Salina Journal (Newspaper) - March 8, 1993, Salina, Kansas the Salina Journal Serving Kansas since 1871 INSIDE Journal Line Kansas March 1993 5O cents Suicide at sea mystifies mans family By The Associated Press WICHITA Nadine Gilmore sifted through the yearbooks and scrapbooks scattered across the kitchen ta They show her youngest Michael Var clowning with his making faces while at the Naval Recruiting Center and draping his head on his brides This is the young man I gave to the Gilmore Then she pulled out another set of photo she is what the Navy did to my Mike is lying in a his blue uniform his hands folded neatly on his The heavy morticians makeup They killed They murdered my Its I just dont know that I can prove mother of Michael does not conceal the discoloration on his Petty Officer 3rd Class Christopher Mi chael died 20 on the Cape a destroyer on maneuvers in the Navy officials have classified his death as an apparent A prominent Wichita forensic pathologist who examined the body at Gilmores request said he saw no evidence that was But his family doesnt buy the possibility of They killed Gilmore her voice They murdered my Its I just dont know that I can prove phone calls and post cards from to family and friends in the days leading up to his death paint the picture of a man bored with sea awed by the scen ery and anxious to get home to his wife and infant I am going to be so fat when I come wrote in a letter to his There was no evi dence of any assault on him at all nothing like a fat lip or a broken nose or Wichita forensic pathologist postmarked the day he Only 173 more days until I come Yea turned 19 on the day the Cape Cod left San Diego on a sixmonth tour of Nine days hours after his ship left Pearl was found Navy officials initially told family members he was found hanging in a they said he was found in an area where sailors Duane commanding of ficer of the Corps Reserve Center in said a final report on death may be months But Ken a spokesman for the Pacific Fleet at Pearl said the ships onboard investigation has been Right Ross there is abso lutely no evidence of any foul Tina said her husband would not See Page 7 harsh winter takes toll on ranchers Winter hard on Kansas cattle By LINDA The Salina Journal PARADISE Kenneth Stielow is tired of hearing himself say But he cant seem to stop es as storm after storm sweeps across his Russell County Its been a long he said with a Its kind of depressing when you wake up every few days and theres more snow on the Outside his office next to the cat tle the days snow had But it was very The brisk north wind whipped re cently fallen snow across the gravel road and long lane to the Stielow The landscape was white as far as the eye could It has been this way across most of Kansas since I can remember some winters that had more but I cant remember a winter that started so early and lasted so said a Kansas State University graduate who returned to his three generation ranch in 1975 after spending several years as a farm management specialist with the state extension has heard many weather complaints this year as president of the Kansas Livestock Some feed he are spending each working hour for earthmoving equipment to cart off the tons of mud produced by the abundant moisture of the past few Ben Journal Harsh weather this winter has made ranching difficult for people such as Kenneth president of the Kansas Livestock Ive heard as high as 50 percent have had more than 50 inches of higher grain costs for feedlot It has to be hard in those in a pen that didnt make snow this More recently the problems have Stielow Some of the feedlots The worst reports have come But conditions are bad all moved to herds with have had major losses because the from the huge feedlots in southwest This winters harsh weather has cattle have been continually stres Many parts of the region caused increased death losses and See Page 7 Fight to change education board resumes today Analysis By JOHN MARSHALL Harris News Service TOPEKA If one issue gives hiccups to Kansas it is tampering with the state Board of In the past 20 there have been seven attempts all failed to remodel the board or dilute its To the state supervisors of local these one after the have become a series of nagging To the lawmakers who want more control of this independent the struggle has been over and it has a price billion in local school the battle The Kansas House is set to debate for the third time in seven years a constitutional amendment to rein in the Board of Education and limit its Since its creation by amendment in Novem ber this elected board has enjoyed un checked power to write and enforce its own often with the force of This vast authority unique in state gov was confirmed in 1973 when the Kansas Supreme Court ruled the board had been granted powers by the amendment that created The board may override or ignore education law enacted by the Since critics have called the board a fourth branch of government and have draft ed seven constitutional amendments to limit the boards Three were passed by the Legislature and submitted to voters in 1986 and All failed by wide House Resolution 5016 this year in rescind the boards power to act exclusively of the executive and judicial It is a watery version of the 1990 proposal that diluted board powers but also paved the way to replace the boards election with an appointment Past amendments to revoke the boards exclusive powers have fallen to campaigns for preserving the peoples right to elect the This the proposal retains election of the board but says the board shall report to the The change would clarify who is account able for education in chairman Duane told his House Education Committee last Democrats have also grown I get more frustrated all the time as to who is responsible for education in The isnt cutting it any Its time to make some The children of Kansas deserve said committee member Steve Goossen believes sweeping education and school finance reforms have created new state responsibilities in education policy and fi See Page 7 New radar to keep eye on storms Saline County office upgrades equipment By SHARON MONTAGUE The Salina Journal New radar expected to arrive this week should help the Saline County emergency management depart ment better predict and warn the public about severe weather as the season for tornadoes and thunder storms The radar is ar riving just as Kansas observes Severe Weather Awareness A statewide tor nado with storm watches and warnings issued throughout the Aills is scheduled for Gail coordinator of the County Emergency Preparedness said the new radar will be similar to that used on the Weather with colors indicating areas of severe storm It will be kept in the emergency management offices in the basement of the Salina Police Well be able to monitor that and track the cells a lot Aills If a storm cell shows a lot of indicating heavy we could pay particular It should help a The radar will be part of a storm watching system that includes warning storm spotters and a disaster Aills said when a severe thunder storm or tornado watch is an emergency operations center is set up in the emergency management Someone in the operations center monitors radar and teletypes from the National Weather About 15 members of the central Kansas ham radio club attend yearly training sessions to learn about dif ferent cloud formations and how to spot severe storm When severe weather threatens they are sent out as spotters to various locations in the The volunteer spotters commu by ham radio with the opera tions center and with one If a spotter sees a tornado or se vere storm or if radar indicates a tornado or severe the 22 sirens in Saline County are See Page 7 Family says suspect in trade center bombing is no terrorist The Associated Press Mohammed Salameh is shown in this September 1992 By The Associated Press Jordan Mohammed held in the bombing of New Yorks World Trade is a Palestinian whose family fled the Israeli occupation of the West He played mock war games and soccer growing up in this mining loved Western movies and en joyed He had big He wanted to fulfill his dreams in He is not a said I am sure of Americas fair jus and that my son will come out of this nightmare Authorities say Salameh was im plicated in the bombing when he tried to retrieve a rental deposit for the van used to carry the Salameh had reported the van His attorney says hes Family members denied Salameh was a Muslim as claimed by But they also said his life underwent a notice able change in his final years of high He became started to pray and read the Koran with other friends in high said a He stopped most of his past activities and hobbies and even grew a He was not a He was interested in Islamic teach said who was reluc tant to be saying his blond beard might be misinterpreted as a token of Fundamentalists usually have flowing but shave their Jordanian authorities say Salameh and his family do not have criminal or political is the eldest son among 11 children of a retired Jor danian army Amin Sal The family fled from the West Bank village of five months after the June 1967 ArabIsraeli Mohammed was 2 months The family lives in a house it built two years after the young Mohammed traveled to the United States on to study and try to fulfill his dream of earning a masters degree in busi ness authorities said he stayed in the United States illegally after his visa Salameh was arrested Thursday on suspicion of involvement in the 26 blast at the World Trade which killed five people and injured He was described as a follower of See 5 The Associated Press Aysha the suspects stands with from left sons and Sunny highs near North winds 10 to 15 Lows tonight around
