Mexicana de Asociaciones de Atletismo, comenzará a las 8 a.m. con salida y meta en el Parque Cultural de Reynosa. El recorrido abar-
ca las principales arterias de la ciudad. Autoridades de la municipalidad señalaron que se espera contar con la participación de deportistas locales, estatales, nacionales e internacionales. Los premios para los cinco primeros lugares serán en efectivo. El costo de inscripción para el evento es de 370 pesos hasta el 3 de abril a través de un depósito bancario en la sucursal Banorte a nombre de la Asociación de Hote-
les y Moteles de Reynosa, A.C., a la cuenta 0637162689. Los corredores recibirán playera conmemorativa, medalla de participación, certificado de tiempo oficial, revisión físico-atlética durante la Expo Deportiva, hidratación durante el recorrido y refrigerio al final, así como los resultados publicados el mismo día en internet después de las 4 p.m. Para mayores informes podrán consultar la página del evento en www.maratonreynosa2014.com.
Muere soldado después de que elementos de la Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (SEDENA) fueran agredidos por civiles armados, anunciaron autoridades el lunes. El enfrentamiento tuvo lugar en la Ciudad de Matamoros después de que personal de la SEDENA fuera baleado por hombres armados que viajaban en vehículos armados. El mortal incidente dejó a un soldado muerto. Cinco agresores fueron heridos. El lunes alrededor de las 2 p.m. elementos de SEDENA se encontraban realizando un patrullaje de vigilancia por las calles de la Colonia Uniones. Momentos después una camioneta blanca blindada, a la cual le marcaron el alto. El conductor hizo caso omiso y emprendió la fuga, iniciándose una persecución. Al ingresar a calles del Fraccionamiento Valle Real, los militares fueron emboscados por civiles armados, perdiendo la vida un soldado. Previo al incidente se habían registrado bloqueos en un fraccionamiento vecino. En otros sectores de la ciudad, los soldados del Ejército Mexicano fueron agredidos por civiles armados que se desplazaban en otras camionetas blindadas, logrando lesionar por lo menos a cinco de los agresores, de acuerdo a los restos hemáticos encontrados en los puntos donde se registraron estos hechos.
SESIÓN GUBERNAMENTAL
Torre Cantú: Seguridad es prioridad TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
Gobierno y autoridades mantienen como prioridad mejorar la seguridad pública en el Estado de Tamaulipas, indicó un comunicado de prensa. Durante la Décima Sesión entre el Gobernador de Tamaulipas, Egidio Torre Cantú y autoridades del Grupo de Coordinación Tamaulipas (GCT) se mantuvo como prioridad el incremento de esfuerzos para mejorar la seguridad. Según los acuerdos tomados el Ejército Mexicano, la Secretaría de Marina, la Policía Militar, la PGR, Policía Federal, CISEN, y otras instituciones, estarán trabajando de la mano con Procuraduría General de Justicia, Secretaría de Seguridad Pública y Policía Estatal Acreditable para proteger todas las entidades de Tamaulipas. Durante la sesión cele-
Foto de cortesía | Gobierno de Tamaulipas
Se realizó la Décima Sesión de Seguridad entre el Gobernador de Tamaulipas, Egidio Torre Cantú y autoridades del Grupo de Coordinación Tamaulipas (GCT). En la imagen el Gobernador Torre Cantú junto a autoridades y oficiales militares. brada en las instalaciones de la Asociación Agrícola de Valle Hermoso, México, se afirmó que GCT replantea semana a semana la estrategia en materia de seguridad para mejorar el entorno de todos sus mu-
nicipios, de acuerdo con un comunicado. Torre Cantú precisó que en el Grupo de Coordinación Tamaulipas hay colaboración de los tres órdenes de gobierno, partiendo del Gobierno de Ta-
maulipas a través de la Procuraduría General de Justicia y Secretaría de Seguridad Pública del Estado. Agregó que por parte de la Federación, está la participación de la Secre-
taría de la Defensa Nacional, Secretaría de Marina, Procuraduría General de la República y Policía Federal, cuyos elementos se coordinan con los cuerpos de seguridad estatal.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014
ON THE WEB: THEZAPATATIMES.COM
Sports&Outdoors NCAA ATHLETICS: TEXAS LONGHORNS
Expanding overseas? Texas’ Patterson talks expansion, Northwestern and facing Texas A&M By JIM VERTUNO ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUSTIN — Texas athletic director Steve Patterson has his eye on China and the Middle East as vast new markets to expand the Longhorns’ burnt orange brand around the globe. The leader of the nation’s wealthiest athletic program also insisted Tuesday that university athletes are students, not employees. If they want to be treated as workers, they should turn pro, Patterson said. “Professional athletics is something completely different,” Patterson said, addressing last week’s ruling by a regional director of the National Labor Relations Board that Northwestern’s football team can be considered employees and have the right to form what would be the nation’s first union for college athletes. “If you’re a football player coming out of high school that decides you want to go to the pros, go take up your issue with (NFL Commissioner) Roger Goodell, the owners and the union,” Patterson said. “That’s your place to go, if you want to go play professional football, if you want to go be an employee. “If you want to go play profes-
Photo by Jack Plunkett | AP
University of Texas athletic director Steve Patterson discussed many topics Tuesday including expansion, the Northwestern ruling and playing Texas A&M again. sional basketball, go the D-league, knock yourself out, then in the draft to the NBA,” Patterson said. “That’s your place if you want to be an employee, if you want to be
a professional. This is not your place,” Patterson said, tapping his finger on his desk. “This is a free country. You can make that choice all day
long. Knock yourself out,” he said. “This is student athletics.” Patterson clearly has had an eye on making money for the program he took over in Novem-
ber 2013 and sees huge potential in new markets. Texas is already in agreement with the Pac-12 to play Washington in men’s basketball in China in November 2015. Patterson acknowledged Tuesday he’s also had some early discussions playing sports in Dubai. He didn’t say which sport or when, but noted that part of the world has many Texas alumni working in the oil and gas industries. Patterson called athletics the “front porch” for the university and its ability to draw students, faculty and donors from around the world. But he showed no interest in resuming a rivalry with a school just 100 miles away: Texas A&M. The Longhorns-Aggies rivalry that started in 1894 ended in 2011 when the Aggies left the Big 12 for the Southeastern Conference. “There’s a lot of great tradition in the rivalry. At some point in the future, does it make some business sense, some branding sense to play again? I don’t know. It’s not at the top of my list,” Patterson said. “I’m more focused in how do we grow the footprint of the department beyond what separates College Station and Austin,” he said.
State
8A THE ZAPATA TIMES
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014
Jurors shown stiletto By JUAN A. LOZANO ASSOCIATED PRESS
Photo by Smiley N. Pool/Houston Chronicle | AP
Vessels work with skimmers and oil containment booms in Galveston Harbor on Sunday, March 23, in Galveston.
Spill audio released ASSOCIATED PRESS
TEXAS CITY, Texas — The captains of the two vessels that collided in the Houston Ship Channel were aware they were perilously close to one another but still failed to avert a spill that dumped 168,000 gallons of oil into the water, according to a U.S. Coast Guard audio recording. The recording, obtained by the Houston Chronicle in a Freedom of Information Act request, indicates the captains spoke in a frantic radio exchange beginning about five minutes before the March 22 collision. But the exchange apparently came too late for the captains to avoid making contact in the crowded waterway, trafficked daily by massive, oceangoing container ships. “If you keep on going, I’m going to get you,” the captain of the bulk carrier, the larger of the two vessels, says in the recording, released Monday. “Captain, I can cut her back. I can go dead slow, but that still ain’t going to stop it because I’m coming up on half a mile of you,” he added. The captain of the smaller vessel, which was towing
two barges carrying nearly a million gallons of marine oil, responded to the warning by attempting to back out of the channel at full speed. With less than a mile of visibility because of heavy fog, and as the vessel towing the oil-laden barges backed up, the smaller ship’s captain radioed the approaching carrier, saying, “I’m looking at you now and it don’t look good.” Moments later, one of the barges was sideswiped by the larger vessel, resulting in a puncture that sent a stream of dense, sticky oil into Galveston Bay. It then spread into the Gulf of Mexico and southward along the Texas coast. The collision near Texas City closed one of the nation’s busiest seaports for several days, stranding some 100 vessels. Coast Guard Petty Officer Andy Kendrick said that cleanup continued Tuesday and that animals affected by the oil are being treated in rehabilitation centers. As many as 21 dolphins, four sea turtles and 168 birds have died as a result of the oil spill, Kendrick said.
About 220 miles southeast of the site of the collision, Padre Island National Seashore education coordinator Buzz Botts said that 3 percent of the sand on the northern part of Padre Island was contaminated and hundreds of seabirds are covered with at least small amounts of oil. “A lot of the effects to wildlife at this point are hard to gauge,” Botts said. Investigators are still trying to identify the cause of the accident, but Texas law considers the company carrying the oil, Houstonbased Kirby Inland Marine Corp., a responsible party, Greg Pollock, deputy director for the Texas General Land Office’s oil spill response division, told The Associated Press. The other ship was a Liberian-flagged vessel owned by a Greek shipping company, the Chronicle reported. A report from the U.S. Office of Inspector General said in May 2013 that the Coast Guard didn’t have adequate processes to investigate marine accidents or take corrective actions. A lack of dedicated resources, the report said, had resulted in a backlog of 6,000 investigations.
HOUSTON — A blue suede stiletto heel that prosecutors say a Houston woman used to fatally stab her boyfriend at least 25 times in the face and head was shown at her trial Tuesday. The shoe — a size 9 platform pump with a 5½-inch heel — was brought out during testimony about the bloody crime scene at the trial of Ana Trujillo, who’s accused of killing 59year-old Alf Stefan Andersson. He was a University of Houston professor and researcher. Authorities allege Trujillo sat on top of Andersson and struck him with the shoe during an argument at his condominium last June. Trujillo’s attorney has told jurors his client was defending herself. Also Tuesday, prosecutors played the 911 call Trujillo made in the earlymorning hours and showed jurors video of the crime scene, where the shoe could be seen near Andersson’s body. On the call, Trujillo could be heard at times crying uncontrollably, telling the operator that her boyfriend had “started beating me up.” She also told the operator that Andersson is “bleeding, he’s
Photo by Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle | AP
Prosecutor John Jordan sets down a stiletto shoe entered into evidence during the trial against Ana Lilia Trujillo on Tuesday. about to die.” It was difficult to understand Trujillo, and the 911 operator seemed to be unsure if Trujillo was reporting an assault or that someone was injured and needed medical help. When the operator realized someone needed medical attention, she transferred the call to emergency medical services, which directed Trujillo to perform CPR on Andersson. Trujillo said she was already doing that. Trujillo, 45, cried as the 911 call was played. Houston police officer Ashton Bowie testified that when he responded to the condominium, Trujillo was “covered in blood.” Bowie said that he found Andersson lying on the ground, face up. His face was covered in blood and it was swollen. “I thought his head had
been blown out by a gun,” he told jurors. When asked if anything could be done to save Andersson’s life, Bowie said, “that moment had passed.” Bowie also said he questioned Trujillo’s emotional response to the slaying. “She was sobbing but no actual tears were coming down her face,” he said. In video taken by police at the crime scene, the stiletto heel can be seen lying on the carpeted floor of Andersson’s condominium, above his head. A large pool of blood was also near his head, which was bloodied, purple and had several visible wounds. Prosecutor John Jordan showed the shoe to jurors after the video. The trial is expected to last at least a week. If convicted, Trujillo faces up to life in prison.
Drought more severe ASSOCIATED PRESS
HOUSTON — Large areas of Texas have fallen into severe drought as a typically wet season remains relatively dry. The Texas Water Development Board says Tuesday that extreme-to-exceptional conditions have spread to a quarter of the
state based on the information released by the National Drought Mitigation Center. That is almost double the area that faced those conditions last week. Nearly the entire Texas Panhandle and a swathe of Central Texas are in extreme drought. Pockets of the Panhandle and a chunk of north-central
Texas register as “exceptional,” the worst level of drought recorded by the center. Other areas are either abnormally dry or in a lower-level of drought. Spring is normally a wet season in chunks of Texas, but much of the state has so far seen little rainfall.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014
THE ZAPATA TIMES 9A
THE MARKET IN REVIEW DAILY DOW JONES
STOCK EXCHANGE HIGHLIGHTS
u
NYSE 10,584.31
+56.53
GAINERS ($2 OR MORE)
u
NASDAQ 4,268.04
GAINERS ($2 OR MORE)
Last Chg%Chg Name
Last Chg%Chg
17,000
Castlight n 58.com n JinkoSolar BiP GCrb BitautoH EPAM Sys ChiMYWnd SouFun BioAmbr n Aerohive n
23.97 46.80 31.24 6.44 39.59 36.37 3.14 75.10 12.55 11.54
2.98 +.88 38.00 +9.72 6.86 +1.55 63.98 +11.86 7.70 +1.32 4.44 +.71 24.74 +3.83 3.52 +.52 3.68 +.53 12.98 +1.69
16,500
+13.0 +12.4 +11.8 +11.2 +10.5 +10.5 +10.2 +9.8 +9.7 +9.4
Ku6Media ProvidSvc HighpwrInt Balchem Tetralogc n Amyris SungyMo n ChinaBAK CorpResSv RubiconTc
Dow Jones industrials
16,600
Close: 16,532.61 Change: 74.95 (0.5%)
16,360
+41.9 +34.4 +29.2 +22.8 +20.7 +19.0 +18.3 +17.3 +16.8 +15.0
16,120
15,500
Last Chg%Chg Name
Last Chg%Chg
JGWPT n McDrmInt CSVLgNGs CSVLgCrde PUVixST rs BarcShtB C-TrCitiVol Anixter MidstsPet ProSUltNG
16.01 7.03 21.89 31.44 55.98 11.70 2.67 96.45 5.11 43.25
5.88 2.37 2.30 3.21 24.02 9.34 36.88 2.26 22.35 3.92
-2.25 -12.3 BioFuelEn -.79 -10.1 AsteaIntl h -1.66 -7.0 PranaBio -2.38 -7.0 CleanDsl -3.93 -6.6 MediCo -.80 -6.4 CUI Glbl -.16 -5.7 Galectin un -5.07 -5.0 Bio-Path -.25 -4.7 Liquidity -2.07 -4.6 AkersBio n
-1.42 -.53 -.50 -.59 -4.40 -1.66 -6.52 -.39 -3.70 -.64
-19.5 -18.3 -17.9 -15.5 -15.5 -15.1 -15.0 -14.7 -14.2 -14.0
MOST ACTIVE ($1 OR MORE) MOST ACTIVE ($1 OR MORE) Name
Vol (00)
Last Chg Name
FordM 842113 16.32 +.72 S&P500ETF 776815 188.25 +1.24 iShEMkts 585520 41.49 +.48 BkofAm 561862 17.34 +.14 GenMotors 462552 34.34 -.08 iShR2K 446847 117.87 +1.53 SPDR Fncl 416028 22.38 +.04 McDrmInt 364843 7.03 -.79 Oracle 352052 41.49 +.58 NokiaCp 331943 7.55 +.21
Vol (00)
Last Chg
Cisco 794220 SiriusXM 639850 Facebook 576231 PlugPowr h 412578 Windstrm 375810 PwShs QQQ 354235 MicronT 340092 Zynga 322444 Microsoft 317987 Intel 230862
23.10 +.88 3.24 +.04 62.62 +2.38 7.54 +.44 8.50 +.26 89.21 +1.54 24.44 +.78 4.38 +.08 41.42 +.43 25.99 +.18
DIARY Advanced Declined Unchanged Total issues New Highs New Lows
Volume
2,239 897 85 3,221 176 7 3,236,580,871
DIARY Advanced Declined Unchanged Total issues New Highs New Lows
Volume
1,995 642 133 2,770 121 24 2,092,900,392
14,434.43 5,878.12 462.66 8,814.76 3,154.96 692.75 1,536.03 1,101.03 16,177.06 898.40
Name
Last
Dow Industrials Dow Transportation Dow Utilities NYSE Composite Nasdaq Composite S&P MidCap S&P 500 S&P MidCap Wilshire 5000 Russell 2000
O
N
D
J
F
M
STOCKS OF LOCAL INTEREST Name
Ex
AT&T Inc AEP BkofAm Caterpillar Cisco CCFemsa CmtyHlt ConocoPhil Dillards EmpIca ExxonMbl Facebook FordM GenElec GenMotors HewlettP HomeDp iShEMkts iShR2K Intel IntlBcsh
NY NY NY NY Nasd NY NY NY NY NY NY Nasd NY NY NY NY NY NY NY Nasd Nasd
Div
1.84 2.00 .20 2.40 .76 2.17 ... 2.76 .24 ... 2.52 ... .50 .88 1.20 .64 1.88 .86 1.45 .90 .50
YTD Yld PE Last Chg %Chg
Name
Ex
Div
YTD Yld PE Last Chg %Chg
5.2 4.0 1.2 2.4 3.3 2.1 ... 3.9 .3 ... 2.6 ... 3.1 3.4 3.5 1.9 2.4 2.1 1.2 3.5 1.9
IBM Lowes Lubys MetLife MexicoFd Microsoft Modine Penney PlugPowr h RadioShk S&P500ETF Schlmbrg SearsHldgs SiriusXM SonyCp SPDR Fncl UnionPac USSteel UnivHlthS WalMart WellsFargo
NY NY NY NY NY Nasd NY NY Nasd NY NY NY Nasd Nasd NY NY NY NY NY NY NY
3.80 .72 ... 1.10 3.13 1.12 ... ... ... ... 3.48 1.60 ... ... .25 .34 3.64 .20 .20 1.92 1.20
2.0 1.5 ... 2.1 ... 2.7 ... ... ... ... 1.8 1.6 ... ... 1.3 1.5 1.9 .7 .2 2.5 2.4
11 16 17 18 15 ... 26 11 13 ... 11 ... 9 19 14 12 21 ... ... 14 16
35.09 +.02 50.40 -.26 17.34 +.14 99.81 +.44 23.10 +.88 104.49 -1.03 39.08 -.09 70.31 -.04 93.88 +1.48 6.66 +.07 97.73 +.05 62.62 +2.38 16.32 +.72 25.87 -.02 34.34 -.08 33.23 +.87 79.38 +.25 41.49 +.48 117.87 +1.53 25.99 +.18 26.04 +.96
-.2 +7.8 +11.4 +9.9 +3.8 -14.2 -.5 -.5 -3.4 -21.2 -3.4 +14.6 +5.8 -7.7 -16.0 +18.8 -3.6 -.7 +2.2 +.1 -1.2
13 23 ... 15 ... 15 80 ... ... ... ... 19 ... 54 ... ... 20 ... 17 16 13
194.50 +2.01 +3.7 49.43 +.53 -.2 6.29 +.13 -18.5 53.44 +.64 -.9 27.17 +.18 -7.3 41.42 +.43 +10.7 15.19 +.54 +18.5 8.84 +.22 -3.4 7.54 +.44+386.5 2.13 +.01 -18.1 188.25 +1.24 +1.9 97.96 +.46 +8.7 48.62 +.86 -.9 3.24 +.04 -7.2 19.44 +.32 +12.4 22.38 +.04 +2.4 188.44 +.78 +12.2 27.68 +.07 -6.2 82.31 +.24 +1.3 76.77 +.34 -2.4 49.77 +.03 +9.6
Stock Footnotes: g=Dividends and earnings in Canadian dollars .h= Doe not meet continued- listings tandards lf = Late filing with SEC. n = New in past 52 weeks. pf = Preferred. rs = Stock has undergone a reverse stock split of at least 50 percent within the past year. rt = Right to buy security at a specified price. s = Stock has split by at least 20 percent within the last year. un = Units. vj = In bankruptcy or receivership. wd = When distributed. wi = When issued. wt = Warrants. Mutual Fund Footnotes: b = Fee covering market costs is paid from fund assets. d = Deferred sales charge, or redemption fee. f = front load (sales charges). m = Multiple fees are charged. NA = not available. p = previous day’s net asset value. s = fund split shares during the week. x = fund paid a distribution during the week. Gainers and Losers must be worth at least $2 to be listed in tables at left. Most Actives must be worth at least $1. Volume in hundreds of shares. Source: The Associated Press. Sales figures are unofficial.
3.25 3.25 0.75 0.75 .00-.25 .00-.25 0.04 0.06 1.74 2.75 3.61
-.27 +3.30 +7.82 +1.77 +2.19 +1.13 +2.01 +3.58 +2.36 +2.15
+12.76 +25.60 +3.88 +16.40 +31.13 +17.83 +20.08 +22.23 +21.80 +27.23
CURRENCIES
Last PvsWeek Prime Rate Discount Rate Federal Funds Rate Treasuries 3-month 6-month 5-year 10-year 30-year
YTD 12-mo Chgg %Chg %Chg %Chg
16,532.61 +74.95 +.46 7,645.11 +70.15 +.93 528.91 -3.22 -.61 10,584.31 +56.53 +.54 4,268.04 +69.05 +1.64 833.14 +4.91 +.59 1,885.52 +13.18 +.70 1,390.60 +12.10 +.88 20,170.24 +174.23 +.87 1,188.70 +15.66 +1.34
MONEY RATES
15,000
LOSERS ($2 OR MORE)
Name
10 DAYS
16,000
14,500
LOSERS ($2 OR MORE)
16,588.25 7,627.44 537.86 11,334.65 4,371.71 831.58 1,883.97 1,393.60 20,226.72 1,212.82
+69.05
Name
+2.75 +5.17 +3.29 +.65 +3.75 +3.47 +.29 +6.68 +1.11 +.99
STOCK MARKET INDEXES 52-Week High Low
0.05 0.08 1.73 2.75 3.59
Australia Britain Canada Euro Japan Mexico Switzerlnd
Last
Pvs Day
1.0817 1.6629 1.1034 .7250 103.70 13.0414 .8835
1.0784 1.6673 1.1047 .7259 103.22 13.0536 .8840
British pound expressed in U.S. dollars. All others show dollar in foreign currency.
MUTUAL FUNDS Name Alliance Bernstein GlTmtcGA m Columbia ComInfoA m Eaton Vance WldwHealA m Fidelity Select Biotech d Fidelity Select BrokInv d Fidelity Select CommEq d Fidelity Select Computer d Fidelity Select ConsFin d Fidelity Select Electron d Fidelity Select FinSvc d Fidelity Select SoftwCom d Fidelity Select Tech d T Rowe Price SciTech Vanguard HlthCare Waddell & Reed Adv SciTechA m
Total Assets Total Return/Rank Pct Min Init Obj ($Mlns)NAV 4-wk 12-mo 5-year Load Invt WS 618 83.50 -1.3 +24.2/B +14.7/E 4.25 2,500 ST 2,499 53.64 +2.6 +26.6/E +17.4/E 5.75 2,000 SH 955 12.13 -4.2 +36.6/C +19.3/E 5.75 1,000 SH 9,388 199.06 -10.1 +51.9/A +30.6/A NL 2,500 SF 728 73.03 +1.4 +32.0/A +21.9/A NL 2,500 ST 297 31.82 +1.9 +32.7/C +20.9/C NL 2,500 ST 681 78.02 +3.4 +26.1/E +25.3/A NL 2,500 SF 233 16.44 +1.7 +21.7/D +19.0/C NL 2,500 ST 1,353 71.53 +4.7 +43.7/A +24.0/B NL 2,500 SF 934 83.09 +2.7 +27.4/B +18.5/C NL 2,500 ST 3,748 122.02 -1.9 +41.9/A +27.9/A NL 2,500 ST 2,345 127.56 -2.4 +31.8/C +26.2/A NL 2,500 ST 3,059 40.69 +0.6 +41.0/B +22.8/C NL 2,500 SH 10,763 195.86 -1.7 +36.7/C +22.8/C NL 3,000 ST 3,738 16.46 -1.7 +43.8/A +24.7/A 5.75 750
CA -Conservative Allocation, CI -Intermediate-Term Bond, ES -Europe Stock, FB -Foreign Large Blend, FG -Foreign LargeGrowth, FV -Foreign Large Value, IH -World Allocation, LB -Large Blend, LG -Large Growth, LV -Large Value, MA Moderate Allocation, MB -Mid-Cap Blend, MV - Mid-Cap Value, SH -Specialty-heath, WS -World Stock, Total Return: Chng in NAV with dividends reinvested. Rank: How fund performed vs. others with same objective: A is in top 20%, E in bottom 20%. Min Init Invt: Minimum $ needed to invest in fund. Source: Morningstar.
13 GM traffic deaths are tied to a 57-cent part By TOM KRISHER AND DEE-ANN DURBIN ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — The fix for a faulty ignition switch linked to 13 traffic deaths would have cost just 57 cents, members of Congress said Tuesday as they demanded answers from General Motors’ new CEO on why the automaker took 10 years to recall cars with the defect. At a hearing on Capitol Hill before a House subcommittee, GM’s Mary Barra acknowledged under often testy questioning that the company took too long to act. She promised changes at GM that would prevent such a lapse from happening again. “If there’s a safety issue, we’re going to make the right change and accept that,” said Barra, who became CEO in January and almost immediately found herself thrust into one of the biggest product safety crises Detroit has ever seen. But as relatives of the crash victims looked on intently, she admitted that she didn’t know why it took years for the dangerous defect to be announced. And she deflected many questions about what went wrong, saying an internal investigation is under way. Since February, GM has recalled 2.6 million cars — mostly Chevrolet Cobalts and Saturn Ions — over the faulty switch, which can cause the engine to cut off in traffic, disabling the power steering, power brakes and air bags and making it difficult to control the vehicle. The automaker said new switches should be available starting April 7. Barra was firm, calm and polite throughout the proceedings. But she struggled at times to answer lawmakers’ pointed questions, particularly about why GM
Photo by J. Scott Applewhite | AP
Kim Langley, far left, mother of Richard Scott Bailey, a U.S. Marine who died driving a 2007 Chevy Cobalt, Laura Christian, center left, of Harwood, Md., birth mother of Amber Marie Rose, the first reported victim of the GM safety defect, Randal Rademaker, center, father of Amy Rademaker of St. Croix County, Wis., who died when her Chevy Cobalt crashed and her air bags did not deploy, and Shannon Wooten of Adams, Tenn., whose son Joshua died a 2009 crash driving their 2006 Chevy Cobalt, gather at the Capitol for a news conference in Washington on Tuesday. The fix for a faulty ignition switch linked to 13 traffic deaths would have cost just 57 cents, members of Congress said Tuesday as they demanded answers from General Motors’ new CEO on why the automaker took 10 years to recall cars with the defect. used the switch when it knew the part didn’t meet its own specifications. When she tried to draw a distinction between parts that didn’t meet specifications and those that were defective and dangerous, Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, shot back: “What you just answered is gobbledygook.” She also announced that GM has hired Kenneth Feinberg — who handled the fund for the victims of 9/11, the Boston Marathon bombing and the BP oil spill — to explore ways to compensate victims of accidents in the GM cars. Barra stopped short of saying GM would establish such a fund. Some of the questioners appeared surprised that Barra hadn’t reviewed the tens of thousands of pages of documents that GM submitted to the committee,
and that she was unaware of some decision-making processes at the company. Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colo., held up a switch for one of the cars and said a small spring inside it failed to provide enough force, causing engines to turn off when they went over a bump. DeGette showed how easy it was for a light set of car keys to move the ignition out of the “run” position. GM has said that in 2005, company engineers proposed solutions to the switch problem, but the automaker concluded that none represented “an acceptable business case.” “Documents provided by GM show that this unacceptable cost increase was only 57 cents,” DeGette said. The 57 cents is just the cost of the replacement switch. The fig-
ure does not include the labor costs involved in installing the new part. Barra testified that the fix to the switch, if undertaken in 2007, would have cost GM about $100 million, compared with “substantially” more now. Under questioning, she said the automaker’s decision not to make the fix because of cost considerations was “disturbing” and unacceptable, and she assured members of Congress that that kind of thinking represents the old General Motors, and “that is not how GM does business” today. “I think we in the past had more of a cost culture,” Barra said, adding that it is moving toward a more customer-focused culture. Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Pa., chairman of the House Energy and
Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, read from an e-mail exchange between GM employees and those at Delphi, which made the switch. One said that the Cobalt is “blowing up in their face in regards to the car turning off.” Murphy asked why, if the problem was so big, GM didn’t replace all of them in cars already on the road. “Clearly there were a lot of things happening” at that time, Barra said. In his prepared remarks, David Friedman, head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, pointed the finger at GM, saying the automaker had information last decade that could have led to a recall, but shared it only last month. Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said that House Energy and Commerce Committee staff members found 133 warranty claims filed with GM over 10 years detailing customer complaints of sudden engine stalling when they drove over a bump or brushed keys with their knees. The claims were filed between June 2003 and June 2012. Waxman said that because GM didn’t undertake a simple fix when it learned of the problem, “at least a dozen people have died in defective GM vehicles.” Some current GM car owners and relatives of those who died in crashes were also in Washington seeking answers. The group attended the hearing after holding a news conference demanding action against GM and stiffer legislation. Owners of the recalled cars can ask dealers for a loaner vehicle while waiting for the replacement part. Barra said GM has provided more than 13,000 loaners.
Stock market hits record high By KEN SWEET ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW YORK — New signs of life in the U.S. manufacturing sector helped push the stock market to a record high Tuesday. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index gained 13.18 points, or 0.7 percent, to close at 1,885.52. That’s above its previous record of 1,878.04, set on March 7. The gains were broad, with eight out of the ten sectors in the S&P 500 rising. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 74.95 points, or 0.5 percent, to 16,532.61. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 69.05 points, or 1.6 percent, to 4,268.04. Investors were encouraged by two mostly positive economic reports focused on U.S. manufacturing. The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index rose to 53.7 in March, up from 53.2 in February, as the nation’s factories continued to rev up fol-
lowing the severe winter weather earlier this year. Separately, the Commerce Department said construction spending rose by 0.1 percent in February, after falling by 0.2 percent in January. Both reports were the latest signs that the U.S. economy was beginning to thaw following a difficult winter. The biggest gainer in the S&P 500 was the medical device maker Intuitive Surgical, which jumped $55.61, or 13 percent, to $493.60. The Food and Drug Administration approved the company’s newest surgical robotic system, which is designed to do minimally invasive surgeries. Other biotechnology and medical device stocks also rose, a welcome relief for a sector that has been beaten down in the last three weeks. Celgene rose 5 percent, Gilead Sciences rose 4 percent and Amgen rose 2 percent. Ford also was among the biggest gainers in the S&P
500 after reporting a bump up in sales last month. Ford’s U.S. sales chief John Felice says demand picked up in the middle of March, and the company’s top-selling F-Series truck sales gained 5 percent. Other automakers also reported higher sales, including Chrysler and Toyota. Ford rose 72 cents, or 5 percent, to $16.32. “It’s nice to see vehicle sales do well, even with the weather-related concerns last month,” said Neil Massa, senior equity trader at John Hancock Asset Management. It was the first trading day of the second quarter, so Tuesday’s trading was likely impacted by fund managers moving money into the market for the first time after closing their books on the first quarter. The stock market had a choppy first quarter, with the S&P 500 rising only 1.3 percent. In comparison, the S&P 500 rose more than 10 percent in the first quarter
of 2013. Later this week, the market will get the closely watched U.S. jobs report. Economists expect that U.S. employers created 191,000 jobs in March and the unemployment rate remained steady at 6.6 percent. The March report will likely be the first “clean” jobs number investors will get this year, because the December, January and February reports were all affected by the winter storms that enveloped most of the country earlier this year. “Markets will be quiet until we get that number,” said Jonathan Corpina, a floor trader at the New York Stock Exchange with Meridian Equity Partners. In other markets, bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.76 percent from 2.72 percent late Monday. The price of crude oil slipped $1.84 to $99.74 a barrel. Gold was little changed at $1,279.60 an ounce.
Photo by Richard Drew/file | AP
Trader Daniel Trimble, left, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Friday. New signs of life in the U.S. manufacturing sector helped push the stock market to a record high Tuesday.
10A THE ZAPATA TIMES
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014
ZCISD Continued from Page 1A
Photo by Sofia Jaramillo/The Herald | AP
An American flag hangs from the only cedar post left standing at the scene of a deadly mudslide Monday in Oso, Wash.
Death toll climbs 28 dead after horrifying Washington mudslide ASSOCIATED PRESS
ARLINGTON, Wash. — The official death toll from Washington state’s mudslide has increased to 28, and the Snohomish County medical examiner’s office says 22 of those victims have been identified. That’s up from 27 dead with 19 identified Tuesday morning. The latest names added to the
list are 65-year-old Thom E. Satterlee, 60-year-old Lon E. Slauson and 23-year-old Adam Farnes. Like the rest, they were died of blunt force injuries suffered in the March 22 slide northeast of Seattle. Officials say receding floodwaters near the rural community of Oso are helping in the search for human remains by exposing more sites that can be examined.
ed about things.” Trustees interviewed six of the 17 applicants for the job and two of the six were brought back for a second interview. Under state law, the names of those who apply for a superintendent position are confidential. A district must only release the names of finalists for the job. Typically, only one finalist is named. Nuques, a native of Ecuador who was raised in New York City, is a Texas A&M International University graduate. He started his education career as a science teacher at United South High School in 2003. Nuques said educating special education students, English language learners and those from low socioeconomic backgrounds are his main strengths. He said he worked with such student populations at UISD, Uvalde and Austin. In 2007, Nuques left his position as a science facilitator at Los Obispos Middle School to become an assistant principal and dean of instruction at a McAllen ISD middle school. He later became an assistant principal at a McAllen ISD high school. From April to December 2012, he served as principal at Uvalde Junior High. Nuques has a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a master’s degree in international trade from TAMIU. He also received a master’s degree in public school administration from TAMIU.
PLEA Continued from Page 1A from a construction magnate in exchange for state contracts, then laundering millions of dollars in the U.S. As part of his plea agreement, Peña agreed to turn over to the government his house in San Antonio, four in Laredo, $4.2 million in an investment account, nearly $600,000 in two Falcon International Bank accounts, a Land Rover and an F-150 pickup. He’s still fighting over $1.75 million the government wants him to forfeit, the proceeds of the sale of his ownership in three small Texas oil companies. “We don’t think a fine would be appropriate, given the amount of assets this defendant has agreed to forfeit to the United States,” Strauss told the judge during Monday’s hearing. Peña’s arrest in February 2012 made headlines on both sides of the border be-
cause court documents alleged he’d been an intermediary between now jailed Zetas leader Miguel Treviño Morales and Yarrington. The documents contained text messages allegedly from Treviño to Peña accusing him of being involved in the 2010 assassination of the leading gubernatorial candidate in Tamaulipas. By 2011, however, the relationship between Peña and Treviño had turned deadly. In November of that year, the Zetas killed Peña’s brother and publicly displayed his body in the border city of Nuevo Laredo, their hometown, along with a banner accusing him of stealing $5 million from the cartel. Peña fled Laredo and took refuge at his home in San Antonio’s Champions Ridge subdivision, where he was arrested months later. He’s served 25 months in jail, and prosecutors said
Peña will be given credit for time served, making him eligible to serve the rest of his sentence in a federal halfway house. The U.S. Probation Department had recommended he receive a sentence between nine and 11 years, but prosecutors asked the judge to give him a lighter prison term. Neither prosecutors nor defense attorneys would say if Peña, who’s a citizen of Mexico, faces deportation. Yarrington, who remains a fugitive and who prosecutors recently said they will ask to be extradited to the U.S., meanwhile has taken to posting on his personal website a defense against the charges he faces both in the U.S. and Mexico. During 2011 and 2012, a series of “protected witnesses” made statements to Mexican prosecutors in San Antonio, according to the documents. Among
them was a man who sold Peña the house in Champions Ridge. Peña purchased the house with a $400,000 cashiers check and $70,000 in $20 bills, according to U.S. court records. Yarrington’s Houston attorney, Joel Androphy, said he doesn’t know if Peña was one of the people who offered testimony against Yarrington to Mexican prosecutors in San Antonio, but he does believe Peña was detained in Mexico several years ago and coerced to provide information against the former governor. “He was actually eating dinner or lunch with my client, perhaps, and he was taken into a facility, that’s probably a nice way of saying into a place where he was abused and forced to cooperate against his will and make statements that were not accurate,” Androphy said. “That’s what’s been reported to me.”
MASS Continued from Page 1A feet from the fence. The Catholic leaders believe that immigration is a humanitarian issue that deserves urgent attention by Congress. They cite the dozens of immigrants who die each year in the brutal desert terrain while trying to cross illegally into the United States along the roughly 2,000-milelong border with Mexico and note that the immigrants are simply trying to find better lives in America. “This is not just a political or economic problem,” O’Malley said Tuesday. “This is a moral problem.” Several hundred people attended the Mass, which was translated into Spanish, and a few dozen people peered through the border fence from Mexico to watch the ceremony. O’Malley and Bishop Gerald Kicanas of the Tucson Diocese offered Holy Communion through the fence, providing people in Mexico wafers as a blessing as some of the recipients broke down in tears. During the Mass, the clergymen laid a wreath at the border wall to remember those who have died. It followed a similar event in Lampedusa, Italy, last year when the pope threw a wreath into the Mediterranean Sea to remember migrants who have died attempting to reach Europe. The push for immigration reform in Congress has been stalled for months, with Democrats and Republicans unable to reach an agreement over the divisive issue. House Democrats last week tried to force a vote on a comprehensive immigration bill, an effort that is likely to fail given Republican reluctance to address the topic in an election year while all signs point to major gains for the GOP in the November midterms. The Senate passed a comprehensive bill last June, but the measure stalled in the GOP-con-
trolled House, where Republicans have argued for a piecemeal approach to reforming the system. Arizona state Sen. Al Melvin, a Republican running for governor, said the clergy visit will do little to solve problems on the border. He said developing privatesector jobs in northern Mexico and securing the border to prevent drug and human trafficking are needed to bring stability to both sides of the international boundary. “Frankly, and I am a Catholic, I think this is irresponsible of these bishops to be down there,” Melvin said. “They are not bringing stability to the border. They are adding to the chaos of the border. And it’s not helping to save lives. If anything, I believe it will contribute to more lives being lost. We need to secure the border to protect lives.” During his first meeting with Pope Francis last week at the Vatican, Obama expressed his interest in getting immigration reform through Congress, explaining during a news conference that “there was still an opportunity for us to make this right and get a law passed.” “And as someone who came from Latin America, I think he (Pope Francis) is very mindful of the plight of so many immigrants who are wonderful people, working hard, making contributions, many of their children are U.S. citizens, and yet they still live in the shadows, in many cases have been deported and are separated from families,” Obama said. Mike Fleming traveled from Tucson to attend the Mass and voiced his support for the message of the Catholic leaders. “Someday in my lifetime I hope this comes down,” Fleming said. “We’re all one people. As Christians, we’re all one people under God. There’s no need for this wall.”