The Allen American (Allen, Tex.), Vol. 25, No. 40, Ed. 1 Saturday, December 17, 1994 Page: 4 of 130
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Page 4A- The Allen American - Saturday, December 17, 1994
“It were not best that we should all think alike; it is
difference of opinion that makes horse-races."
- Mark Twain
OPINIONS
-----------------An Editorial--------------------
Double-bunking the lesser of two evils
Having to choose what looks like the lesser of two We commend the county for trying to find an interim
evils is always an agony. And we sympathize with Collin solution. Ideas already explored and discarded include:
County officials struggling to find a solution to the over- converting the old county jail into a juvenile center —
crowded conditions at the Juvenile Detention Center. nixed because of the cost involved to meet state requue-
The situation is bad. Youthful offenders are being ments for youthfill inmates; leasing modular units —
turned away for lack of space. In September, one of the abandoned because the eventual expense would nearly
juveniles subsequently released to his mother was a equal the cost of building a new facility; sending Collin
shoplifting suspect with 17 rocks of crack cocaine. The County offenders to neighboring counties — unwork-
boy, who twice previously had been certified to stand able since their detention centers are as crowded as
trial as an adult, also had threatened a judge and said he Collin County’s.
wanted to kill a cop. Reluctantly, therefore, we endorse the county’s appli-
County Juvenile Probation Director Joe Scott said that cation for a state variance to permit double-bunking of
on average his facility takes in 27 youths each month, but youths awaiting hearings. Bypassing the state require-
turns away 37 more. ment of single-occupancy cells for these kids will enable
We believe releasing sometimes-violent youths back the center to take in 10 more — admittedly, that's a slight
to their families and neighborhoods prior to their court improvement
hearings presents a danger to the community and a dis- And we do have grave concerns about safety. These
service to the youths. youths have been arrested, but not convicted. Some are
Collin County has the eighth largest youth population violent They may hurt each other.
in the state. District Judge John Roach said juvenile fil- If double-bunking is approved, Scott said two addi-
ings have more than doubled over the last year and the tional detention officers will be hired for the daylight
trend is not likely to be reversed soon. shifts. Audio monitors are already in place and Scott said
Meanwhile, the county has only 10 beds for youths staff can get to any cell within 30 seconds if a fight erupts,
awaiting court hearings. Due to changes made this fall, it Efforts also will be made not to bunk violent youths with
has 14 beds for juveniles serving sentences. But 99 per- those accused of property crimes.
cent of the center arrivals are awaiting hearings. Clearly, While these measures will help, we’re not sure they’ll
more beds are urgently needed and we strongly recom- be sufficient We take little solace in Scott's assessment
mend voter approval to build a new facility if such a mea- that violence is less likely in the detention center than in
sure appears on the May ballot the classroom.
Lol me
GUESS..
Your thoughts and views are welcome
in The Allen American.
g MIGHTY
=YOpHl
POWER ,
kAnGErS?
no.
UOURE ,
KDVnG!
YES.
Justice system is
not discriminatory
Judicial Elections
While just
about everyone
agrees that more
minority judges
are needed, the
DON
HENDERSON
Commentary
current system of
electing district
judges in Texas is
not broken nor does it discrimi-
nate against minorities.
For decades various measures
have been proposed to increase
them) would be
much more agree-
able to slight mod-
ification rather
than complete
transformation.
Nevertheless, I do
find it strange that
there were no complaints about
the current system until
Republicans began to win judicial
elections in urban counties.
What’s
the
Method of selecting
judges must change
Texas’ courts
are overburdened
and backlogged.
It can take
months to bring a
criminal to trial,
get a court hear-
ing on a child sup-
DAN
MORALES
Commentary
minority repre-
sentation based
on single-mem-
ber districts or
gubernatorial
appointments.
The countywide
system of eject-
ing district
judges still pre-
vails because it
allows voters to
select from a
'While the current
system is not per-
fect, it does provide
a more qualified
judiciary by allow-
ing voters more
choices and is the
lesser of evils as
compared to the
alternatives.'
large pool of can-
didates and pro-
duces good judges that are held
accountable to the law, not con-
During the last
regular session of
the Texas
Legislature, the
Texas Attorney
General’s Office
unsuccessfully
sought to have
the Legislature’s
approval in set-
tling a LULAC
suit through
implementing a
system of single-
member districts
Verdict?
port case or other civil matters.
Most of our judges are work-
ing as hard and as fast as is
allowed under the rules of judi-
The Justice
Department is @
currently holding
hostage several-
new courts creat-
ed by the Texas
Legislature in
1993. The depart-
ment is refusing to approve
them. It has advised us on'
numerous occasions that it will
not approve any new courts cre-
stituencies.
The Texas Constitution
requires district judges to be
elected from a countywide dis-
(based on House of
Representative districts) for dis-
trict judges in the larger coun-
ties. A few months later, the Fifth
Circuit Court of Appeals ruled
that evidence of dilution was mar-
trict. To change this system, a ginal and that the system did not
constitutional amendment must violate the Voting Rights Act
be passed by two-thirds of the While single-member districts
Texas Legislature and a majority may be appropriate for other
of voters who want that power types of offices, they are not
taken away. appropriate for judges that are to
In all likelihood, Texans (and remain objective. For district
the legislators who represent Turn to system, Page 5A
Classroom no place for
‘scientific creationism’
By DENNIS BURKE
Re: “Evolution mistakenly
being taught as fact” .
In My Opinion
Within that editorial, I
noticed two main complaints frequency of alleles within a
concerning the manner in Sene pool from one generation
which evolution is taught in to the next This is a fact It has
public schools: It is mistakenly been observed on numerous
being taught as fact and no occasions and can be easily
other scientific theory is observed at any time. The theo-
offered alongside evolution. I retical portion of the theory of
would like to offer a response to evolution is which processes
both of these complaints. (natural selection, sexual selec-
Ms. Bell states that, tion, genetic drift, etc. ...) drive
“Prentice Hall’s response to evolution and to what extent
parental objections regarding they do S°- That is, the theory
evolution being taught as fact, of evolution consists of the fact
not theory, simply states, ‘it is of changes to the gene pool
both.’” While this is a rather over time and the theory as to
terse response from Prentice the causes of these changes
Hall, it is, in fact, accurate. The and their interrelationships
theory of evolution does con- with each other.
tain two components. Evolution Ms. Bell also states, “No
is defined as any change in the Turn to EVOLUTION, Page 5A
Letters to the Editor
and In My Opinion
pieces should be
mailed to: Opinions
Desk, The Allen
American, P.O. Box
27, Allen, Texas
75002.
The Allen American
A Harte-Hanks Community Newspaper
Lynn Dickerson
Publisher
Tim Watterson
Editor
Gary Smith
Financial Director
Beth Roddy
Advertising Director
Steve Jordan
Circulation Director
Dollie Turpin, Assistant Editor
Doug Layton, Managing Editor/Visuals
David May, Senior News Editor
Brenda Welchlin, News Editor
Valerie Barna, Opinions Editor
Ian Halperin, Photo Editor
Gary Patterson, Sports Editor
Liaqat Ali Khan, Production Director
Leslie Mascari. Marketing Services Director
Editorial Board
All editorials are opinions of The Allen American editorial board, which
includes:
•Tim Watterson, Editor
•Debbie Tackett, General Manager
•Lynn Dickerson, Publisher
•Valerie Barna. Opinions Editor
• DeeAnn Pitts, Harte-Hanks
Administrative Assistant
Ballot
Box
(od *
cial procedure.
We need, more
courts, but the
U.S. Department
of Justice says we
can’t have them
because our
method of select-
ing judges is
flawed. The coun-
tywide system of
electing judges
dilutes the minor-
ity vote and
results in fewer
Although we
resent the arm-
twisting by the
change is necessary
and the right thing
to do for Texas.'
. ated by the a
Legislature
unless the selec-
tion of the
judges for those
seats is by a dif-
ferent method.
Although we
resent the arm-
twisting by the
Justice
Department,
change is neces-
sary and the
right thing to do
minorities being elected to the for Texas.
bench, according to the This will not be an easy
Department of Justice. endeavor. The effort to take pol-
It is right. Harris County is an itics out of our system of select-
example. There will be no ing judges will necessarily set
African-American judges in the into motion a very political
state’s most populous county process. There will be contro-
come January versy, and there will be as many
However, that is only part of different suggestions as there •
the problem. Partisanship and are proponents of a new system,
the role of big campaign contri- Putting the nuances aside, it is
butions have created a percep- likely the Texas Legislature will
tion that justice is for sale in choose a system involving merit
Putting the nuances aside, it is
likely the Texas Legislature wil
Texas.
Turn to CHANGE, Page 5A
Letters io the Editor
Austin wrote that each football player has response to gun control, that is similar to
his own reasons for playing the game. Some Carrollton’s ban oh Doc Marten boots in
play for their school, some for their girlfriend response to gangs. It is so far out there, inad-
or parents, some for themselves. I will never equate and totally missing the issue that it
forget how Austin ended thatletter. points out the ineffectiveness of the group of
“Every time I take the field,” he concluded, principals proposing the ban.
“a part of me plays for you.” There are other, more effective measures
Ken Purcell made a big difference to my that could be taken:
sons. That is the legacy he leaves behind. • Closed campuses that do not allow stu-
dents off campus or unauthorized persons to
Don Crowder enter campus.
Allen • Personal-identification badges with pho-
tos that have to be worn at all times while
Other measures can attending school.
^ Metal detectors.
protect students • Random searches of students that are
E exhibiting suspicious behavior.
1 L J I met with the school board Nov. 28. * Stiff punishment for possessing weapons
Football coach made During the meeting, I shared a letter I had on school grounds.
. 1:6 + . written to Dr. Barbara Erwin with the board I realize that these measures will all cost
a aierenee CO players members. I expressed my concerns over the money in a time that we are looking to reduce
proposed addition to the dress code and the costs, but I believe these are necessary and
• Football coaches, at every level, are inequality of the current dress code. effective measures.
judged by their won-loss records. It is a harsh The board expressed its desire to do what- In the Nov. 30 issue of The Allen
appraisal and one that does not always take ever it felt necessary to provide a safe envi- American, an article on the proposal gave the
the measure of the man. Such, I believe, is ronment for our children and still reflect the message that the board fully intended to pass
the case with Ken Purcell. . concerns of the community, he proposal. The reason for their justifica-
I know Ken well. I know he wanted, and However, I don’t believe the board nor Dr. tion was the safety of our children.
tried, to win every contest in which his kids Erwin understood my point The AISD prin- If this is their attempt at our children’s
were engaged. He experienced great highs cipals have proposed a ban on all baggy cloth- safety, then it is a very lame attempt. They
and horrible lows. Such is the nature of ing worn by students in the AISD. This was a need to take more aggressive and effective
coaching competitive sports. But to gauge result of a student being caught with a gun measures as I have suggested above. That
his career solely upon the number of games that was hidden in his baggy pants. will be a more asser tive attempt toward safe-« D
The won would be an injustice to him and to Although I do support measures to reduce ty than a ban on clothing style.
the kids whose lives he so affected. the opportunity for weapons being brought The board needs to hear from other par-
I had two sons play under Ken Purcell. My to our schools, I do not support the ban on ents, students and concerned residents.
oldest, Jimmy, 28, cannot to this day bring baggy clothing This proposal screams of a Please send a letter to Dr. Barbara Erwin, 200
himself to call him anything other than small group of people trying to exert their S. Cedar Drive, Allen 75002. You may also
Coach Purcell, never Ken Purcell. The latter own personal tastes on a large group of peo- contact me at 727-8321.
is simply unthinkable. ple Robert Pierce
My youngest son, Austin, 22, is still play- My son already feels like he is being dis-Allen
ing. collegerfootPallidatai d akest Forest criminated against due to the unjustifiable Protect students from
University. Perhaps Austin said it best in a let- restrictions of the dress code. Please dont . 1
ter he wrote Ken two seasons ago, misunderstand me. I believe we need a guide- ouns, not clothes «
Allen was struggling after having moved line to ensure against extremes in dress that
up to the 5A classification. Austin penned a may be disruptive or dangerous. The current In response to the Nov. 30 article regard-
sympathetic note to his former coach, which code misses this by a mile. ing banning baggy clothes, I have two words
he shared with me. As far as the ban on baggy pants in Turn to LETTERS, Page 5A
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Watterson, Tim. The Allen American (Allen, Tex.), Vol. 25, No. 40, Ed. 1 Saturday, December 17, 1994, newspaper, December 17, 1994; Allen, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1695370/m1/4/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Allen Public Library.