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REP. HENRY CUELLAR
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
Coming into town
Reward money doubled
Congressman will hold 2 events THE ZAPATA TIMES
CUELLAR
U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar, D-Zapata, will be in town Tuesday for two events. He will first hold a press conference to announce the expansion of the Department of Veterans Affairs Choice Program for eligible veterans in Zapata County. The program allows vet-
erans who qualify to receive non-VA health care rather than traveling to a VA facility. The nearest VA facilities to Zapata are the Laredo Outpatient Clinic and the Laredo Vet Center, both in Laredo. Veterans who currently reside more than 40 miles from the closest VA health care facilities are eligible for the Choice Program. Cuellar will join Hugo
Martinez of the Public Affairs Office for the VA Texas Valley Coastal Bend and Zapata County officials for the press conference, which will take place at the Zapata County Technical and Advanced Education Center (ZTAC) at 3:45 p.m. Immediately following, Cuellar will speak with
See CUELLAR PAGE 11A
TEXAS DROUGHT
LAKE LEVELS RISING
Woman wanted for indecency with child by sexual contact, still at large By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
State authorities have doubled the amount of reward money for information leading to the arrest of a former mental health center employee who sexually molested a female UISD student, according to reports. The Texas Department of Public Safety is now offering $10,000 for tips leading to the capture of Iris Iliana Rodriguez, 25. Rodriguez — who is wanted for indecency with a child by sexual contact, harassment and unlawful restraint — was added to the Texas 10 Most Wanted Fugitive list on Feb. 23. “One offender from the Texas 10 Most Wanted Program is featured each month in hopes the higher reward money from the Governor’s Criminal Justice Division will generate additional tips,” states the DPS news release and further adds the higher reward amount will only be paid if the tip comes in the month of May.
RODRIGUEZ Initially, the reward was $5,000. “The reason that the reward was raised is that this is a serious case,” said Clemente Camarillo, chief of police at United Independent School District. Camarillo hopes the money will attract callers. “We’re willing to pay anything, no matter the amount, to bring (Rodriguez) back to justice,” he said. DPS said Rodriguez, a former Border Region Behavioral Health Center employee, has strong ties
See WANTED PAGE 11A
US CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION
CBP accepting applications Photo by Vernon Bryant/The Dallas Morning News | AP
A fisherman moves down Lavon Lake at East Fork park on April 10 in Lavon, Texas. Most lakes in the Dallas-Fort Worth area have been well below capacity since shortly after 2011, the state’s driest-ever year. Statewide, estimates from the National Weather Service indicate the first four months of this year have been the wettest since 1997.
SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
El Niño has given the state good rainfall By BETSY BLANEY ASSOCIATED PRESS
LUBBOCK — Restaurant owner Kelly Duncan gazes incredulously at a full Lake Lavon. Three months ago, this lake northeast of Dallas was half-full. Good rainfalls in March and April brought big changes — the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released water this week from the full lake to reduce flood risk.
“I forgot what it looked like when it was full,” the 59-year-old owner of Big Daddy’s Roadhouse BBQ said. “It’s looking really good.” Statewide, estimates from the National Weather Service indicate the first four months of this year have been the fifth wettest since 1895 and the wettest since 1997. So far this year, estimates show the state
See LAKE PAGE 11A
Candidates selected can work in Laredo, Hidalgo, Pharr, elsewhere
Photo by Vernon Bryant/The Dallas Morning News | AP
This April 10 photo shows Lavon Lake at East Fork park in Lavon, Texas. Lavon Lake is more than 80 percent full. So far this year, estimates show the state has gotten 11.5 inches of precipitation, or about 160 percent of the normal 7.1 inches.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection is accepting applications nationwide for CBP officer positions at some air, land, and sea ports on the Southwest border and other select locations. The announcement will be open through May 11 or until 15,000 applications are received. As a key component of the Department of Homeland Security’s frontline defense, a CBP officers’ primary responsibility is to detect and prevent terrorists, their weapons, and other threats from entering the United States
while facilitating legitimate trade and travel. This requires enforcing more than 400 laws related to trade, contraband, agricultural pests and diseases, and admissibility of individuals. An applicant for the CBP officer position must be a U.S. citizen and a resident of the United States for the past three years; must be referred for selection prior to their 37th birthday (or a preferenceeligible veteran, or have prior civilian federal law enforcement experience); and have a valid state driver’s license. In addi-
See CBP PAGE 11A
PAGE 2A
Zin brief CALENDAR
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
AROUND TEXAS
TODAY IN HISTORY
SATURDAY, MAY 2
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Habitat for Humanity National Women Build Event at the corner of Severita Lane in Los Obispos, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Contact Erin Saenz for more information at outreach@habitatlaredo.org.
Today is Saturday, May 2, the 122nd day of 2015. There are 243 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On May 2, 1945, the Soviet Union announced the fall of Berlin, and the Allies reported the surrender of German troops in Italy. On this date: In 1863, during the Civil War, Confederate Gen. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson was accidentally wounded by his own men at Chancellorsville, Virginia; he died eight days later. In 1885, Good Housekeeping magazine was first published in Holyoke, Massachusetts. In 1890, the Oklahoma Territory was organized. In 1908, the original version of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” with music by Albert Von Tilzer and lyrics by Jack Norworth, was published by Von Tilzer’s York Music Co. In 1963, the Children’s Crusade began in Birmingham, Alabama, as more than 1,000 black schoolchildren skipped classes and marched downtown to protest racial segregation; hundreds were arrested. In 1970, jockey Diane Crump became the first woman to ride in the Kentucky Derby; she finished in 15th place aboard Fathom. (The winning horse was Dust Commander.) In 1994, Nelson Mandela claimed victory in the wake of South Africa’s first democratic elections; President F.W. de Klerk acknowledged defeat. In 2011, Osama bin Laden was killed by elite American forces at his Pakistan compound, then quickly buried at sea after a decade on the run. Ten years ago: Pfc. Lynndie England, the young woman pictured in some of the most notorious Abu Ghraib photos, pleaded guilty at Fort Hood, Texas, to mistreating prisoners. (However, a judge later threw out the plea agreement; England was later convicted in a court-martial and received a three-year sentence, of which she served half.) Five years ago: President Barack Obama traveled to Louisiana to view the response to the BP oil spill, pledging that the government “will do whatever it takes for as long as it takes to stop this crisis.” One year ago: President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel met at the White House, where they threatened tough sanctions on broad swaths of Russia’s economy if Moscow disrupted Ukraine’s May 25 presidential elections. Today’s Birthdays: Actor Theodore Bikel is 91. Singer Engelbert Humperdinck is 79. Former International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge is 73. Actress-activist Bianca Jagger is 70. Singersongwriter Larry Gatlin is 67. Actress Christine Baranski is 63. Fashion designer Donatella Versace is 60. Country singer Ty Herndon is 53. Wrestlerturned-actor Dwayne Johnson (AKA The Rock) is 43. Soccer player David Beckham is 40. Actress Ellie Kemper is 35. Pop singer Lily Rose Cooper is 30. Olympic gold medal figure skater Sarah Hughes is 30. Actress Kay Panabaker is 25. Thought for Today: “Have you ever observed that we pay much more attention to a wise passage when it is quoted than when we read it in the original author?” — Philip G. Hamerton, English artist and essayist (1834-1894).
SUNDAY, MAY 3 Holy Redeemer Church annual Jamaica. Food, games and silent auction. Contact Amparo Ugarte at 2860862. ALS water slide kick off at 209 W. Village Blvd. from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. All proceeds benefit the ALS Association Texas Chapter. Contact Marc at 956-334-3430 for more information.
MONDAY, MAY 4 Monthly Laredo Soup Dinner from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Holding Institute Community Center, 1102 Santa Maria. For a $5 donation, attendees receive soup, salad, bread and a vote for one of four presentations ranging from art, urban agriculture, social justice, social entrepreneurs, education, technology and more. At the event, attendees eat, talk, share resources, enjoy art and vote on the project they think benefits the city the most. At the end of the night, the ballots are counted and the winner goes home with all of the money raised to carry out their project. For more information, contact Vicky Garcia at laredosoup@gmail.com or 763-3667.
TUESDAY, MAY 5 “Cinco de Mayo” holiday fundraiser for the South Texas Food Bank at Hal’s Landing, 6510 Arena Blvd. 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Ross and Friends on the main stage and five other bands on the patio and arcade: JoAnna and The Reminiscence, Jolly Ranchers, Expansivo, La Mission Vallenata and La Autentica Sonora. Admission is $10. Tickets at the door or from Salo Otero, 324-2432. Rock wall climbing from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at LBV Inner City Branch Library, 202 W. Plum St. People of all ages are invited. Climbers must bring an ID and sign the release form. Weather permitting. Contact John Hong at john@laredolibrary.org or 7952400 x2520. The Alzheimer’s support group will meet at 7 p.m. in meeting room 2, building B of the Laredo Medical Center. The support group is for family members and caregivers taking care of someone who has Alzheimer’s. Call 693-9991. Les Amies Birthday Club will meet at 11:30 am at the Ramada Plaza. The honoree will be Herminia Molina. The Hostesses are Olivia Arroyo, Amparo Garcia and Grace Stegmann. Orthopedic Clinics held at Ruthe B. Cowl Rehabilitation Center. Each clinic is held every second Tuesday of every month in collaboration with UT Health Science Center. Dr. John Faust and Dr. Sekinat McCormick are the attending pediatric orthopedic specialists. Patients must register at the Center in advance.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 6 Used book sale, First United Methodist Church, 10 a.m. to noon. 19th annual VMT Journalism Students’ Photography Exhibition continues through May 9 at the Laredo Area Community Foundation Gallery at the Laredo Center for the Arts. For more information contact Mark Webber at mwebber004@laredoisd.org.
Photo by Eric Gay | AP file
In this March 6, 2013, file photo, Dan Phillips, a member of the San Antonio Living History Association, patrols the Alamo during a pre-dawn memorial ceremony to remember the 1836 Battle of the Alamo in San Antonio. A federal judge has ruled that as the owner of the Alamo, Texas also owns the shrine’s image and can challenge those who use its likeness.
Texas owns all Alamos ASSOCIATED PRESS
SAN ANTONIO — A federal judge has ruled that as the owner of the Alamo, the state of Texas also owns the shrine’s image and can challenge those who use its likeness. The San Antonio Express-News reports the judge signed a court order Thursday restricting two beer makers from using images the Texas General Land Office said infringed on the state’s Alamo trademark. Texas General Land Commissioner George P. Bush said the decision “ensures that commercial use of the Alamo is protected from improper use in order to preserve the honor of our beloved Alamo.” Last year, Alamo Beer Company of San Antonio filed a lawsuit against Old 300 Brewing, which operates as Texian Brewing in Richmond, claiming trademark infringement
Deputies believe deaths of two may be linked
Witch doctor gets federal prison for drug scheme
Teen gets 45-year prison term for killing family
HOUSTON — Harris County homicide investigators believe the discoveries of two bodies found about 14 miles apart may be related. Firefighters called to put out a car fire Friday discovered a body inside. The car had been set ablaze 100 yards off a canal next to a wooded area. Then about two hours later, deputies were summoned to a park where the body of a man was found. Authorities say he had head trauma and may have been shot.
BEAUMONT — A Nigerian man who federal prosecutors say portrayed himself as a “witch doctor” has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for collecting hundreds of thousands of dollars from cocaine traffickers looking to get his supernatural protection from authorities. The 58year-old provided traffickers with massages with magic ointments, razor blade cuttings and various magic powders to keep police away. They didn’t work.
WEATHERFORD — A teenager has been sentenced to 45 years in prison for fatally shooting his mother and sister at their North Texas home. The Weatherford Democrat reports that 19-year-old Jake Evans pleaded guilty Thursday to two counts of murder in the killing of 48-year-old Jami Evans and 15year-old Mallory Evans in October 2012. Jake Evans was 17 years old when he shot them.
Man found with bottle of urine to beat drug test
High schools get more patrols after robberies
LUFKIN — An East Texas man already on probation is jailed after his probation officer discovered he had a shampoo bottle filled with urine taped to his genitals in an attempt to falsify a drug screening test. The probation officer became suspicious when the man didn’t want the officer watching him.
CORPUS CHRISTI — School officials in Corpus Christi are beefing up security at five schools after several armed robberies near two schools and a fire set at another high school campus. The most recent robbery occurred Thursday when a 17-year-old Carroll High School student was robbed of his shoes.
SATURDAY, MAY 9 Operation Feed the Homeless. 2 p.m. at Jarvis Plaza. Make a donation or volunteer time. For more information please visit Facebook: Operation Feed the Homeless. Hogs n Dogs & Vatos n Gatos Concert & Cook-off Fundraiser
El Paso police shooting draws Mexican scrutiny EL PASO — A fatal police shooting in El Paso is drawing Mexican government scrutiny. Officers responding to a burglary call Wednesday night encountered Erick Emmanuel Salas Sanchez, who armed himself with a metal object and threatened the officers. One officer shot Sanchez, who died later. — Compiled from AP reports
AROUND THE NATION
THURSDAY, MAY 7 Elysian Social Club will be hosting their regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. Contact Herlinda Nieto-Dubuisson at 956-285-3126 for more information. The Laredo Chamber of Commerce will celebrate its 100th anniversary at the Laredo Energy Arena from 6:30 p.m. – 10 p.m. Music, dinner, cocktails and guest Terry Bradshaw, co-host of NFL Sunday. Contact Liz Martinez at liz@laredochamber.com or at 722-9895. Cost is $150. The Villa San Agustin de Laredo Genealogical Society and the Laredo Public Library will hold the “AYER” Historical and Genealogical Exhibit at the Laredo Public Library on Calton from noon to 7 p.m. Contact Sanjuanita Martinez-Hunter at 722-3497.
occurred with the use of the Alamo on products and promotional materials. The lawsuit claimed “Texian Brewing’s overall commercial impression through use of the Alamo outline/silhouette is an effort to capitalize on the significant goodwill developed by Alamo Beer since 1997.” The Land Office intervened leading to the ruling. The court order permanently enjoins and restrains the companies from using “any other mark or name confusingly similar” to those trademarked by the state. The Land Commission says it does not oppose the use of the word “Alamo” with products or services as long as images of the roofline design of the building are not used. Eugene Simor, president of Alamo Beer, says his company does not have to change its label, which has “Alamo” in stylized letters because it now has a license with the state.
May Day rallies broaden to address police brutality LOS ANGELES — Hundreds marched and rallied in U.S. cities on Friday to demand more rights for workers and immigrants and an end to police brutality after several high-profile cases of black men who died after encounters with authorities. Rallies were held in cities from Minneapolis, Minnesota to Oakland, California and more were planned for New York, Los Angeles and Seattle. In Chicago, some parents brought children to demonstrations to teach them how to interact with police officers.
Blues legend B.B. King reports he’s in hospice LAS VEGAS — Blues legend B.B. King is telling fans he’s in hospice care at home in Las Vegas. The 89-year-old musician posted thanks to fans on his offi-
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Student protestors from the Twin Cities and some suburbs joined at Martin Luther King Park Friday in Edina, Minn, in support of protesters arrested in December at the Mall of America. cial website Friday for well-wishes and prayers. Las Vegas police Officer Jesse Roybal says an ambulance was summoned Thursday to King’s address and a person was hospitalized following what was characterized as a dispute over med-
ical care. The hospitalization was the second in a month for King, who was diagnosed with diabetes decades ago. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has released more than 50 albums and sold millions of records worldwide. — 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
State
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
Rules eyed after explosion By EVA RUTH MORAVEC ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUSTIN — One chamber of the Texas Legislature passed the first measure to regulate the storage of chemicals since a fertilizer plant exploded in the town of West more than two years ago, killing 15 people and devastating a wide area around the plant. The Texas House gave preliminary approval to strengthening some rules for storing ammonium nitrate, a highly flammable but commonly used chemical in agricultural fertilizers. The proposal was advanced by Republican Rep. Kyle Kacal, whose district includes West, where the explosion on April 17, 2013 destroyed a large swath of the town. The fire at the West Fertilizer Co. ignited in a seed room and quickly engulfed an area where ammonium nitrate was stored in wooden containers. The chemical caused a
Photo by Tony Gutierrez | AP file
This April 18, 2013, file aerial photo shows the remains of a nursing home, left, apartment complex, center, and fertilizer plant, right, destroyed by an explosion in West, Texas. massive detonation, an investigation by the State Fire Marshals’ Office and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives revealed. Authorities never determined how the fire started in the seed room. The bill passed Friday — which still must pass the state Senate and be signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott— would give local fire marshals the power to in-
spect facilities and order owners to make changes if any conditions in the facility could cause a fire or explosion. The proposal would require that ammonium nitrate be stored separate from combustible materials. It would also require that facilities report hazardous chemicals to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which then must make the chemical storage
information public. The measure is “good enough for West,” Kacal said. But other lawmakers said Texas has not passed tougher measures because it is concerned they could harm business. Texas has frequently touted its strong economic and job growth, business-friendly climate and low regulations as reasons why businesses from other states should relocate to Texas. “My fear was, and is — Did we learn our lesson, and is this enough? I don’t believe so,” said El Paso Democratic Rep. Joe Pickett, who chaired an interim panel that studied the disaster. While the plant explosion occurred as lawmakers were meeting in 2013, Pickett said his committee deliberately moved slowly to recommend changes to state law. They held many multiagency hearings before releasing a report in January, and Pickett said he expected the measures to be approved quickly.
More members join Horse Patrol By LORENZO ZAZUETA-CASTRO THE MONITOR
MISSION — Jared Barton has ridden horses since he was a toddler. But rumbling on a Florida cattle ranch isn’t the same as the trails he’ll traverse going forward — the rough terrain of immigrant and drug smuggling trails in the Rio Grande Valley. The Monitor reports Barton is one of the latest members of the U.S. Border Horse Patrol, a specialty group of agents that work on horseback and have been doing so since the early 1920s. The 38-year-old agent was one of seven agents who officially completed a six-week training course to join the group in the Rio Grande Valley sector. “I grew up on a cattle ranch in Florida and have been riding horses since I was 2 or 3 — so I did have
Photo by Joel Martinez/The Monitor | AP
U.S. Border Patrol agent Jorge De Leon claims Grizzy during a training session at Morillo Banco Horse Patrol Compound, Wednesday, in Mission, Texas. a considerable amount of experience when I got here,” Barton said. “My grandfather had a ranch and owned more than 100 horses — I’d go out and help my family work the cattle and continued to do that until I left home.” The Horse Patrol has 30
agents working the sector, where there are plans to enlist another 10 agents and 10 horses by July. Horse Patrol supervisor Ruben Garcia Jr., who has worked with the Border Patrol for more than 15 years, said the agency needed a new stable to keep its
horses after it canceled a commercial boarding contract all while doubling the size of its herd to 30 horses. Border Patrol partnered with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to convert an unused warehouse into the Morillo Banco Horse Patrol Compound. The stable, located about a mile from the Rio Grande, has room for up to 38 horses and features two full-sized barns on a two-acre plot. The Rio Grande Valley sector’s Horse Patrol unit during the 2014 fiscal year caught about 10,500 people — the highest amount of apprehensions nationwide with one of the smallest herd of horses, Garcia said. For Barton, his first day on the back of his new partner — a 7-year-old American Paint named “El Santo” — comes Sunday. “I’m really excited to move into this phase of my career,” Barton said.
THE ZAPATA TIMES 3A
Free Comic Book Day hits Laredo SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
Legacy Comics in Laredo is one of thousands of comic book shops around the world celebrating the biggest day in the comic book industry and comic art form today. To celebrate, Legacy Comics will be giving away over 5,000 free comic books and will be hosting seven well known comic book artists. “The wide array of comic books being published today ensures that readers of all ages — children, teens, and adults — can find something appropriate that will stir their imaginations,” said Chris Niles, Co-Owner of Legacy Comics. "Comic books and graphic novels are considered a hot form of entertainment, that are fun and a smart pick for readers to dive into as imagination comes to life with the turn of every page.” Free Comic Book Day is celebrating its 14th year. “Every year FCBD just seems to grow in Laredo,” added Peter Mares, Media Manager for Legacy Comics. “This is our eighth year doing the event and lines get longer and longer. Last year’s was packed with eager families picking up some amazing titles.” The creators joining the event this year are Mitch Gerads, Sam de la Rosa, Carlo Barberi, Vo Nguyen, Brad Garneau, David Roman, Fabian Rangel, Jr., and Hansel Moreno. Mitch Gerads is currently the artist on Marvel’s The Punisher and cocreator of The Activity from Image Comics. Gerads has also worked on such comic properties as Doctor Who, Stan Lee’s Starborn, Bandette, Planet
of the Apes, Johnny Recon and more. Gerads is also an accomplished illustrator in the commercial art field having worked for such companies as General Mills, Adult Swim, Nabisco, and many others. Sam de la Rosa, since 1982, has been a comic book finishing artist/inker for Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Disney and others. Carlo Barberi has worked in the comic industry since 2000. His professional work in the U.S. was for Dark Horse on the DHP (Dark Horse Presents) book doing 4 small stories. Vo Nguyen is currently working on a creator owned comic project, an art book of his paintings, and a few comic and novel covers. Past works include many trading card sets from Marvel, DC, and many other licensed characters. Brad Garneau is a Texas-based independent artist. David Angelo Roman is a classically trained artist, having studied in Spain and Italy. Today, he is a professional artist specializing in comic fan art and working for Guardian Knight Comics. Fabian began writing and self publishing comics in 2010. His most recent work includes DOC UNKNOWN (available on ComiXology Submit), and SIX (a horror anthology), both of which were successfully funded on Kickstarter. Hansel Moreno is a Legacy Comics customer, friend and now published writer. Free Comic Book Day kicks off at 10 a.m. and runs until 7 p.m. at Legacy Comics, 5901 McPherson Rd. Ste 2B. Call 7234420 for more information.
PAGE 4A
Zopinion
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
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OTHER VIEWS
Baltimore’s mayor wilted under fire By CHRIS CILLIZZA THE WASHINGTON POST
WASHINGTON — Baltimore isn’t the District of Columbia. This isn’t news to you, gentle reader. But it may be your initial response when I tell you that Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is my choice for the winner of the Worst Week in Washington. How can that be, you ask? Well, because rules are made to be broken. Because Baltimore is close enough to D.C. And mostly because Rawlings-Blake’s horrendous handling of the riots that broke out in the wake of Monday’s memorial service for Freddie Gray more than makes up for the 40 miles that separate the two cities. It would take a column far longer than this one to dissect all the mistakes Rawlings-Blake made as anger over Gray’s death, apparently from an injury he sustained while in police custody, roiled Charm City. But here are the biggies. First, she waited until 8 p.m. Monday, after police
in riot gear had already clashed with teenagers in West Baltimore, before making a public statement. The first rule for any politician when your city is in crisis is “be present.” It’s impossible to be too high-profile in those moments. Second, at the news conference Rawlings-Blake finally held, she referred to the rioters as “thugs.” By Wednesday, she was apologizing for that word choice. “I wanted to clarify my comments on ‘thugs,’” she tweeted. “When you speak out of frustration and anger, one can say things in a way that you don’t mean.” Yes, one can. For a supposed rising star in national Democratic politics, Rawlings-Blake seemed to wilt when her city needed her most. Stephanie RawlingsBlake, for so badly mishandling a crisis that I was forced to change my rules for who gets this award, you had the Worst Week in Washington. Congrats, or something. (Cillizza covers the White House for The Washington Post.)
COMMENTARY
Clean-energy future is goal By VIVEK WADHWA SPECIAL TO THE WASHINGTON POST
Most people are skeptical that we’re heading into a clean-energy future. They find it hard to believe that solar energy is fewer than 14 years away from meeting 100 percent of today’s energy needs. They argue that today solar energy hardly provides 1 percent of Earth’s energy needs and that we can’t effectively store sunlight — and therefore have a long way to go. But when technologies advance exponentially as solar is doing, one percent solar means we are halfway from 0.01 percent to the goal of 100 percent. The prices of solar panels have fallen 75 percent in the past five years and are advancing on a scale comparable to Moore’s Law, as tech guru Ramez Naam has documented. At this rate, solar energy is only six doublings away from 100 percent. What has been holding solar back so far has ostensibly been the cost of storage. Technologies such as batteries were prohibitively expensive, large and cumbersome. Residential solar installations needed to feed into the electric grid during the day and to buy back energy during the night. This is a problem that Tesla has just fixed, though, with its Powerwall, a rechargeable lithium-ion battery. The Powerwall is available in two configurations: 7kWh and 10kWh. The larger unit provides the backup power needed if the grid goes down. Tesla says that the 7kWh Powerwall is sufficient for daily use. It is selling the units to installers for $3,500 for 10kWh and $3,000 for 7kWh. I already live in the clean-energy future that I write about. I live in a solar home that provides most of the power needed
for heating, cooling and cooking — and for charging my Tesla Model S. My electric bills in the California winters are in the $100 range, but are zero or negative in summer. This is a tiny fraction of what I used to spend. But I am dependent on the grid and have to bear power outages when they occur in the neighborhood, every year or so. Nothing is more annoying than having the sun shine and generate electricity that you can’t use. This is the problem that Tesla promises to solve for me. For most consumers, it will be a matter of economics. Utilities charge more during the day, when energy usage is at its peak, and less at night when usage declines. Consumers will now be able to charge their Powerwalls up when prices are low, in the day, and reduce their energy bills. It is going to be a rocky road to the cleanenergy future, because the entire fossil-fuel industry, starting with utility companies — which will face declining demand and then bankruptcy — will try to create political obstacles to solar. Several utilities, such as the Hawaiian Electric Co., are lobbying to stop the progress of solar power generation. Arizona has been trying to imposing fees of about $50 per month for customers who use solar. With the Tesla technology, customers will have the option of disconnecting completely from the grid — so the utilities that fight solar generation will only succeed in accelerating their own demise. Tesla is about to do to the power grid what cellphones did to the land line — free us from it. And it will dramatically accelerate the progress of clean energy.
COMMENTARY
Memories of earlier riots in Baltimore and Washington By LLEWELLYN KING HEARST NEWSPAPERS
I was in Baltimore the last time it burned. That was back in April 1968, after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Washington also burned at that time. There was something surreal about the mood of the riots in both cities. The anger from AfricanAmerican rioters seemed to be directed wholly against property. I walked among the rioters, up 14th Street to the U Street Corridor, the commercial hub of the Shaw area of Washington. Later that day, I drove around Baltimore. They seemed to me to be an uncommonly respectful pair of riots. In Washington, young African-American men directed me where to go safely; one looter, coming out of a shop on 14th and F Street, asked me if I needed anything, as though he were the proprietor. Over the decades, I have wondered about those riots. I think they were indeed riots of anger as well as sorrow. King, the great civil rights leader, had been murdered, and already people knew there would not be another like him. For days I drove around Baltimore, where I lived at the time, and Washington, where troops were patrolling and curfews were in place. With a large
As crime increased everywhere, it surged in Baltimore. ”PRESS” sign taped on my car’s windshield, I was allowed to drive around both cities, and I watched them come to grips with reality. A Washington Post writer described how a white motorist and a black motorist had waved each other through an intersection, both feeling they were doing something significant. But Washington is not Baltimore. And, at that time, Baltimore was as segregated as any Southern city. The proprietor of a bar near The Baltimore NewsAmerican, the Hearst newspaper where I worked, would shoo away blacks with this lie, “This is a private club and I can’t serve you, but I can sell you a bottle to go.” I wanted to challenge this, and urged a black friend on the newspaper, Lee Lassiter, to come with me and make a stand. He demurred, not because he was lacking in courage, but because he was fighting another battle over bars. Lassiter and other activists were trying to restrict the spread of cheap bars in the ghetto, where licenses were indiscrimi-
nately issued by a white board to white businessmen. Unlike Washington which, in some ways, was a more secure community and where there was certain amount of integration, the whites in Baltimore took little interest in the blacks. There was no sense that they shared a city. Baltimore’s politics were white; its sensibilities were white; and it was comfortably assumed that in the profusion of row houses, there were happy blacks, living a happy parallel life — although that term was not used. Not true then, and not true now. This is a subjective comment, but I have always felt there is a kind of special dejection in the Baltimore ghetto. While there was manufacturing, steel and shipbuilding and a car plant in Baltimore, guaranteeing good union jobs, there were pockets of prosperity. As these jobs faded in Baltimore, and other American cities, so did the hope for a route to the middle class for those in the ghetto. As crime increased everywhere, it surged in
Baltimore. Gun ownership shot up, mostly among ghetto youth. Baltimore’s police — who probably felt the effect in their families, if not in their own aspirations, of the end of industrial prosperity — took out their frustrations on those who had even minor malefactions. Men in uniform easily degenerate into bullies. I saw this in London. When a policeman and a suspect face off, after the policeman is sure that he is not facing an ambush, he has absolute power over the suspect. It is an intrinsically ugly moment: when the handcuffs click, justice and liberty are at bay. Later in court, or through a civilian review, those things may be re-established. But when the suspect is under lock and key, the police power is absolute — and it is absolutely corrupting. Police officers go over the line often, and I have seen this all over the world. Race worsens things, but it is not a necessary ingredient. It is sad for me that, 47 years later, Baltimore should have been torched by a mob. It is sad, too, that things in the row houses of Baltimore are as bad as ever, and that the mob is still the only voice black Baltimoreans think they have. (Llewellyn King’s e-mail is lking@kingpublishing.com.)
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CLASSIC DOONESBURY (1982) | GARRY TRUDEAU
Mexico
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
THE ZAPATA TIMES 5A
7 killed, 12 injured amid violence in Jalisco By ELIZABETH RIVERA AND CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN ASSOCIATED PRESS
GUADALAJARA, Mexico — Flames and gunfire erupted around the western Mexican state of Jalisco on Friday as a military operation targeting a violent drug cartel was launched at the start of a three-day holiday weekend. Suspected cartel members stopped buses and trucks across key highways in the state capital of Guadalajara and other cities, snarling traffic on a day Mexicans took to the road in droves. Gunmen fired on a military helicopter, killing three soldiers and forcing it to make an emergency landing about 150 miles (250 kilometers) southwest of Guadalajara. Twelve others — 10 soldiers and two federal police officers — were also injured
Photo by Refugio Ruiz | AP
AP photo
A policeman tries to control traffic next to a torched dump truck that was extinguished by firefighters in Guadalajara, Mexico, Friday. Authorities are scrambling to extinguish burning vehicles.
State police stand next to a charred passenger bus, that was extinguished by firefighters in Guadalajara, Mexico, Friday. Authorities in western Mexico are asking residents to stay at home.
and three soldiers remained missing, according to a statement from Mexico’s defense ministry. Jalisco Gov. Aristoteles Sandoval said in an afternoon news conference that the violence was a reaction to the federal government’s Operation Jalisco, "an oper-
cartel gunmen killed 15 state police officers in an ambush. It was the bloodiest single attack on Mexican authorities in recent memory. One week earlier, cartel gunmen attempted to assassinate the state security commissioner and on
ation to get to the bottom of and to be able to arrest all the leaders of this cartel, of this organization." Sandoval did not name the cartel, but authorities have been locked in an increasingly bloody battle with the Jalisco New Generation cartel. Last month,
March 19, they killed five federal police officers. The security commissioner had said the attacks were revenge for state forces killing a cartel leader. On Friday, Sandoval said Operation Jalisco, which had been announced by federal authorities earlier in
the day, had the goal of arresting all members of the cartel. Sandoval said there had been a total of seven deaths Friday, but did not specify the circumstances or the victims. He counted 29 blockades around the state affecting 19 municipalities. He said 11 banks and five gas stations had been attacked and the state remained under a "code red" protocol. Videos circulating on social media showed unidentified men lighting businesses on fire in broad daylight. Fifteen people had been arrested and there were four armed confrontations, he said. Jalisco state spokesman Gonzalo Sanchez said that a police officer was killed in one of the clashes around the state in the community of Autlan, about 120 miles southwest of Guadalajara.
Nation
6A THE ZAPATA TIMES
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
Six cops charged in death By JULIET LINDERMAN AND AMANDA LEE MYERS ASSOCIATED PRESS
BALTIMORE — Rage turned to relief in Baltimore Friday when the city’s top prosecutor charged six police officers with felonies ranging from assault to murder in the death of Freddie Gray. State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby said Gray’s arrest was illegal and unjustified, and that his neck was broken because he was handcuffed, shackled and placed head-first into a police van, where his pleas for medical attention were repeatedly ignored as he bounced around inside the small metal box. The swiftness of her announcement, less than a day after receiving the police department’s internal review and official autopsy results, took the city by surprise. So too did her forceful and detailed description, based in part on her office’s independent investigation, of the evidence supporting probable cause to charge all six officers with felonies. The police had no reason to stop or chase after Gray, Mosby said. They falsely accused him of having an illegal switchblade when in fact it was a legal pocketknife. The van driver and the other officers failed to strap him down with a seatbelt, a direct violation of department policy, and they ignored Gray’s repeated pleas for medical attention, even rerouting the van to pick up another passenger. The officers missed five opportunities to help an injured and falsely imprisoned detainee before he arrived at the police station no longer breathing, she said. Along the way, “Mr. Gray suffered a severe and critical neck injury as a result of being handcuffed, shackled by his feet and unrestrained inside of the BPD wagon,” she concluded. Her announcement triggered celebrations across
Photo by Alex Brandon | AP
Pastor Jamal Bryant and others protest at the Baltimore Central Booking and Intake Center, on Friday, in Baltimore. State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced criminal charges against all six officers suspended after Freddie Gray suffered a fatal spinal injury. the same West Baltimore streets that were smoldering just four days earlier, when Gray’s funeral led to riots and looting. A lawyer hired by the police union insisted the officers did nothing wrong. Attorney Michael Davey said Friday that Mosby has committed “an egregious rush to judgment.” “We have grave concerns about the fairness and integrity of the prosecution of our officers,” Davey said. Mosby — who rejected a request from the police union earlier Friday to appoint a special prosecutor — was undeterred. Gray was stopped by police in Sandtown, a poor, overwhelmingly AfricanAmerican neighborhood in West Baltimore. He locked eyes with a police officer and then ran. Two blocks later, they pinned him to the sidewalk, handcuffed him and dragged him into a transport van, a scene captured on bystander’s cellphone video and shown around the world. Mosby said the police review, the autopsy and her own office’s investigation all point to homicide. The officers were booked Friday on charges ranging from assault and manslaughter, carrying 10-year prison sentences, to second-degree “depraved heart” murder,
which could put the van driver in prison for 30 years if convicted. In a city that struggles daily with pervasive poverty and widespread joblessness, failing schools, drug addiction, a crumbling infrastructure and corruption, Gray’s death has become emblematic of the broad social and economic problems holding Baltimore down. But unlike other major cities grappling with police killings, Baltimore’s mayor, state’s attorney and police commissioner are black, like the majority of the city’s population. Helen Holton, a 20-year veteran city councilmember, said the announcement by Mosby, who accused her predecessor of being out of touch with the community, is “a defining moment in the future of Baltimore.” “It’s time. I hate that Freddie Gray is not here,” she said. “I hate it, but to Freddie Gray’s legacy, he has served as the tipping point for us to take a real inside look at what many people have chosen to ignore.” The city, which has been on edge since Gray’s death on April 19, remains under a nighttime curfew, with 2,000 National Guard troops augmenting police reinforcements from around the state of Maryland. Malik Shabazz, the president of
Black Lawyers for Justice, says Saturday’s protest march will now be a “victory rally,” and said Mosby is “setting a standard for prosecutors all over the nation.” At City Hall, Andrea Otom, 41, sobbed with something like joy. “You have to be able to expect that at some time, the pendulum will swing in your favor, and in the black community we’ve seen it over and over and over where it doesn’t,” Otom said. “I’m so happy to see a day where the pendulum has finally begun to swing.” U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, a Democrat from West Baltimore, not far from where Gray was raised and arrested, said the neighborhood and others like it “have never seen a victory.” “So many felt like the system had worked against them,” Cummings said Friday. “As we approach the evening of our lives, we want to make sure children have a better morning.” In an impassioned statement delivered shortly after the charges were made public, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake warned that police misconduct will not be tolerated on her watch. “To those of you who wish to engage in brutality, misconduct, racism and corruption, let me be clear,” she said, “there is no place in the Baltimore City Police Department for you.” Rashawn Ray, a sociologist at the University of Maryland, said the murder and manslaughter charges in Gray’s death shape a debate that goes much deeper than legal limits on use of force by police officers. It has triggered the frustration, anger and hopelessness of generations of disenfranchised people in Baltimore’s most marginalized neighborhoods. “This definitely seems like the first time in recent history that the state has done what the community feels is the right thing,” Ray said.
Japan leader urges more US trade By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ AND MICHAEL BLOOD ASSOCIATED PRESS
LOS ANGELES — After demonstrating the merits of a Japanese-made bullet train to California’s governor, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is heading to a session with Japanese-Americans to promote expanded trade between his country and the U.S. At the halfway point of his three-day visit to California, the Asian leader will attend a Japan-U.S. Economic Forum on Friday in Los Angeles at which he is expected to announce policies to facilitate American investment in Japan, said Takako Ito, a foreign ministry spokeswoman. The prime minister, who studied at the University of Southern California’s School of Policy, Planning, and Development, will also
meet and show support to Japanese students attending U.S. universities, Ito said. He is scheduled to attend a reception Friday night, with former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta and actor George Takei among the guests. Outside the economic forum in downtown Los Angeles, about a hundred people chanted and held signs demanding justice for the sexual slaves kept by the Japanese during World War. The protesters, many of Korean or Chinese descent, shouted “Abe, liar!” and held signs reading “Mr. Abe, official apology.” Japan maintains that it has already apologized for the sex slaves known as “comfort women” held by its imperial army. On Thursday, Abe gave Gov. Jerry Brown a hint of what it would be like inside a Japanese-made bullet
train, displaying a train simulator for the California leader. “There are some people in California who think of high speed rail as a mysterious, very expensive, exotic technology,” Brown told Abe during their meeting at a San Francisco hotel. “I hope people see high-speed rail is a reality. If you were able to get a train in a hotel, I think I can get a train built from San Francisco to Los Angeles.” Brown has faced opposition in his efforts to build a $68-billion high-speed rail in California to connect San Francisco and Los Angeles. Earlier Thursday, Abe said during a speech at Stanford University that his country needs to emulate Silicon Valley style, risk and innovation. “We would like to capture the dynamism of Silicon Valley,” he said while
announcing plans to send representatives from 200 Japanese companies to “sail into the rough waves” of the region during the next five years. He compared the effort to Japan sending players to Major League Baseball teams. His country also will send 30 entrepreneurs to pitch ideas to Silicon Valley investors. Abe also met with Google and Facebook executives and visited electric carmaker Tesla Motors, which is building electric cars in a plant first opened by General Motors more than 50 years ago. Abe’s itinerary included a discussion with business leaders at a resort on Sand Hill Road, a street known as the epicenter of tech venture-capital companies that have launched Amazon, Facebook, Twitter and other tech giants.
Photo by Jae C. Hong/file | AP
Firefighter A.J. Tevis watches the flames near Yosemite National Park, California, on Aug. 25, 2013. Charges were dropped against a hunter accused of starting the massive wildfire.
No charges in Yosemite fire By SCOTT SMITH AND SUDHIN THANAWALA ASSOCIATED PRESS
FRESNO, Calif. — Criminal charges were dropped against a bow hunter accused of starting one of California’s largest wildfires, a blaze that burned parts of Yosemite National Park, federal prosecutors said Friday. The decision came after two key witnesses unexpectedly died within months of an indictment that was handed down last year against Matthew Emerald, prosecutors said. The 33-year-old California man was accused of starting the 2013 blaze called the Rim Fire that burned for two months, scorching 400 square miles, destroying 11 homes and costing $125 million to fight. Prosecutors said that without testimony from the two witnesses, they did not believe they could prove the allegations to jurors beyond a reasonable doubt. Previous statements made by the two witnesses can’t be used in court, prosecutors said. “I understand that the government’s motion to dismiss will be frustrating to some,” U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner said in a statement, thanking U.S. Forest Service investigators for their work. “It is our obligation to the defendant and to the court to dismiss that case.” Emerald, a resident of Columbia, a town in the Sierra Nevada foothills, was accused of starting the blaze in August 2013 that ranks as California’s third-largest wildfire and the largest in the history of the Sierra Nevada. The fire burned parts of Stanislaus National Forest, Yosemite’s backcountry and private timber land. Emerald had been bow hunting for deer when he was rescued near the site of the fire’s origin by a California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection helicopter crew. Investigators had said that in several interviews, Emerald gave them inconsistent stories about how the fire started and once acknowledged starting a campfire that got out of control. Other times, they said, Emerald described caus-
ing a rockslide that sparked the flames, and he also blamed the fire on illegal marijuana growers. A grand jury handed down a four-count indictment nearly a year after the fire that included charges of lying to investigators and starting a forest fire. Emerald’s defense team had sought to suppress his statements, saying they were coerced. A message requesting comment from Emerald’s public defender Janet Bateman was not immediately returned. Colleagues said she was not in the office on Friday. Emerald and his parents could not be reached for comment. Prosecutors say the unexpected deaths of the witnesses left too little evidence to make a case to jurors. One of the prosecution’s key witnesses unexpectedly died in a workplace accident in February. He had talked with Emerald shortly after being rescued. The second witness — the helicopter pilot — died in March of a heart attack, authorities said. If convicted, Emerald could have spent five years in prison. He has been free since posting a $60,000 bond. McGregor Scott, a former U.S. attorney in Sacramento who is now in private practice, said it is rare for federal prosecutors to dismiss any indictment because they are generally supported by lengthy investigations. “They have lots of time to talk to everybody and get all of the relevant information, so once that decision is brought, they’re feeling very strong and comfortable about their case.” Scott said during his six years as U.S. attorney, he never encountered a case that was dismissed because two witnesses died. But if the two witnesses were key to the fire case, then prosecutors would be left with no choice but to dismiss the indictment absent a confession or physical evidence, he said. Since defense attorneys will not be able to cross-examine the witnesses in this case, their statements cannot be admitted, Scott said.
Nation
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
SUVs boost auto sales By TOM KRISHER ASSOCIATED PRESS
DETROIT — In April of 2014, the compact Chevrolet Cruze outsold the Equinox midsize SUV by more than a thousand vehicles. A year later, the Equinox trounced the Cruze by nearly 8,000 in sales. Those numbers pretty much sum up the shift in attitude among U.S. auto buyers: as they increasingly fall in love with SUVs, small and midsize cars are having a harder time getting a date. SUVs and trucks powered U.S. auto sales to a 4.6 percent gain last month, with several automakers reporting their strongest April sales ever. The stylish and practical new SUVs are pulling people away from cars, forcing automakers to discount sedans and even furlough workers to control growing inventories. A big drop in gas prices, to an average of $2.60 a gallon from $3.69 a year ago, also works in favor of SUVs. The Equinox posted a 42 percent sales increase to almost 29,000 in April, while Cruze sales fell nearly 4 percent to just under 21,000. Both vehicles are made by General Motors. The trend played out in other automakers’ results. Ford’s revamped midsize Edge SUV posted a 78 percent gain while Focus compact sales fell 5 percent. Honda’s CR-V, the top-selling SUV, posted a 3 percent gain to more than 29,000, outselling the midsize Accord sedan, which saw sales drop 20 percent. “The demand for crossover SUVs is off the charts,” said Bill Fay, a group vice president at Toyota, which
THE ZAPATA TIMES 7A
3 face charges in NJ bridge traffic scandal By DAVID PORTER AND JILL COLVIN ASSOCIATED PRESS
Photo by Carlos Osorio | AP
Ford Focus vehicles are seen on a storage lot on Friday, in Ypsilanti, Mich. Ford says its U.S. sales rose 5 percent last month for its best April in nine years. The Dearborn, Michigan, automaker sold more than 222,000 cars and trucks last month, led by small and midsize SUVs. posted record April sales of the RAV4 and Highlander SUVs. Still, loyal followers weren’t so quick to abandon Toyota’s bread-and-butter vehicles. Sales of the Corolla compact grew 10 percent, and even though Camry midsize car sales fell from last April, it remained the top-selling car in America. Erich Merkle, Ford’s top sales analyst, said small SUVs accounted for almost 19 percent of industry sales last month, two percentage points higher than a year ago. Small cars lost nearly a point of market share, while midsize cars lost two percentage points. Last week, Ford said it would lay off 700 workers at the Focus plant in Michigan as it brings inventory in line. Overall, light trucks including SUVs accounted for 54 percent of sales in April, with cars at 46 percent, according to Autodata Corp. No one expects the trend toward SUVs to reverse anytime soon. Buyers prefer the higher seating position for
easier access, and they like the cargo space. Also, technology has improved the SUVs’ gas mileage, and with gas selling for less than $3 per gallon across much of the country, fuel efficiency isn’t top of mind anymore. But Mark Strand, market intelligence manager for Autotrader.com, says one group in particular still needs compacts: cash-strapped millennials ages 18 to 35. Many in the age group have just gotten their first jobs and are buying discounted compacts to keep payments low as they retire big student loans. Compact car sales rose a modest 3 percent through April. “They might like an SUV, but when you look at the payment and see what you can get, they’re still going to these small cars,” he said. Indeed, the discounts on compacts are good. Kelley Blue Book said they rose nearly 16 percent from a year ago to average $2,003 last month. Edmunds.com Senior Analyst Jessica Cald-
well predicts even bigger discounts on cars during the summer as automakers try to clear dealer lots of older models as the 2016s start to arrive. While the pace of growth in the industry has slowed, most automakers posted decent numbers in April. Sales at GM, Ford, Fiat Chrysler and Nissan rose 5 percent to 6 percent, while Hyundai rose 2.9 percent and Toyota gained 1.8 percent. Volkswagen, which lacks strong SUVs, saw sales fall about 3 percent. Honda sales declined 1.8 percent mainly on falling Accord sales. Overall sales prices rose as buyers used longer-term loans and lower monthly payments to buy loaded-out SUVs, pickup trucks and luxury cars. Ford said its F-Series pickups sold at an average of $42,600 for the month, a record. The average selling price of a new vehicle rose 1 percent from a year ago to $32,189, according to the TrueCar.com auto pricing site.
NEWARK, N.J. — Federal prosecutors brought charges Friday against three former allies of Gov. Chris Christie — but not Christie himself — in the George Washington Bridge traffic scandal, apparently easing the legal threat that has hung over his 2016 White House ambitions for more than a year. One of those charged, David Wildstein, a former high-ranking official at the transportation agency that operates the bridge, pleaded guilty, saying he and the other defendants engineered huge traffic jams to get even with a local politician. Christie was not implicated in court or in the indictments. “Based on the evidence currently available to us, we’re not going to charge anyone else in this scheme,” U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said at a news conference. The Republican governor claimed vindication. “Today’s charges make clear that what I’ve said from day one is true — I had no knowledge or involvement in the planning or execution of this act,” Christie said in a statement. While Christie may be out of any immediate legal danger, politically it could be more complicated. The furor has already damaged his standing in the polls, and the charges put the scandal back in the news just as the presidential cycle is getting underway and other candidates are jumping into the race. Wildstein, a former official at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, pleaded guilty to conspiracy, saying in court that he and the other Christie loyalists closed lanes and created gridlock in September 2013 as political payback against a Democratic mayor. He also said the three of them concocted a cover story: It was a
traffic study. Wildstein, 53, could face about two years in prison at sentencing Aug. 6. The two people he implicated — former Christie deputy chief of staff Bridget Kelly and Bill Baroni, who was the governor’s top appointee at the Port Authority — were charged in an indictment unsealed later in the day. Essentially, they were accused of misusing public resources for political gain. They “callously victimized” people who were “just trying to get to school or go to work,” Fishman said. Wildstein gave no indication in court that Christie had any role in the scheme. But after the hearing, his lawyer, Alan Zegas, reiterated a claim he made last year that there’s evidence that Christie knew about it as it happened. He did not go into detail. Brigid Harrison, a political science professor at New Jersey’s Montclair State University, said the charges are bad news for Christie. “I would go so far as to say that this really signals a death knell to his presidential aspirations,” she said. “You have key staffers who have been indicted, and one of the things that primary voters look to is: How would a prospective president manage their staff?” But Fergus Cullen, former chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party, said he does expect a major effect: “People have already made up their minds as to whether they think it’s a deal or not.” Some Christie foes have suggested that even if he had no direct role in the plot, his bruising political style created a culture that led members of his administration to think they could get away with such tactics. Asked about that, Fishman said: “I won’t comment on culture.”
International
8A THE ZAPATA TIMES
After liberation, still a ghost town By ZEINA KARAM AND MOHAMMED RASOOL ASSOCIATED PRESS
SURUC, Turkey — The battle for the Syrian border town of Kobani was a watershed in the war against the Islamic State group — Syrian Kurdish forces fought the militants in rubble-strewn streets for months as U.S. aircraft pounded the extremists from the skies until ultimately expelling them from the town earlier this year. It was the Islamic State’s bloodiest defeat to date in Syria. But now, three months since Kobani was liberated, tens of thousands of its residents are still stranded in Turkey, reluctant to return to a wasteland of collapsed buildings and at a loss as to how and where to rebuild their lives. The Kurdish town on the Turkish-Syrian border is still a haunting, apocalyptic vista of hollowed out facades and streets littered with unexploded ordnance — a testimony to the massive price that came with the victory over IS. There is no electricity or clean water, nor any immediate plans to restore basic services and start rebuilding. While grateful for the U.S. airstrikes that helped turn the tide in favor of the Kobani fighters and drive out IS militants, residents say their wretched situation underscores the lack of any serious follow-up by the international community in its war against IS. “First, Islamic State fighters were holed up in our home and then the American planes bombed it,” said Sabah Khalil, pointing from across the border in Suruc, Turkey, to where her family house in Kobani is now a pile of crumpled cement. “Who is going to help us rebuild? That’s what everyone is asking,” she added, sitting on a stone outside her tent, soaking in the spring sun as children in tattered shoes played nearby. For four ferocious months, Kobani was the focus of the international media after IS militants
Photo by Hussein Malla | AP
Kurdish refugees who fled from Kobani carry their belongings as they walk towards a border gate to return to their town, at a border crossing in Suruc town, Turkey, on April 20. barreled into the town and surrounding villages, triggering an exodus of some 300,000 residents who poured across the border into Turkey. The battle for Kobani became the centerpiece of the campaign against IS. Dozens of TV crews flocked to the Turkish side of the border and from a hill, trained their cameras on the besieged town, recording plumes of smoke rising from explosions as the U.S.led coalition pounded IS hideouts inside the town. In late January, the Kurdish fighters finally ousted the Islamic State from the town — a significant victory for both the Kurds and the U.S.-led coalition. For IS, which by some estimates lost around 2,000 fighters in Kobani, it was a defeat that punctured the group’s image and sapped morale. But the price was daunting. Today more than 70 percent of Kobani lies in ruins. More than 560 Kurdish fighters died in the battles. About 70,000 of the refugees have returned to the town and surrounding areas, some only to pitch tents outside their destroyed homes, according to Aisha Afandi, co-chair of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party, or PYD. With no outside help, the Kurdish fighters use primitive tools to dismantle mines and booby traps left behind by IS militants. The rotting bodies of dead fighters are still trapped under the rubble, and as the weather gets warmer, there are concerns of spreading disease. Afandi said an appeal for
international donors and Kurdish communities everywhere will be launched at a Kurdish conference on Kobani, due May 2 in the mainly Kurdish-populated city of Diyarbakir in Turkey. There are also plans to transform parts of the town center into a museum, she added. “It is important for future generations to remember the history th at was made here,” she said over the telephone from Kobani. Three times a week, when Turkish officials open the gate at the Mursitpinar border crossing for a few hours, refugees trickle back into Kobani. On a recent day, a few dozen people carrying suitcases and bags were at the gate, waiting to cross. Vans loaded with mattresses and other belongings were lined up on a dirt road. At the nearby Arin Mirxan camp in Suruc, named after a female Kurdish fighter in Kobani who is said to have carried out a suicide bombing against IS militants in October, the hopelessness is on full display. Ali Hussein and his mother Zalikha Qader sit next to each other in the camp, eating roasted pumpkin seeds and wiling the time away. In nearby “Tent Number 3,” Shahin Tamo, 21, takes care of his 7-year-old brother Sarwan, a skeletal child with large eyes who suffers from a serious neurological condition. They are here with their parents, two brothers and two sisters. Their Kobani home was looted and burnt. “Everything is gone. Our house, my education, my fu-
ture,” Tamo said. “Who will compensate that?” Across the border in Syria, the fighting rages on. U.S. coalition-led warplanes struck Islamic State targets near Kobani, and a coalition statement said at least six airstrikes between Thursday and Friday destroyed seven IS positions and one of its vehicles. But the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of activists on the ground, said the airstrikes early Friday also hit civilians, killing at least 12 people, and wounding dozens. The Observatory’s director, Rami Abdurrahman, said the casualties were taken to nearby towns, including Manbij. It was not immediately possible to independently verify the report and there was no U.S. comment on civilian deaths. But from Kobani, Shorsh Hassan, a spokesman for the main Kurdish militia known as the People’s Protection Units, or YPG, said he was not aware of any civilian casualties because the airstrikes took place in an IS-controlled village, Bir Mahli, south of Kobani. Hassan said the strikes followed clashes between his troops and Islamic State militants in the village, which had been emptied of civilians. But he added that at least 10 vehicles arrived in the village before the fighting erupted. Back at the camp in Suruc, residents go out at least once a day to the main street to greet a procession bringing in fallen Kurdish fighters from inside Syria. The bodies, in simple wooden coffins draped in the Kurdish red, white and green-color flag, are the tragic toll of still ongoing fighting back home between the main Kurdish militia known as the People’s Protection Units, or YPG, and IS militants in areas around Kobani. “Your blood will not go in vain!” the refugees shouted in Kurdish.
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
Greek bailout talks stretch into weekend By DEREK GATOPOULOS AND LORNE COOK ASSOCIATED PRESS
ATHENS, Greece — Greece has entered a new round of bailout talks with creditors that are expected to stretch into the weekend, but insists it is not ready to make key concessions despite facing a major debt repayment soon. “My answer is simple: No, no, no,” Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis told private Sto Kokkino radio on Thursday, referring to key reforms demanded by bailout lenders. The creditors have for three months been trying to get Greece to agree to a list of budget measures before they accept to pay it the remaining 7.2 billion euros ($8 billion) installment of its bailout program. Without the money, Greece is not sure to be able to meet a repayment to the International Monetary Fund on May 12 worth some 750 million euros ($840 million). Rescue creditors argue the country has fallen behind on long-terms reforms that would allow it to get back on its feet: lowering state funding for pensions, increasing turnover of staff in state jobs, further dismantling job protection rules, and simplifying sales-tax rates. But Greece’s left-wing government argues the reforms cannot continue with the same speed and severity as in previous years, after the country suffered a drastic drop in output and increase in unemployment.
In Brussels, EU Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said negotiations involving representatives from eurozone nations, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund had started and would stretch into the weekend. “They are being held in a constructive spirit,” he said. A eurozone official who asked not to be identified because the talks were ongoing said that if there was a breakthrough at the negotiations a meeting of finance ministers could be convened at short notice, even before the regularly scheduled one of May 11. Varoufakis indicated his government could make concessions — but only in the summer, after an initial deal is reached to unlock the 7.2 billion euros. “After June, we are willing to look at many issues,” Varoufakis told Sto Kokkino radio in Athens. He signaled, for example, he’d be willing to raise some sales tax rates. The confrontation between Athens and its creditors has taken its toll on the fragile Greek economy. Late Wednesday, Moody’s ratings agency further downgraded the country’s sovereign rating to Caa2 from Caa1, two notches above default. The main reason, it said, for the action was “the high uncertainty over whether Greece’s government will reach an agreement with official creditors in time to meet upcoming repayments on marketable debt.”
SECTION A-1 NOTICE TO BIDDERS Sealed bids will be received at the Zapata County Judge’s Office, Zapata, Texas, until May 18, 2015, 2:00 p.m., and then publicly opened, read and taken under advisement for the furnishing of all necessary machinery, equipment, labor, superintendence, and all other services and appurtenances required for Zapata County Tx-DOT Lift Station Relocation U.S. 83 Project, for the County of Zapata, Texas. Said bid shall be marked, Zapata County Tx-DOT Lift Station Relocations U.S. 83 Project, Installing all required materials and equipment for a full functioning Lift Station on Veleno Creek including backup generator with ATS. Zapata County will furnish materials i.e. wet well, pumps, control panels, generator and auto transfer switch Each proposal and the proposal guaranty must be originals and must be sealed in an envelope plainly marked with the name of the project as shown above, and the name and address of the Bidder. When submitted by mail, this envelope shall be placed in another envelope addressed as indicated in this Notice to Bidders and shall be the responsibility of the sender to insure that the bid is in on time in the correct place. Only bids and bid guaranties actually in the hands of the designated official at the time set in this Notice to Bidders shall be considered. It shall be the responsibility of the contractor to insure the bid is received. Bids submitted by telephone, telegraph, or fax, will not be considered. Once bids have been opened no other bids shall be considered. Bidders are expressly advised to review Section C-3.10 of the General Conditions of the proposed Contract as to the causes, which may lead to the disqualification of a bidder and/or the rejection of a bid proposal. Unless all bids are rejected, the Owner agrees to give Notice of Award of Contract to the successful bidder within sixty (60) sixty days of the bid opening. Bidders are expected to inspect the site of the work and inform themselves regarding all local conditions. An on-site pre-bid meeting will be mandatory for this project. Copies of the Bid/Contract Documents may be obtained by depositing $100.00 with Premier Civil Engineering, LLC. for each set of documents obtained. Half of the deposit will be refunded if the documents and drawings are returned in good condition within ten (10) days following the bid opening. The County of Zapata reserves the right to reject any or all bids or to waive any informalities in the bidding process. Bids may be held by the The County of Zapata, for a period not to exceed 30 days from the date of the bid opening for the purpose of reviewing the bids and investigating the bidder’s qualifications prior to the contract award. The County of Zapata is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer; small, minority and female owned firms are encouraged to submit bid proposals for this project.
Zfrontera
SÁBADO 2 DE MAYO DE 2015
Ribereña en Breve MERCADO AGRÍCOLA Se realizará el primer mercado agrícola en Zapata cada primer sábado del mes, dando inició el 2 de mayo, de 9 a.m. a 1 p.m. en el estacionamiento comunitario en 605 U.S 83, al norte. Para más información puede llamar a los números: (956) 500-6600, (956) 286-0042 y/o (956) 536-7171.
CORTE DE COMISIONADOS La Corte de Comisionados del Condado de Zapata se reunirá el lunes 11 de mayo en el Palacio de Justicia del Condado de Zapata. La junta comenzará a las 9 a.m. y continuará hasta las 12 p.m. Para mayor información puede contactar a Roxy Elizondo llamando al (956) 7659920.
ESPECTÁCULO DE LUCHA LIBRE A fin de recaudar fondos y adquirir equipo adecuado para realizar deporte en las escuelas de Miguel Alemán, México, se llevará a cabo un espectáculo de lucha libre el viernes 15 de mayo en el Centro Cívico (dentro de los terrenos de la Expo Feria) a las 5 p.m. El Supervisor de Tránsito, Antonio Santos Ramírez, informó que será un evento familiar. Entre los luchadores que participarán se encuentran Granda XXX y Mascara Sagrada Junior, Ator y los minis del cuadrilátero, los luchadores enanitos Voladorcito, La Parquita y Brazalete de Plata y de Platino. Santos Ramírez agregó que previo al evento se realizará un desfile con los luchadores participantes.
PÁGINA 9A
CÁRTEL ‘LOS ZETAS’
Cadena perpetua ESPECIAL PARA TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
Dos integrantes del cártel de drogas de Los Zetas quien realizó el contrabando de miles de kilogramos de marihuana y cuentos de rifles de asalto, fue sentenciado a cadena perpetua el jueves, en una corte federal de Del Río. El 20 de enero, un jurado federal acusó a Emilio Villalobos-Alcala, de 29 años, y a José Eliud Lugo-López, de 27 años, de un cargo por conspiración para importar marihuana; un cargo por conspiración para posesión con intento de distribuir marihuana; un cargo por conspiración para posesión de armas de fuego en fomento a un crimen para tráfico de drogas; y dos cargos por contrabando de bienes de Estados
Unidos. De acuerdo con testimonios de la corte, Villalobos-Alcala, un dirigente de las actividades de Los Zetas en Piedras Negras y su compañero de alto nivel Lugo-López, estuvieron implicados en un esquema de alto nivel para el contrabando de marihuana y armas de fuego, desde julio de 2011 a febrero de 2013. Armas de asalto, otras armas, cartuchos y municiones compradas en San Antonio, fueron transportados dentro de compartimientos escondidos en carros y trailers y contrabando a través de Eagle Pass a Piedras Negras. Paquetes de marihuana, contrabando a través del río a Quemado, Texas, fue transportada a una casa de seguridad en Eagle Pass.
De ahí, la marihuana fue transportada a una casa de seguridad en San Antonio y finalmente distribuida en Dallas y Houston. Evidencia presentada durante el juicio incluyó múltiples amenazas realizadas por Villalobos-Alcala y Lugo-López, sobre que podrían matar a personas implicadas en la conspiración de contrabando o a sus familiares, si no pagaban el dinero por drogas o armas decomisados por elementos de la ley o acordaban transportar drogas o armas a nombre del cártel. “La sentencia (del jueves) de Emilio Villalobos-Alcala y José Eluid Lugo-López a cadena perpetua envía un mensaje claro sobre las graves consecuencias que esperan a las personas que están parti-
IBC
PAN
CULTURA FINANCIERA
Rivas pide apoyo para aprobar ley TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
CAMPAMENTO DE VERANO Del 9 de junio al 2 de julio, tendrá lugar un Campamento de Verano, para los estudiantes de ZCISD desde preescolar a quinto año. Las sesiones serán de 8 a.m. a 12 p.m. y de 12 p.m. a 4 p.m. El desayuno y el almuerzo serán proporcionados. No habrá transporte. El campamento es gratuito, sin embargo, los estudiantes deberán cumplir con las normativas de fin de año para ser elegibles. Las solicitudes de ingreso deberán ser entregadas antes del 14 de mayo. Para más información puede llamar a Gerardo García al (956) 765-6917; a Dalia García, al (956) 765-4332; a Ana Martínez, al (956) 7655611; o a Marlen Guerra al (956) 765-4321.
CAMPAÑA MÉDICO-ASISTENCIAL MIGUEL ALEMAN — Se implementará la primer campaña médico asistencial propuesta por miembros de los ministerios nacionales “Betel” el 11 de junio, de 8 a.m. a 5 p.m. El grupo de 15 personas, entre médicos y enfermeros, estarán representados por la misionera Deana Gatlin. Además traerán consigo ropa, medicamentos y despensas. El Presidente Municipal, Ramiro Cortez, informó que los misioneros evangélicos viajarán a las comunidades rurales del sur de Miguel Alemán el 13 de junio.
EXHIBICIÓN DE ARTE El Boys and Girls Club de Zapata tendrá una exhibición de arte, el sábado 27 de junio, de 1 p.m. a 4 p.m. Los integrantes del club interesados en participar pueden llamar al (956) 7653892. La participación es exclusiva para integrantes del club. Las personas que gusten inscribirse pueden acudir al club o llamar al (956) 765-3892.
cipando en este tipo de actividad criminal”, dijo James Spero, agente especial a cargo de Investigaciones de Seguridad Nacional (HSI, por sus siglas en inglés) en San Antonio. “HSI continuará utilizando sus autoridades, en relación con elementos federales, estatales/locales, para desmantelar a las organizaciones criminales”. Este caso fue investigado por agentes especiales de HSI, ARF, FBI y la Administración del Control de Drogas, junto con Patrulla Fronteriza, el Departamento de Seguridad Pública de Texas y la Oficina del Alguacil del Condado de Zavala. Los fiscales asistentes de EU, Jay Hulings y Russell Leachman procesaron este caso a nombre del gobierno.
Foto de cortesía
A través de la iniciativa de IBC “Money Buzz” se impartirán clases a estudiantes de cuatro escuelas de la comunidad, durante el mes de mayo.
Educan sobre conceptos económicos TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
I
ntegrantes del cuerpo bancario de IBC Bank-Zapata estarán de visita en cuatro escuelas locales para enseñar a los alumnos los conceptos financieros básicos. El programa “Money Buzz”, es una iniciativa que el corporativo comenzó en 2007 para proporcionar educación financiera a los jóvenes, indica un comunicado de prensa del banco. Durante el mes de mayo, empleados certificados acudirán a San Isidro Elementary, Veterans Memorial Elementary, Zapata South Elementary, y Villarreal Elementary, donde se estima que se llegue a 377 estudiantes durante 18 presentaciones. El programa también será
impartido en 57 escuelas y organizaciones desde marzo a mayo, alrededor de Texas y Oklahoma, donde se estima llegarán a más de 8.300 estudiantes. La iniciativa Money Buzz”, es un esfuerzo para promover el Mes de la Literatura Financiera y el “Día para Enseñar a los Niños a Ahorar”, de la Asociación de Banqueros de EU. “La iniciativa Money Buzz demuestra la filosofía de IBC ‘Nosotros hacemos Más”, mientras nuestros empleados invierten su tiempo y recursos para enseñar a los niños de nuestra comunidad los conceptos financieros básicos”, dijo el Presidente de IBC Zapata y CEO, Renato Ramírez. “Enseñar a los niños hoy construye un fundamento para que se conviertan en adultos próspe-
ro que puedan lograr un impacto significativo en la sociedad. El éxito del programa es posible con la colaboración del área escolar y organizaciones que creen en Money Buzz”. Money Buzz fue desarrollado por IBC, bajo la dirección de maestros certificados y proporciona a los estudiantes lecciones fundamentales en el área financiera, señala un comunicado de prensa. IBC enseña a estudiantes de primaria, secundaria, preparatoria y a grupos comunitarios. Las lecciones cubren un rango que va de conceptos fundamentales y varían dependiendo de la edad del grupo, pero incluyen temas tales como recolección de documentos bancarios, cálculos, etc., añade el comunicado. Material para estudiantes está disponible sin costo al ingresar a ibc.com.
Después de la aprobación de la reforma para crear el Sistema Nacional Anticorrupción y su respectiva ley, el Coordinador Regional de diputados locales panistas, Enrique Rivas Cuellar, solicitó a los integrantes de la LXII Legislatura en el Congreso de Tamaulipas aprobar la Ley Anticorrupción. La reforma, que tiene como finalidad de brindar a la comunidad mayor transparencia, fue aprobada el miércoles por el Senado de la República Mexicana. La ley debe recibir el aval de la mitad más uno de los Congresos locales, lo que daRIVAS ría pie a que se homologuen los artículos de reforma y se publique en el Diario Oficial de la Federación, para que con esto entre en vigor. “Hacemos un llamado para que el resto de los diputados que integramos el Congreso, la LXII legislatura, podamos aprobar estar Ley a la brevedad posible... no dejarla como una intención más en nuestro quehacer legislativo”, dijo Rivas Cuellar, a través de un comunicado de prensa. La iniciativa, propuesta por el Partido Acción Nacional (PAN), propone evitar abusos y actos de corrupción de funcionarios del sector público, señala un comunicado de prensa. “Vemos que otras fuerzas políticas la han hecho suya y poder evitar un sinnúmero de hechos tan lamentables que hoy se dan a conocer a nivel nacional…”, dijo Rivas Cuellar. “Hechos en Tamaulipas, hechos de corrupción, que no tienen una explicación y que sean autoridades extranjeras, del vecino país, de aquí del Estado de Texas las que ventilen este tipo de irregularidades”. Durante su referencia al Congreso, Rivas Cuellar destacó la aprobación de la ley lo antes posible. Si la ley es aprobada, se comenzará a constituir los órganos fiscalizadores correspondientes para ofrecer mayor transparencia y rendición de cuentas a los tamaulipecos, finaliza el comunicado.
GUADALAJARA, MÉXICO
Policía informa sobre bloqueos e incendios ASSOCIATED PRESS
GUADALAJARA, México— El Ministerio de Defensa mexicano informó que tres militares murieron el viernes luego de que un helicóptero fuera atacado por hombres armados. En el hecho resultaron heridos 12 uniformados y tres más se encuentran desaparecidos. Los 12 uniformados son 10 soldados y dos policías federales. El helicóptero en el que viajaban se vio obligado a realizar un aterrizaje de emergencia tras el ataque. Otros tres soldados estaban desaparecidos, según un comunicado de prensa.
Foto de cortesía
El viernes por la mañana, a los residentes de Guadalajara se les pidió no salir, mientras elementos de policía y bomberos trataban de extinguir incendios provocados. Se presume los sucesos fueron originados por elementos de cárteles. Los militares realizaban “tareas de reconocimiento” al momento del ataque en
el municipio Villa Purificación, vecino de Guadalajara. Al momento no han
identificado a los responsables de la agresión. El portavoz del estado de Jalisco, Gonzalo Sánchez, dijo a Milenio Televisión que un policía también murió en un enfrentamiento en el poblado de Autlán, a unos 190 kilómetros (120 millas) al suroeste de Guadalajara. Temprano en el día, las autoridades pidieron a los habitantes de esa ciudad que se abstuvieran de salir de sus casas mientras trataban de apagar vehículos que fueron incendiados y que bloqueaban las calles de la capital del estado occidental de Jalisco. Las conflagraciones también fueron reportadas en
Puerto Vallarta, un popular destino turístico el viernes, cuando se da inicio al puente festivo del Día del Trabajo. Tradicionalmente, estos bloqueos son una respuesta de los carteles a la detención de algunos de sus más importantes miembros o se utilizan para frustrar operaciones militares y de policía. Los ataques ocurrieron cuando el gobierno federal anunció la ejecución de la "Operación Jalisco", que busca mejorar la seguridad de Jalisco. El mes pasado, el cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación mató a 15 policías estatales en una emboscada.
10A THE ZAPATA TIMES
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
‘Penny Dreadful’ surprises ‘India Maria’ By SHAWN POGATCHNIK ASSOCIATED PRESS
ARDMORE STUDIOS, Ireland — John Logan, the creator, writer and show runner of Showtime’s “Penny Dreadful,” has a studio full of surprises in store for fans of the Victorian Gothic horror series. But the biggest one of all might be lurking in his own head. Showtime’s “Penny Dreadful,” which makes its season 2 premiere Sunday at 10 p.m. EDT, is, in a most peculiar fashion, the story of his own life. Of his desire to be accepted, appreciated, loved — and his fear of being reviled. “My characters share a sense of monstrousness, either perceived or actual. That’s why I wrote it,” said Logan, 53, in an interview with The Associated Press on the Irish set of the series. “When I realized I was gay, in the early ’70s, it wasn’t socially acceptable.
Photo by Jonathan Hession | AP
In this photo provided by Showtime, Rory Kinnear, in character as The Creature, left, speaks with John Logan on the set of the television series, "Penny Dreadful." I was torn between what I knew to be true about myself — and what I knew would mark me as different and alien and monstrous to many people — would separate me from my friends and family. So the very thing that made me who I was — and empowered me — also isolated me.” This shadow from his
own teenage years, Logan says, guides his approach to shaping the eccentric blend of characters of “Penny Dreadful.” They include his own creations — the satanically tormented Vanessa Ives (Eva Green), the gun-slinging American werewolf in London, Ethan Chandler (Josh Hartnett), and the colonial adventurer haunted by grief, Sir
Malcolm Murray (Timothy Dalton) — alongside figures drawn from the most stylized corners of the gothic literary canon: Doctor Frankenstein and his Creature, and the ageless Dorian Gray. “All the characters manifest some version of that central dilemma. So to me it’s a deeply personal story,” said Logan. “Yes, it has all the tropes of a horror show. Yes, it deals with great literary characters. But really for me it’s about the yearning and pain and search for love in those characters.” Last year’s vampires often proved hard to find and easy to blow away. This season, a seemingly peripheral character from the first — Evelyn Poole, otherwise known as the mystic Madame Kali — is revealed to be a witch with a direct line to Satan himself, and a hit squad of sexy deputies who gut their victims in the buff.
actress dies in Mexico ASSOCIATED PRESS
MEXICO CITY — Mexican actress and comedian Maria Elena Velasco, best known for her character “The Indian Maria,” has died at age 74. The Mexican film institute announced VELASCO through its Twitter account that Velasco, also a screenwriter and director, died Friday, but did not specify the cause. Velasco’s “La India Maria,” which exagger-
ated stereotypes about Mexico’s indigenous people, became one of the most recognizable characters in Mexican film, dressed in colorful blouses and full skirts with her hair in braids. “La India Maria,” often accompanied by her faithful donkey “Filemon,” sometimes illustrated the journey from her native village to the big city and the inevitable comic situations that followed. Velasco started her career performing on stages in Mexico City. Her popularity eventually carried her to film fame and a long run on television.
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
THE ZAPATA TIMES 11A
Tesla ventures into solar power for home By DIANE CARDWELL NEW YORK TIMES
In recent years, the fast-growing popularity of solar panels has intensified a central challenge: how to use the sun’s energy when it isn’t shining. Now, Tesla Motors, the maker of luxury electric sedans, says it is taking a big step toward meeting that challenge with a fleet of battery systems aimed at homeowners, businesses and utilities. The company’s foray into the solar storage market will include rechargeable lithium-ion battery packs that can mount to a home garage wall as well as battery blocks large enough to smooth out fluctuations in the grid. "We’ve obviously been working on building a world-class battery, a superefficient and affordable way to store energy," said Khobi Brooklyn, a Tesla spokeswoman. "It’s just that we’ve been putting that battery in cars most of the time." To herald its ambitions in the field, the company scheduled an event Thursday night at its design studio in Hawthorne, California, with Elon Musk, its chief executive, presiding. In a news conference before the event, Musk said the consumer battery, called the Powerwall, would sell for $3,500 and was derived from the batteries that Tesla uses in its Model S vehicles. The device, which Tes-
The batteries will be connected to the Internet and can be managed by Tesla from afar. Customers can connect as many as nine battery packs to store larger amounts of power. la will start producing later this year, will be installed by licensed technicians. The batteries will be connected to the Internet and can be managed by Tesla from afar. Customers can connect as many as nine battery packs to store larger amounts of power. "If you have the Tesla Powerwall, if the utility goes down, you still have power," Musk said. He added: "The whole thing is an integrated system that just works." Energy and auto analysts have generally responded positively to Tesla’s move. "Elon thinks that there’s a long-term gain to be made or a long-term play not only in electric cars but also in electric energy storage — and he’s probably right," said Karl Brauer, an analyst at Kelley Blue Book. "There’s a universal application for portable energy and storable energy
that goes to everybody. It’s really just a matter of getting the business model together." Tesla’s announcement comes as energy companies are moving in the same direction. Sungevity, a leading solar installer, announced a partnership this week with Sonnenbatterie, a smart energy storage provider in Europe, to begin offering their systems to its customers. NRG, one of the largest independent power producers in the United States, is also developing storage products. "We have to be in this space," said Steve McBee, chief executive of NRG Home. "If your goal is to build a meaningful solar business that is durable over time, you have to assume that that solar business is going to morph into a solar-plus-storage solution. That will be mandatory at some point." Still, the market is young
WANTED Continued from Page 1A to Laredo and Mexico. Laredo Morning Times has previously reported the possibility of Rodriguez being in Mexico. Rodriguez stands 5 feet, 2 inches and weighs about 150 pounds. She has a scar on her leg and shoulder, according to DPS. Rodriguez’s last known address in Laredo is 4606 Retama Drive. People can report her whereabouts at UISD police at 956-473-6361 or Laredo Crime Stoppers at 727-TIPS (8477). Readers may also call the DPS Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-252-TIPS (8477) or text the letters DPS — followed by the tip — to 274637 (CRIMES) from a cell phone. DPS also takes in tips online through their website. Recently, authorities made a couple of arrests re-
garding the case. On Feb. 4, school authorities arrested 36-year-old Jose Eliver Montalvo, a Clark Middle School teacher’s aide, for making a false report to police. He knew about the relationship of a Rodriguez and the 13-year-old student but he denied it, records show. Margil Adonis Jasso, 18, Rodriguez’s nephew, was first arrested in mid-February and charged with making a false report to police after he allegedly tried to cover up for his cousin during the investigation of the inappropriate relationship, according to court documents. Jasso was arrested a second time in early April and charged with unlawful restraint of a person younger than 14 years of age. Court documents state Jasso “in-
tentionally and knowingly restrained” the female student when he removed her from school in a vehicle. They drove a vacant mobile home. Jasso remained in the front seat with his headphones on while Rodriguez sexually molested the student in the backseat. Court documents allege Rodriguez and the student had been in relationship since November 2013. Initially, UISD police secured warrants for Rodriguez on Jan. 22 on the charges of unlawful restraint and three counts of harassment. But the as investigation unfolded, investigators secure additional warrants for three counts of indecency with a child. (César G. Rodriguez may be reached at 728-2568 or cesar@lmtonline.com)
CUELLAR Continued from Page 1A Rex Jim Lee, vice president of the Navajo Nation, and representatives from Harvard Medical School at ZTAC at 4:30 p.m. The group will discuss the process behind building ZTAC and the opportunities it has allotted the residents of Zapata County. According to its website, ZTAC serves as a primary source for instruction and
training for students to access college credit courses and vocational/technology training. The Navajo Nation is considering building a similar facility within the Navajo Reservation in New Mexico. Joining Cuellar and Lee will be David M. Brown, JD inaugural dean for ZTAC (2010-2013) and masters of
medical science degree candidate in Global Health Delivery at Harvard Medical School; Jorge Ayala, area director for the U.S. Economic Development Administration; and Jose Emilio Vela, Zapata County Commissioners Court Precinct 1. ZTAC is located on 605 N. U.S. Highway 83, Zapata, Texas 78076.
and, some experts say, Tesla has the advantage of reach and scale — as well as a $5 billion battery production plant under construction near Reno, Nevada, that it calls the Gigafactory. "Tesla’s not the only one doing it, but Tesla can bring it to a wider audience than most other people can," said Shayle Kann, a vice president at GTM Research, which tracks clean-tech industries. "Once they get the Gigafactory up and going, they will be able to deploy on a scale that no one will quite be able to rival. So they may have a cost advantage in that." Tesla has been refining its storage business for a few years, working with a number of companies including Jackson Family Wines, the electric utility Southern California Edison and the installation company SolarCity, of which Musk is chairman and whose founders,
Lyndon and Peter Rive, are his cousins. The Tesla systems are designed for different scales. The home battery, roughly 4 feet by 3 feet, would allow solar customers to have power in the event of an failure, draw from it when utility rates are higher and use more of the electricity their panels produce, easing reliance on the grid. For utilities, they can help compensate for fluctuations from intermittent sources like solar and wind — whose production can dip sharply or stop altogether — as well as meet demand during peak periods. And for businesses, they can help lower demand for electricity from the grid, which in turn can lower costly demand charges. Amazon Web Services, which manages cloud-based computing systems and has a goal to derive all its energy from renewable sources, is beginning a pilot program with Tesla in Northern California. "Batteries are important for both data center reliability and as enablers for the efficient application of renewable power," James Hamilton, distinguished engineer at Amazon Web Services, said through a spokeswoman. "They help bridge the gap between intermittent production, from sources like wind, and the data center’s constant power demands."
CBP Continued from Page 1A tion, applicants must pass an entrance examination, medical examination, physical fitness assessments, video-based test and/or structured interview, drug test, background investigation, and polygraph examination. Nearly 30 percent of CBP employees are military veterans.
Candidates selected from this announcement will work in the following locations: Douglas, Arizona; Nogales, Arizona; San Luiz, Arizona; Calexico, California; San Ysidro, California; Detroit, Michigan; Newark, New Jersey; New York, New York; Eagle Pass, Texas; El Paso, Texas; Hidalgo, Texas; La-
redo, Texas; and Pharr, Texas. For more information on the CBP officer position, visit www.cbp.gov/ careers. To apply for the CBP officer position, applicants must have an active USA Jobs account and complete an online application at www.usajobs.gov.
LAKE Continued from Page 1A has gotten 11.5 inches of precipitation, or about 160 percent of the normal 7.1 inches. March and April each provided 200 percent of the state’s normal rainfall. And the news going forward is good. A weaker-than-anticipated El Niño that brought with it rain, snow and sleet to Texas is expected to persist and intensify through next winter. This summer’s temperatures may be the lowest since 2007-2008, according to state climatologist John Nielsen-Gammons, which could lead to less evaporation from lakes, weather officials said. Also, the state’s wettest two months — May and June — are still ahead. “There are a lot of positive things to look forward to, both short-term and long-term,” Fort Worth
NWS meteorologist Victor Murphy said. It’s been a long slog since 2011, Texas’ driest year ever, and despite significant improvement, weather officials say the drought still isn’t over. Nearly 16 percent of the state is in the top three driest categories, according to this week’s U.S. Drought Monitor Map. Two percent of the state — including Palo Pinto County north to Wichita County and west into Childress County — remain in the driest, or exceptional, category. Lakes in the Dallas-Fort Worth area are faring well. Across the seven reservoirs serving Dallas County, lake levels are up nearly 30 percent from three months ago, at 94 percent full on Friday. Fort Worth’s seven reservoirs were almost 82 percent full Friday,
up from 63 percent three months ago. Other areas too have gotten good precipitation, including Houston, Corpus Christi and Midland. The Edwards Aquifer, which serves San Antonio and much of the Hill Country, has risen nearly 20 feet since Jan. 1. The one area where lake levels remain low is around Austin, where Lake Travis and Lake Buchanan were 38 percent full Friday; that’s the second-lowest level for this time of year since the 1960s Joe Castro, who owns Anchor Bay Marina at Lake Lavon, said the higher lake level would benefit his business following a few down business years. “(The benefit has) already shown itself,” he said. “We’ve been renting slips regularly.”
12A THE ZAPATA TIMES
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
Nepal’s people still need tents, food By BINAJ GURUBACHARYA AND FOSTER KLUG ASSOCIATED PRESS
KATHMANDU, Nepal — Nearly a week after a massive earthquake killed more than 6,200 people and collapsed buildings, temples and homes, Nepal still urgently needs basic aid like shelter and food, while remote villages remain cut off from help. Aid workers still face “immense logistical challenges,” U.N. humanitarian chief Valerie Amos said Friday, noting that the scale of the devastation in Nepal would be an obstacle for any government. The U.N. has estimated the magnitude-7.8 quake that struck April 25 affected 8.1 million people — more than a fourth of Nepal’s population of 27.8 million. In Kathmandu, rescue workers in orange jumpsuits continued to search through collapsed buildings, but fewer tents were standing in a central part of the capital that had been packed with people in the first few days. Some residents who had been fearful of aftershocks have left the city or moved elsewhere. The government announced it was giving the equivalent of $1,000 to families of each person killed and another $400 for funeral costs, state-run Nepal Radio said Friday. More than 130,000 houses were destroyed in the quake, according to the U.N. humanitarian office. Near the epicenter, north of Kathmandu, whole villages were in ruins, and residents were in desperate need of temporary shelters against the rain and cold. Isolated hamlets are still cut off because scarce helicopters can’t land in some mountainous areas, and roads have often been destroyed, said Amos, who flew over some of those places during a three-day
Photo by Wally Santana | AP
Living in a makeshift shelter after her home collapsed in last week’s earthquake, Sushma Kanwar, 23, holds her 1-year-old child as she explains Friday that her faith in the Hindu gods saved her family. visit. “Of course we are worried that it is taking so long to get to people who desperately need aid. Some of those villages are virtually flattened. But it’s very, very hard to see how we’re going to get to them,” she said. Some villagers might be able to walk to a place where the aid helicopters could land, but that would be of little help to those who are injured, she added. Tents and tarpaulins are the most urgent need, but there’s also a demand for water, food, health care and better sanitation. Debris must be removed, bodies recovered, and officials need to determine which buildings are too dangerous to enter, Amos said. In the past 48 hours, the U.N. Children’s Fund, or UNICEF, has delivered nearly 30 metric tons of supplies, including tents, water purification tablets and first aid and hygiene kits. Nepal Information Minister Minedra Risal said 400,000 tents are needed immediately, but that the country has only been able to provide 29,000 thus far. In addition to tents and tarpaulins, the government appealed to international donors to send foodstuffs like grain, salt and sugar.
It also asked donors to give money for relief efforts if they cannot send goods that are immediately needed in the impoverished Himalayan nation. “We have received things like tuna fish and mayonnaise. What good are those things for us?” Finance Minister Ram Sharan Mahat told reporters. Krishna Maharjan, a farmer on the outskirts of Kathmandu, brought green onions and cauliflower on his bicycle into the city. “We are trying to get as much fresh food to the people as possible,” he said. “I feel it is our small contribution. But that’s what we can do and every little bit helps.” The death toll from the quake has climbed to 6,260, police said, including those killed in an avalanche on Mount Everest. A European Union official said about 1,000 people from Europe still were unaccounted for and had not contacted their embassies since the quake struck. EU Ambassador to Nepal Rensje Teerink said that “doesn’t mean they are dead. It just means they haven’t reported back.” Most were tourists and trekkers, and many did not register with their embassies.
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
ON THE WEB: THEZAPATATIMES.COM
Sports&Outdoors BOXING
Megafight is here
Texans nab Kevin Johnson By KRISTIE RIEKEN ASSOCIATED PRESS
Photo by John Locher | AP
Fans cheer before the Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao weigh-in on Friday in Las Vegas.
Mayweather-Pacquiao the latest great boxing match By TIM DAHLBERG ASSOCIATED PRESS
LAS VEGAS — It’s the richest fight ever, with staggering paydays and ticket prices to match. For one night, at least, boxing will be back center stage, with the world waiting to see what unfolds. The big question is this: Can Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao deliver the fight this kind of hype deserves? History is a mixed bag when it comes to big fights. But here are three that lived up to their hype: ALI-FRAZIER 1: This fight was so big, Frank Sinatra got a job as a ringside photographer at Madison Square Garden. The original Fight of the Century in 1971 featured two unbeaten heavyweights getting record purses of $2.5 million, and the
rich and famous gathered at the Garden to see if Muhammad Ali could overcome his three-year exile and regain the heavyweight title from Joe Frazier. Adding to the excitement was the fact the two fighters genuinely didn’t like each other. Ali fought well, flicking out his left jab and landing combinations. But Frazier was relentless, stalking Ali all night long, throwing vicious left hooks that caused Ali’s face to swell. In the 15th round he landed one flush, sending Ali to the canvas and cementing a decision win. The two would fight a trilogy, with Ali winning the next two fights, including the infamous “Thrilla in Manilla” LEONARD-HEARNS: Sugar Ray Leonard had the gold medal and the smile everyone loved. Tommy Hearns was a fearsome puncher with a right hand that knocked op-
ponents senseless. They met in their prime on Sept. 16, 1981, outdoors at Caesars Palace in a fight that will live in boxing lore. It was a fight that had everything, including classic ebb and flow, but Hearns appeared heading to victory when he changed strategy and began boxing Leonard in the middle rounds instead of trying to knock him out. At the end of the 12th round, trainer Angelo Dundee screamed at Leonard “You’re blowing it son, you’re blowing it.” His face swollen and his chances fading, Leonard turned puncher, landing a series of vicious punches in the 13th round to stop Hearns and give him his first loss. “I always felt the end results are what counts,” Leonard said after.
See BOXING PAGE 2B
HOUSTON — Houston general manager Rick Smith didn’t shy away from Kevin Johnson in Thursday’s NFL draft because of he had academic problems early in his college career. The way he bounced back from those struggles made Smith like him even more. “He’s a young man who made some mistakes early in his college career and I don’t know that he took things as seriously as he needed to and had some academic troubles,” Smith said. “And then all of the sudden he realizes what’s at stake and I like those kind of situations where a guy ... might not be as mature as he needs to be and then he turns it around.” The Wake Forest cornerback, who put his early troubles behind him to earn a degree in communications, was taken by the Texans with the 16th overall pick in the draft. Johnson reflected on having to sit out the entire 2011 season because he was academically ineligible. “It hurt me not to play ... (and) it helped me mature as a man,” Johnson said. “Helped shape me as the person I’m trying to be today.” Of course the Texans liked more about Johnson than his character. He had 43 tackles, including 3 1/2 for losses, defended 15 passes and had three interceptions as a senior last season. “He was by far my favorite corner in the draft,” Smith said. “Just a complete football player in our opinion. This guy is an intelligent guy ... he’s tough, he can cover, he’s versatile, he plays on, he plays off, he’s got great instincts, great play on the ball.” The 6-foot Johnson joins a secondary that features cornerbacks
See TEXANS PAGE 2B
NFL: DALLAS COWBOYS
KENTUCKY DERBY
Baffert’s horses are atop field By BETH HARRIS ASSOCIATED PRESS
Photo by Jeffery Washington | AP
Dallas first-round draft pick Byron Jones is introduced as the newest member of the Cowboys on Friday with executive vice president/COO Stephen Jones, left, owner Jerry Jones, second from right, and head coach Jason Garrett.
Cowboys introduce top pick Jones By SCHUYLER DIXON ASSOCIATED PRESS
IRVING, Texas — Byron Jones sensed in his conversation with Dallas owner Jerry Jones that the Cowboys had some anxious moments before their late first-round pick Thursday night. The cornerback from Connecticut, who went 27th to the defending NFC East champions, was right. “The most important thing is that we thought we could live if
we didn’t strike well at pass rusher in this draft,” said Jerry Jones, also the team’s general manager. “We thought we could live if we didn’t strike well at running back. The place where we did not think that we could feel good and sleep right is if we didn’t do something there in our secondary at corner.” Keep in mind, this is a franchise that just lost NFL rushing champion DeMarco Murray to division rival Philadelphia, and
See COWBOYS PAGE 2B
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Bob Baffert hopes he’s celebrating in the winner’s circle at the Kentucky Derby. He just doesn’t know which horse or owners would join him. After all, the trainer has the two top favorites for Saturday’s race. American Pharoah, owned by Egyptian Ahmed Zayat, is the early 5-2 favorite for the 141st Derby off an eight-length victory in the Arkansas Derby. Dortmund is the 3-1 second choice. He’s owned by Indiaborn Kaleem Shah, now a U.S. citizen whose pride for his adopted country is evident in the red, white and blue silks his chestnut colt wears. “Coming in here we feel really strong,” Baffert said. “If you get beat, the fall is pretty steep.” American Pharoah dominated his competition leading to the Derby, winning his last four races by a combined 22 1/4 lengths. Baffert calls him “brilliant,” but he’s yet to be tested in the kind of fractious conditions the Derby offers. He will be ridden by Victor Espinoza, who won last year aboard California Chrome. “If American Pharoah breaks a step slow, he’s going to find himself in a situation that he has not faced before,” said Mark Casse, who trains 30-1 shot Danzig Moon.
Photo by Charlie Riedel | AP
Kentucky Derby entrant Dortmund, with exercise rider Dana Barnes aboard, goes to the track for his morning gallop. Dortmund stands an imposing 5 feet, 8 inches from the ground to near his shoulder blades and is a son of 2008 Derby winner Big Brown. He is undefeated in six races against tougher competition than his stablemate faced. Martin Garcia works out American Pharoah in the mornings but rides Dortmund in the race. “This is an exciting, exciting field,” Zayat said. “It’s fun to have the best of the best running against each other.” A full field of 20 was reduced to 19 for 1 1/4-mile race after El Kabeir was scratched Saturday. His left front foot was bothering him Friday and the colt trained by John Terranova was
sore coming out of his stall the next day. His absence means Calvin Borel, a three-time Derby winner, won’t ride. Todd Pletcher brings three horses to the race: Carpe Diem, the 8-1 third choice; Florida Derby winner Materiality; and Itsaknockout, fittingly running on the same day as the Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Manny Pacquiao fight in Las Vegas. “We’re ready,” Pletcher said. “Let’s go.” Materiality didn’t run as s 2year-old and no horse since Apollo in 1882 has won the Derby without racing as a sophomore. His pedigree suggests he
See DERBY PAGE 2B
PAGE 2B
Zscores
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
Thunder hire Billy Donovan By CLIFF BRUNT ASSOCIATED PRESS
OKLAHOMA CITY — The Thunder hired Florida’s Billy Donovan as their coach Thursday, hoping he will help the franchise win an NBA championship in Oklahoma City. “We warmly welcome Billy and his family to Oklahoma City,” team chairman Clayton Bennett said. “He is the perfect fit for our organization and for our community, and we look forward to a long and successful relationship.” The 49-year-old Donovan led Florida to two national championships, four Final Fours, seven Elite Eights and 14 NCAA Tournament berths in 19 years. He signed a oneyear contract extension with the Gators in December that would have paid him an average salary of $4 million through 2020. But, eight years after leaving Florida to coach the Orlando Magic and then changing his mind the following day, Donovan is back in the NBA. It’s not likely he’ll head back to Gainesville this time — he inherits 2013-14 MVP Kevin Durant and 2014-15 scoring champion Russell Westbrook. “I am honored and humbled to be named the head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder,” Donovan said. “I knew that it would take a unique opportunity to leave the University of Florida, and that is clearly how I look at this situation.” Donovan replaces Scott Brooks, who was fired last week. The pressure will be on Donovan immediately. Brooks went 338-207 (.620) in seven seasons with the Thunder and was the 2009-10 NBA Coach of the Year. Starting in 201011, he led the team to the Western Conference finals three out of four years, and the franchise reached the NBA Finals in 2012. This season, a broken right foot limited Durant to 27 games and right knee surgery kept defensive stalwart Serge Ibaka out for the final month of the season. Westbrook posted nine triple-doubles after the All-Star break while trying to salvage the season, but the Thunder were knocked out of the playoff race on the final night of the regular season. Durant, Westbrook and Ibaka spoke highly of Brooks during exit interviews. Now, Donovan will have to prove he can coach at the NBA level, win over the fans, help Durant feel comfortable enough to re-sign instead of testing free agency and help the franchise that moved from Seattle to Oklahoma City for the 2008-09 season break through and win a title. Thunder general manager Sam Presti believes Donovan has what it takes to move the franchise for-
File photo by Garry Jones | AP
Trainer Bob Baffert has the two favorites in the Kentucky Derby field including American Pharoah and Dortmund.
DERBY Continued from Page 1B Photo by Sue Ogrocki | AP
Billy Donovan is replacing Scott Brooks as the new head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
File photo by Paul Sancya | AP
Former Florida head coach Billy Donovan will get to work with some of the best players in the NBA including Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) and forward Kevin Durant. ward. “His emotional intelligence, commitment to the concept of team and relentless approach to incremental improvement have allowed him to bring his players together and establish lasting relationships through competitive success,” Presti said. Donovan already had strong ties to the Oklahoma City franchise. Former Florida assistant Mark Daigneault was hired as Oklahoma City’s D-League coach last year, while former Florida video coordinator Oliver Winterbone is a scout with the Thunder. Presti and Donovan have had a lasting relationship. Donovan talked with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Cleveland
Cavaliers about openings before last season, but decided to stay at Florida. Last season, the Gators finished 16-17 and missed the postseason for the first time since 1997. Three players have already left the program in what many believed was a house cleaning. Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley said the school will miss Donovan. “While we are certainly extremely sad to see Billy go, the primary feeling I have is one of gratitude for what he has done here at Florida,” Foley said in a statement. “Billy and Florida basketball have been synonymous for a long time now, and our program would not have reached the heights it has without him.”
TEXANS Continued from Page 1B Kareem Jackson and Johnathan Joseph. “We’re really happy where (the secondary’s) at right now,” secondyear coach Bill O’Brien said. “We feel really good about the corner position, specifically after (Thursday) with the addition of Kevin. We have two really good veteran corners in Johnathan and Kareem that he can learn behind. He’ll come in and compete right away.” Johnson, who idolized Champ Bailey growing up, is looking forward to working with Joseph and Jackson. “It’s going to be great to come into a situation like that and learn from those guys, guys that I’ve watched
over the past six, seven years of my life,” Johnson said. “Anything I can learn from those guys is going to be invaluable.” The Texans have gone heavy on defense in recent years, selecting a defensive player in the first round in six of the last seven seasons, including taking Jadeveon Clowney first overall last year. Johnson was voted second team All-ACC by coaches last season to wrap up a career where he broke up 35 passes, which were the fourthmost in school history. The Texans had a need at receiver after cutting seven-time Pro Bowler Andre Johnson in the offseason. But the instead chose to add to an al-
ready star-studded defense led by 2014 Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt. Watt’s spectacular season was a big reason why the Texans improved seven games last season to finish 9-7. They’re counting on their defense to be even better this season if Clowney is healthy to pair with Watt. Clowney injured his right knee in his first NFL game and had arthroscopic surgery. The outside linebacker returned for three games, but never got back to form and eventually had season-ending microfracture surgery in December. His recovery is going well and the Texans hope he’ll be ready for Week 1.
COWBOYS Continued from Page 1B a team that recently found out it might not have free agent defensive end Greg Hardy for the first 10 games because of a suspension related to a domestic violence case. “You could tell that they were really eyeing me and hoping that I’d fall to their pick,” Byron Jones said. “I’m happy that I did.” The Cowboys figured to be out of the mix for a running back in the first round when Georgia’s Todd Gurley went 10th to St. Louis and Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon was taken five picks later by San Diego. It’s the second time in four drafts that Dallas has taken a cornerback in the first round. The Cowboys traded up to get Morris Claiborne at No. 6 in 2012, but he has underperform-
ed in three seasons and isn’t expected to be ready for training camp because of a knee injury. Dallas signed Brandon Carr to a $50 million contract in free agency the same year that Claiborne was drafted, and he had a subpar 2014 season. Orlando Scandrick, who emerged as the team’s best cornerback last year, is skipping voluntary workouts in hopes of reworking his contract. Coach Jason Garrett sees Jones as a cornerback first, though he spent two seasons at safety to start his UConn career. “I do believe that it’s realistic for him to play corner in this league and also play free safety in this league,” Garrett said. “He has the ability and he has the experience.”
Jones was among the top 15 on their board, Jerry Jones said. He was a standout at the combine with a spectacular broad jump of 12 feet, 3 inches and one of the best vertical leaps in the event. He also had a 40-yard dash time of 4.36 seconds at his pro day. The strong combine performance was important for the 6-foot-1 Jones because he was coming off surgery from a recurring shoulder injury that kept him out of the last five games of his senior season. He had eight career interceptions at UConn. “You see the trend moving toward bigger, stronger, more physical corners on the outside,” said Jones, who weighs almost 200 pounds and has been cleared medically. “I think I fit that mold pretty well. Of
course whatever they want me to do ... I’ll do it all.” Executive vice president Stephen Jones has said Dallas wasn’t surprised by the length of ban for Hardy, so it didn’t change the team’s draft plan with pass rushers. The Cowboys also are just a year removed from trading up to early in the second round for DeMarcus Lawrence, who broke a foot in training camp and missed half of his rookie season. The Cowboys lost linebackers Bruce Carter and Justin Durant in free agency, but re-signed former top 10 pick Rolando McClain after he revived his career with a solid season despite some issues with injuries. Sean Lee also is expected back after missing 2014 with a torn knee ligament.
could overcome the jinx: his sire Afleet Alex won the Preakness and Belmont in 2005. Blue Grass winner Carpe Diem cost $1.6 million and a win in the Derby (worth $1.4 million) would help his owners recoup most of their investment. John Velazquez clearly saw something in the colt because he chose to ride Carpe Diem instead of Materiality in the Derby. But he will have to overcome the No. 2 post; getting away from the starting gate quickly could minimize the chance of getting trapped inside. This year’s field is deep and talented, and absent Baffert’s dynamic duo, there are other horses with solid credentials who in a different year would be more highly regarded. Among them: —Mubtaahij, an Irelandbred trying to win the Derby by preparing outside the U.S. and then traveling halfway around the world to reach Louisville. He won the UAE Derby by eight lengths and his South African trainer Mike de Kock is highly regarded. —Firing Line, a colt that twice had photo-finish defeats to Dortmund before winning the Sunland Derby by 14 lengths in track-record time. —International Star, a versatile colt that swept the trio of Derby preps at
the Fair Grounds in New Orleans. He has tactical speed to get good position, helpful in a crowded race. “He’s razor sharp and rarin’ to go,” trainer Mike Maker said. “Show up at 5:45 tomorrow and he’ll put all your questions to bed.” —Frosted, the Wood Memorial winner, is owned by a member of the ruling family of Dubai. Godolphin Racing is 0 for 7 in previous Derby tries, but this time Sheikh Mohammad had his horse prep in the U.S. —Upstart beat Frosted in the Holy Bull and finished second behind Materiality in the Florida Derby. Baffert jokes that it’s been so long since the last of his three Derby victories in 2002 that he doesn’t remember. He knows, though, what a horse must do if it is to wear the garland of red roses. “You need to get a decent post, break well, get the trip,” he said. “It’s the toughest field I’ve been involved in since Silver Charm (in 1997).” American Pharoah, Dortmund, Carpe Diem and Materiality have combined to win 17 of 19 races, including a 10-0 mark this year. “The hype is over with,” said Ken Ramsey, who owns International Star. “It’s time for potential to develop into performance.”
BOXING Continued from Page 1B LOUIS-SCHMELING: It was 1938, and storm clouds were gathering in Europe as Germany began pushing for world domination. Max Schmeling was touted as the perfect example of Arian superiority after having handed Joe Louis his first loss two years earlier, and from the beginning this heavyweight fight was seen as a showdown between the two most powerful countries on Earth. Yankee Stadium was packed with 70,043 fans, and some 100 million people listened on their radios as the Brown Bomber defended his title for the fourth time. America didn’t have to wait long to celebrate as Louis completely dominated Schmeling, finally stopping him at 2 minutes and 4 seconds of the first round. In Germany, meanwhile, the broadcast was quickly taken off the air. Here are three fights that didn’t live up to their hype: ALI-HOLMES: Most experts thought Muhammad Ali was done as he came back out of retirement to challenge Larry Holmes for the heavyweight title, but that didn’t stop his legions of fans from believing he could beat his former sparring partner. The fight was so big that Caesars Palace built a 30,000-seat temporary stadium in October 1980 for the first outdoor fight on the Strip. Ali came into the ring having magically lost so much weight he was trim and seemingly fit at 217 pounds. But his jab was a shadow of what it once was and his reflexes were shot as Holmes had his way with him. Holmes was trying to save Ali from further pun-
ishment in the later rounds, and Ali’s corner finally stopped the fight after the 10th round. Ali would fight once more, but on a sad night in the desert it was the end for The Greatest. LOUIS-CONN 2: Their first fight in 1941 was a classic, with Billy Conn leading before trying to go for a knockout in the 13th round and being stopped by Louis. World War II meant the rematch in 1946 was four years late, though the delay did allow the fight at Yankee Stadium to be the first broadcast on national TV. The viewing audience didn’t see much of a fight, with Louis dominating from the opening bell before finally stopping Conn in the eighth round. Conn’s performance earned him the “Flop of the Year” award voted on by members of The Associated Press. ALI-LISTON 2: Cassius Clay had beaten Sonny Liston a year earlier to win the heavyweight title in huge upset, but now it was Muhammad Ali in the rematch. The fight was originally scheduled for Boston but Ali had emergency surgery and it was postponed. By the time it was rescheduled in May 1965 it had been moved to a junior hockey rink in Lewiston, Maine amid allegations Liston was beholden to the mob. There would be many more allegations later, after a right hand that few saw caught Liston in the first round and he went down and was counted out. Liston said the so-called phantom punch was real but “I could have gotten up, but I didn’t hear the count.”
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015
Dear Readers: When a new dog comes into the family, depending on where you live, a DOGHOUSE might be a priority. This is especially important if your dog will be outside most of the time. You can buy one or make one. Here are some hints to know: The dog needs enough room to stand, sit and turn around. Not too big, though! Do put the doghouse on cement blocks or another sturdy base to help keep the floor dry and cool or warm, depending on the climate based on where you live. On a personal note, when Sheba, a Keeshond, adopted us years ago (and is now in doggie Valhalla), my husband, David, made her a doghouse. It was just the right size for her to curl up in and stay warm and safe. However, she decided that sleeping ON TOP of the doghouse was the way to go. Or she would crawl under a deck we have to get out of our Texas summer heat and
THE ZAPATA TIMES 3B
“
HELOISE
hunker down in the cool sand. –– Heloise EASY CHEESE Dear Heloise: When making a grilled cheese sandwich, I first toast two pieces of bread in one slot of the toaster, toasting just one side of each. When I assemble the sandwich, I grill it on the untoasted sides of the bread. My bread is toasted on both sides –– yum! –– Stella G., Danville, Ky. Stella, this does sound like a good hint, but how do you fit two slices of bread into one slot? They must be very thin slices of bread, or your toaster must have bagel-size slots. If you are going to use a frying pan to grill the sandwich, why not simply put the bread in the pan and “toast” one side? Then make the sandwich the way you normally do. –– Heloise
4B THE ZAPATA TIMES
SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015