Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 23, No. 39, Ed. 1 Friday, February 9, 2007 Page: 1 of 80
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GRIFFITH TOUTS CONSERVATISM IN MAYOR'S RACE ! CIVIL UNIONS POSSIBLE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE I VIEWPOINTS i BOOKS I AUTO ! DINING
M as £)ICE
c oo i use e on
BEN BRISCOE
provides video
news on DVtv,
online at
DallasVoice.com
LOCAL
An Oak Lawn resi-
dent is killed and
his roommate
injured in a shoot-
ing in their apart-
ment. PAGE 6.
NATIONAL
A Michigan court
ruling endangers
partner benefits
across the state,
possibly the coun-
try. PAGES 28-40.
VOLUME 23 I ISSUE 39
ESTABLISHED 1S84
dallasvoice.com-
FEBRUARY I 9 I 2007
THE PREMIER SOURCE FOR LGBT DALLAS/FORT WORTH
DA: No basis for criminal investigation of Dupree
Republican, Democratic commissioners asked Watkins to
look into constable's relationship with illegal immigrant
By David Webb Staff Writer
Dallas County District Attorney
Craig Watkins will not launch an
investigation into gay Constable Mike
Dupree's personal relationship with a
20-year-old man and the events that
led up to the younger man's arrest, the
district attorney's spokeswoman said
this week.
Trista Allen, public information
officer for the district attorney, said
there would be no criminal investiga-
tion of the 50-year-old Dupree.
"The basis is there's nothing crimi-
nal for us to investigate," Allen said.
"For us to do something there would
have to be a criminal act, and there
wasn't."
The statement follows requests by
Dallas County Commissioners
Kenneth Mayfield and John Wiley
Price to investigate the circumstances
of the arrest of Angel Martinez, 20,
who was reported to be a former
boyfriend of Dupree's, on a warrant
for two traffic charges on Dec. 6.
The district attorney's public
integrity division reportedly reviewed
the commissioners'requests before the
decision was made not to investigate.
Mayfield, a Republican, and Price,
a Democrat, called for the investiga-
tion after the Dallas Observer pub-
lished a story on Jan. 4 about Dupree,
detailing Martinez's arrest and the
constable's alleged involvement in it.
The newspaper published follow-up
stories on its blog Jan. 18 and in the
newspaper on Jan. 25.
Dallas Gay and Lesbian Alliance
President Pete Webb issued a state-
ment recently saying that gay rights
Gays not included in
Perry Homes policy
Spokeswoman says Houston-based company has no
plans to add protections for LGBT employees
By David Webb Staff Writer
employees a diverse workforce and
Perry Homes officials acknowl-
edged this week that they have no
plans to add sexual orientation and
gender identity to their employee anti-
discrimination policy.
Erin Blaney of Allyn and Co., a
spokeswoman for the Houston-based
homebuilders, said the company
that it complies with all local, state and
federal employment guidelines.
''Perry Homes has a great relation-
ship with all employee groups,"
Blaney said. "At this time they do not
feel the need to change any employ-
See PERRY HOMES on PAGE 12
Mike LoVuolo says Megan R. Sigler, a vice
president for Perry Homes will no longer take
his calls or return his messages.
Initiative calls or breed procreation
Activist admits measure is
'absurd,' says intention is
to make a point on ruling
By Rachel La Corte Associated Press
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Proponents
of same-sex marriage have introduced
an initiative that would put a whole
new twist on traditional unions
between men and women: It would
FEATURE
Darrin Davis and David
Anderson cranked out a
gay video for Willie
Nelson. And this week-
end, their bringing the
star-studded Aetheria
bash to town. PAGE 36.
require heterosexual couples to have
kids within three years or else have
their marriages annulled.
Initiative 957 was filed by the
Washington Defense of Marriage
Alliance, which was formed last sum-
mer after the state Supreme Court
upheld Washington's ban on same-sex
marriage. In that 5-4 ruling, the court
found that state lawmakers were justi-
fied in passing the 1998 Defense of
Marriage Act, which restricts marriage
COMEDY
Kate Clinton visits Big D
this weekend. The les-
bian funny woman
offers tips for Heather
Poe to help jump-start
Mary Cheney's motor.
PAGE 40.
to unions between a man and woman.
Under 1-957, marriage would be
limited to men and women who are
able to have children. Couples would
be required to prove they can have
children to get a marriage license, and
if they did not have children within
three years, their marriages would be
subject to annulment.
All other marriages would be
defined as "unrecognized" and people
See INITIATIVE on PAGE 19
SPORTS
Slam dunk!
John Amaechi, a former
NBA star with teams in
Cleveland, Orlando and
Utah is coming out of
the closet.
PAGE 52.
leaders were also concerned about the
circumstances of Martinez's arrest as
they were reported in the Dallas
Observer, and that they would support
an investigation into Dupree's actions.
Webb said that the district attorney's
decision not to investigate Dupree sur-
prised him.
"Several community leaders were
concerned that possible illegal or ethi-
cal violations had occurred," Webb
said.
"On the surface it did appear that
there was some sort of abuse of power
or abuse of position. So I am shocked
there was not some kind of investiga-
See DUPREE on PAGE 11
Mike Dupree
Cedar Springs merchant
group finding new life
Business owners concerned over crime, on-going
problems caused by road construction in Oak Lawn area
By David Webb Staff Writer
A group of Oak Lawn business
owners are resurrecting the Cedar
Springs Merchants Association in an
effort to help alleviate crime and
address a host of other problems —
including traffic congestion — that
have been plaguing the area.
The association's members quit
meeting several years ago, but about
30 people gathered last week to revive
it. The meeting was attended by retail
store and bar owners and three mem-
bers of the Dallas City Council.
Michael Doughman, executive
director of the Dallas Tavern Guild,
facilitated the meeting. Growing con-
cerns about the business district's
future brought the group together, he
said.
"I think it was very successful for a
first meeting," Doughman said. "I
think it has been a conversation for
quite some time, and most of the mer-
chants were concerned about the
/
INDEX
Local News
6
National News 14
Viewpoints
34
Life+Styles
36
Starvoice
59
Calendar
61
Classifieds
74
City Councilwoman Pauline Medrano said
Cedar Springs merchants made a good start
with last week's meeting.
decline in business on the street and
some of the issues we face."
In addition to crime, the issues dis-
See MERCHANTS on PAGE 11
WEEKEND WEATHER
<£?->) FRI Mostly Cloudy 47°
rp^) SAT
Cloudy
46/49
SUN
Few Showers
54/67
After the spring-like weather of recent days, the winter chill has
returned. Temperatures will climb back into the 60s by Sunday, but
the clouds and the rain will continue to hang around.
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Nash, Tammye. Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 23, No. 39, Ed. 1 Friday, February 9, 2007, newspaper, February 9, 2007; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth238947/m1/1/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.