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MULTIMEDIA PAGE 11 Monday, May 7, 2012
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Barrera murder suspect found dead by suicide By Sarah White Daily Texan Staff
Austin police are now considering a man whose body was found in North Campus on Jan. 12 as a suspect in the murder of Esmeralda Barrera and two other New Year’s Day assaults. DNA rep or ts conf ir me d a connection between 25-year-old James Loren Brown, who died by suicide in his apartment on the 3000 block of Guadalupe, and
the man who assaulted a woman in her home in the 300 block of E. 31st Street on Jan. 1 at about 5 a.m. They are investigating his possible connection to Barrera’s murder. Additionally, Brown’s DNA profile causes him to be a suspect in four assaults that occurred last July and one assault that occurred last September, all in South Austin. APD C ommander Julie
O’Brien said Brown would have attacked these women from behind while they were walking. She said this formula of attack was very similar to the one experienced by the woman assaulted outside of Barrera’s home on the 3100 block of King Street about 30 minutes before Barrera was killed. “The mode of operation in these four assaults was very similar to the mode of operation of
the man who assaulted the woman walking on King Street [on Jan 1],” said O’Brien. “There is a lot of work that still needs to be done, but we are considering [Brown] a suspect in Barrera’s murder and in the earlier assault with injury on New Year’s Day.” Homicide detectives responded to a deceased person call made by Brow n’s ro ommate when he returned from winter break on Jan. 12, said O’Brien.
Detectives could find no apparent reason for Brown’s suicide and noticed that photos of him in the apartment resembled the composite sketch based on the description provided by the first woman walking on King Street. “It is important to note that while APD did not find [Brown] until the 12th, he had been deceased for at least a week
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Bastrop fires inspire relief response By Jillian Bliss Daily Texan Staff
Fires continued to burn across Texas on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2011 creating chaos some believe would justify declaring a natural disaster. Bastrop County officials said at a press conference on the evening of Sept. 6, 2011 that Federal Emergency Management Agency representatives are currently reviewing requests to declare the area a natural disaster. Mike Fisher, coordinator for Bastrop County Emergency Management, said approximately 34,800 acres have burned within the county and 336 fire crew personnel have been brought in from across the state to combat the flames. Fire crews have determined the fires were responsible for two deaths, but as of press time were not able to release names or information on the fatalities. Fisher said approximately 577 homes in the Bastrop area have been devastated or destroyed and at least 20 neighborhoods evacuated. “Damage to this community is reflective of all Texas,” said Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples. “This is the worst burn season ever.” Fisher said fire crews are making progress at containing both the original Bastrop County Complex fire and the Union Chapel fire, which began burning after the first Bastrop fire and is located in the southwestern part of the county. He said approximately 15 percent of the Union Chapel
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$10 million MyEdu site partnership controversial By Liz Farmer Daily Texan Staff
16-year-old Kaine Turner, who were not directly impacted by the fires, are donating their time to the different shelters, distributing supplies and comforting refugees. Turner said he called everyone he
UT System officials were aware of a familial connection between a MyEdu Corp. executive and a former chancellor, according to emails obtained by The Daily Texan through the Texas Public Information Act. The system invested $10 million in the website MyEdu to increase graduation rates by helping students better understand how to navigate through their degree plans with online advising. The UT System publicly mentioned interest in MyEdu at the Aug. 25 Board of Regents meeting and formally announced the partnership on Oct. 18. Randa Safady, UT System vice chancellor for external relations, sent an email to system officials, including Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa, about a personal connection between MyEdu and the UT System on July 5. William Cunningham is a former system chancellor, former UT-Austin president and current faculty member at the McCombs School of Business. Cunningham has had a financial stake in MyEdu, which was cofounded by his son, John Cunningham. “John Cunningham is Bill Cunningham’s son,” Safady said in the email. “He started this business
FIRE continues on PAGE 2
MYEDU continues on PAGE 2
Tamir Kalifa | Daily Texan staff file photo
Firefighters from Coppell, Texas watch as an S-64 Skycrane helicopter drops a fire retardant to help contain a wildfire burning through parts of Cedar Creek, Texas on September 5, 2011.
fire is contained, but crews have not been able to bring any of the Bastrop County Complex fire under control. Officials are currently surveying damage where possible, and the earliest residents can hope to return to their homes is the up-
coming weekend, he said. “The reality is even if the Union Chapel fire was the only fire we had, I’d still be heartbroken,” Fisher said. “I feel for these folks. The sooner we get these people back home the better off we are.” Evacuation centers were set up
at Bastrop Middle School, Bastrop Ascension Catholic Church, Bastrop Christian Outreach Center, Elgin Family Worship and the Smithville Recreation Center for residents displaced during the fire. B astrop residents such as
UT institutes tobacco ban to keep funds By Jody Serrano Daily Texan Staff
Shea Carley | Daily Texan Staff file photo
A student smokes outside of the Communications plaza the evening of February 9, 2012. The university could lose millions of research dollars from one of its top research funders if it does not adopt a tobacco-free policy by March 1.
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After years of heated debate over the use of tobacco on campus, UT announced Wednesday it will prohibit the use of tobacco products on all University property effective this month. The UT Board of Regents approved the new tobacco policy on Monday, making UT the fourth institution under the UT System to implement a ban. University spokeswoman Adrienne Howarth-Moore said people will be able to use tobacco in the 15 temporary designated areas on campus during the first year of implementation but will be required to adhere to the policy by Feb. 28, 2013. The policy prohibits the use of tobacco products on University-owned sidewalks, parking areas, walkways, attached parking structures and buildings. Tobacco will only be allowed at the temporary designated tobacco areas, and for educational
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or clinical purposes, fine arts productions, sponsored research and off-campus graduate housing facilities. The University’s previous policy only prohibited smoking within buildings and required people to smoke 20 feet away building entrances. Howarth-Moore said sidewalks adjacent to UT property, such as the sidewalks on Guadalupe Street, will not be included in the ban. The ban will also exclude sidewalks and property on Guadalupe Street, Dean Keeton Street, Red River Street and Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard. She said the University will be removing ashtrays surrounding campus buildings in the next couple of months, launching an educational campaign and putting up signs to inform the UT community about the new policy. She said at this time there are no plans to implement a financial penalty if people violate the ban and repeat violations will be directed to the appropriate stu-
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dent, faculty and staff liaisons. Howarth-Moore said the UT administration understands the challenges this new policy places on people who are current tobacco users, but hopes people will see this change as an opportunity to quit and take advantage of tobacco cessation resources on campus. “If people choose not to take advantage of the tobacco resources we are providing, we hope that this gives them time to adjust their work schedule and start to think about how they will implement this policy in their work or school day,” Howarth-Moore said. “This is the right direction for the University.” UT first announced plans on Feb. 9 to possibly change its tobacco policy after the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas announced new rules requiring all institutions receiving cancer research funds to become tobaccofree by Aug. 31. If the University did not
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