February 25, 2013 Edition of The Vanguard

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VANGUARD

THE

PATRICK BIGBIE / VANGUARD ARCHIVES

Mitchell named VP of Student Affairs By STUART SOX sgsox@att.net

Dean of Students Dr. Michael Mitchell has taken on the responsibilities of the Vice President of Student Affairs, Dr. Dr. Mike Mitchell John Smith. D r . Smith will serve as the acting president of USA while President Moulton takes a 90-day leave of absence for health reasons. “Dr. Smith has asked that I assume the lead responsibility for the entire division of Student Affairs...which includes housing, campus police, dining services, counseling center, bookstore and the post office,” Dean Mitchell said. As part of his duties as Dean of See VP Page 2

JAYSON CURRY / SR. REPORTER

‘Preacher’ removed from Jury finds Ajizadeh guilty in 2011 USA murder campus The Vanguard responded to a gruesome scene in July of 2011 as the victim’s body was removed from a Delta 6 residence hall room in the afternoon.

By JAYSON CURRY jayson-curry@hotmail.com

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t took only 20 minutes for the jury in the murder trial of Brandon Ajizadeh to come back with a guilty verdict. Ajizadeh was accused of stabbing his high school classmate and friend James Franklin Dean III 24 times with a butcher knife on July 10, 2011. “I compliment my investigators on the work they did. There was a lot of work that went in to this. I think we got the verdict we expected and it came quickly. I think that falls back on everything my investigators did from obtaining a confession to the crime scene work

to testifying on the stand,” USAPD Chief of Police Zeke Aull said. “It all came together and we presented the facts and I think the evidence was overwhelming. Coming back in 20 minutes I think really highlights the work on this case.” Ajizadeh, Dean and two other friends were supposedly hanging out in Ajizadeh’s Delta 6 dorm room the night the murder occurred. . According to reports the two other friends, including Kennan Henderson, had left before Dean was killed. Ajizadeh, Dean and Henderson had been friends since attending Murphy High School together but in the time before the death of

Dean, Ajizadeh had felt left out by the other two men. Ajizadeh was presented as a jealous friend who became frustrated with how close Henderson and Dean had become in the months before the night the murder occurred. The jealousy was the motive in this case. Former high school classmates of Ajizadeh say there should have been help years before this murder happened for someone with issues like Ajizadeh appeared to have. Jonathan Tapper remembers Ajizadeh being picked on maliciously in high school and points to this

By STUART SOX sgsox@att.net

fter last year’s election debacle, SGA has decided that the rules for running for elections need to change. The Student Government Association met on Monday, Feb. 18 to vote on amendments to the elections bylaws. Senate Pro-Tempore Elizabeth McDonald proposed a number of amendments to the homecoming and SGA election bylaws that will update and refine the election process. Significant amendments include prohibiting verbal campaigning in any

building on campus on election day and using sidewalk chalk under covered areas. With the amendments in effect, candidates will also no longer be able to use their places of employment for their campaign. For example, students that work at places like Kinko’s, UPS, or even the USA Bookstore cannot use these businesses to run off copies of flyers or make anything else campaign related. This year’s SGA elections process will begin on March 1 when applications become available at the SGA office in the academic support center on Jaguar drive. Applications are due at the

find us on Facebook “Facebook.com/ TheVanguardUSA”

SGA office by 5 p.m. on March 18. Those that submitted applications must attend a mandatory candidates meeting on March 18 at 5:15 p.m. at the SGA office. Any applicant that cannot attend the meeting must send a representative to the meeting in his or her place. The elections bylaws and campaign rules will be discussed at the meeting. As soon as the candidates meeting ends, candidates are free to begin campaigning. The SGA elections committee wants students and candidates to be aware of the elections bylaws when organizing their campaigns. According to the elections bylaws, a violation by

Check out our digital edition thevanguardonline.com

By CASSIE FAMBRO caf707@jagmail.southalabama.edu

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a candidate results in a fine of $10. A candidate that places campaign flyers on car windshields or on trees, specifically, will be fined $15. A candidate that amasses more than $25 in fines will be subject to disqualification. Candidates must also have their campaign flyers approved at the student center desk in the academic support center and have sheet signs approved at the SGA office in the academic support center. In past homecoming and SGA elections, violations have been reported mostly by text message and word of mouth, a trend that Elizabeth Mc-

elf-proclaimed preacher Matt Bourgault was removed from campus on Tuesday after inciting a near-riot in front of the student center. Bourgault travels to college campuses around the country spreading his message of what he deems religion. Among his teachings are that Mormonism and Catholicism are “cults and false religions,” according to his website cfirecm.com. He also details that the bible has false teachings that should be absolved as well as wine being a sin. Bourgault stood outside of the food court and told USA students that he would “not come to USA to find a wife” because USA students are “whores.” USA senior Tara Gebhard took his disparaging remarks about Catholicism as crossing the line of free speech. “He said Catholics were going to hell. I’m all for freedom of speech, but when you insult my friends and my religion I do not think it’s appropriate for a college campus,” Gebhard told The Vanguard. Some of Bourgault’s most controversial remarks were made on the topic of sex. USA student Carlton Warnberg says he called his friends “sodomizers.” “He actually began

See SGA Page 2

See PREACHER Page 4

See MURDER Page 2

SGA makes major changes to election rules A

VOL. 52, NO. 7

“If it matters to the USA family, it matters to us.”

FEB. 25, 2013

Life, Page 5

In this Issue: Sports, Page 8 Opinion, Page 13


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