Volume CXII No. 130
com
Armed Man Takes Hostage At Coventry Bar
Gunman Tells Cops
He Shot Woman At
Apartment First
by A ndr e w P orter
manag i ng editor
COVENTRY — A man allegedly
shot and severely wounded his girlfriend
and then caused a panic at The Bidwell
Tavern Monday when he reportedly
tried to enter the restaurant carrying
both a gun and one of his children.
The Coventry Police Department
located the man – whose name has not
been released – in the parking lot near
the bar, where he told officers he was
going to shoot himself, according to a
Remember
Last Night?
Program: Students
Should Reflect On
Alcohol Choices
by F reesia S i n g n ga m
ass ociate news editor
Some communication stu-
dents and their professor are
trying a new approach to prevent
binge drinking during Spring
Weekend. Instead of just listing
facts about the effects of binge
drinking or saying that it’s not
popular, they’re asking students
if they can remember last night.
The “Remember Last Night”
campaign integrates research,
education and outreach to provide
an evidence-based approach to
prevent binge drinking, accord-
ing to Carolyn Lin, a professor
in communication sciences and
campaign director. Members of
the campaign chose to name it
“Remember Last Night” because
they hope to encourage students
to reflect on their behavior and
decide whether they have regrets
or good memories from the night
before, Lin said.
The campaign is being funded
with a two-year, $273,923 grant
from the U.S. Department of
Education specifically to combat
underage and binge drinking.
It is giving special attention to
freshmen and students involved
in Greek life because they have a
higher risk for heavy drinking.
“Remember Last Night”
is trying to garner more stu-
dent involvement and support
because research shows that
more involvement leads to more
successful programs, Lin said.
They’re also hoping for students
to pass the message along and
look out for each other when
they do drink.
All of these messages are
being publicized using posters,
slogans, videos and a Web site
that allows for more campaign
idea entries. They were all made
by students – some involved
in the communication sciences
department project and others
from outside focus groups–- so
that the messages could be more
effective.
“We put together some really
good ideas,” said Rory McGloin,
a communication sciences grad-
uate student and campaign coor-
dinator. “A lot of them, we can
say, were inspired by the stu-
dents.”
One poster includes a “Top 10
House Rules” message, which
please see SAFE, PAGE 3
FOCUS
Lance Bass To Lecture
At Jorgensen.
joint press release from the State and
Coventry Police. The officers entered
negotiations with the man and eventu-
ally convinced him to drop his weapon.
Officers used a Taser to subdue him and
he is currently in police custody. The
child – who according to the release
appeared to be physically unharmed –
was taken to an area hospital.
During the negotiations, the man
told police he had shot a woman in
his apartment, according to the release.
Emergency medical staff from the
Coventry Fire Department went to the
scene and provided treatment for the
woman. A LifeStar helicopter took her
to Hartford Hospital. Neither her name
nor her condition has been released.
According to the Associated Press,
an employee at the restaurant who did
UConn’s Presidential Fee Bill
Saturday night’s 15-minute inaugural fireworks display cost UConn $5,000, for a cost of $333.33 per minute or $5.56 per second.
Former President Carter To Meet Delta, NW Airlines Merge
Hamas Leader, Relay Views To Israel
AIRPORT CITY, Israel (AP) — Former
President Jimmy Carter defended his plan to
meet with the top leader of the violently anti-
Israel Hamas movement, saying Monday he
hopes to become a conduit between the Islamic
militant group and Washington and Israel.
Isolating Hamas is counterproductive, Carter
said. Hamas rules the Gaza Strip but is ostra-
cized by Israel, the U.S. and European Union as
a terrorist group.
“I think it is absolutely crucial that in the final
and dreamed-about and prayed-for peace agree-
ment for this region that Hamas be involved and
Syria will be involved,” he told a conference
outside Tel Aviv.
“I can’t say that they will be amenable to any
suggestions, but at least after I meet with them
I can go back and relay what they say, as just a
please see ISRAELI, PAGE 2
9 16
see page
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
not give her name identified the man
as a dishwasher at the Tavern known as
“Junior.” She said he asked to use the
bar’s phone and told co-workers he had
shot his girlfriend.
“He said he killed Amanda,” she said.
The staff locked the door and, accord-
ing to the Associated Press, gunshots
were heard outside.
Melissa Smith, 31, of Willington, a
customer who was in the restaurant at
the time said she saw two men arguing
behind the restaurant when a waitress
screamed for everyone to move to the
front of the restaurant. She said in the
chaotic scene, she, along with other
patrons – a number she estimated at
50 to 60 – huddled around the bar for
what “felt like forever,” before a wait-
ress instructed them to move to the
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter (right) listens to police
spokesman Micky Rosenfeld as he looks at home-made rockets
that were fired at Israel.
SPORTS
Baseball Plays Poorly In
Loss To Northeastern.
see page
www.dailycampus.
establishment’s basement, where police
eventually reached them.
Smith said the restaurant’s staff were
taking care of a 5- or 6-year-old boy,
whom she believed was the gunman’s
other child, throughout the incident.
Police, who reported to the scene
following several emergency calls at
approximately 5:45 p.m., closed down
part of Route 31 near the restaurant until
after 11:30 p.m. Monday.
The Connecticut State Police,
Willimantic Police, UConn Police
Department and Capitol Region
Emergency Response Team also
responded to the incident, according to
the release.
AP/ Leslloyd F. Alleyne (Journal Inquirer)
Contact Andrew Porter at Coventry Police take a man into custody after a shooting near
Andrew.Porter@UConn.edu. The Bidwell Tavern.
The Cost Of Hogan’s
Inauguration? $170,000
by T om C rosby
c a mp us correspondent
The University of Connecticut celebrated a mile-
stone this past weekend with the inauguration of its
14th president, Michael J. Hogan. But with all the
festivities and freebies floating around campus this
weekend, some stu-
dents may have been
left scratching their Inaugural Weekend
head, wondering just
what the cost of the Total Cost: $170,000
celebration was.
So what is the tab
for three days of fun, Fireworks: $5,000
food and fireworks?
$170,000, according Invitations: $29,000
to university spokes-
woman Karen Grava,
“It’s important for us Post-Inauguration
as a university to let Festival: $70,000
the public know about
what we’re doing and
how we’re doing it,”
said Grava. “Our goal for the inauguration was to
include both the students and the community.”
Because UConn is a publicly-funded university,
there are two main sources of income that make up
what is called the general operating budget. This is a
combination of state tax dollars and tuition money that
is used to bring you events such as the inauguration
festivities.
Saturday night’s fireworks show over Mirror Lake
cost the university $5,000. For the full 15-minute
show, that comes out to $333.33 per minute, or $5.56
per second.
What about the invitations to this grand party?
According to Grava, the invitations, which cost the
university a total of $29,000, ended up being so expen-
sive because the planning committee “felt that the
invitations represented the university, so they had to
be of top quality.”
Then there was Sunday’s post-inauguration cer-
emony festival. With enough food to feed 4,000 people
in a tent that fits 700, the campus-wide event wound
up costing UConn $70,000 dollars after booking fees
and the like.
But those numbers are only part of the party expens-
es. The entire cost for the weekend – when all the other
events and ancillary fees are added up came to the full
$170,000.
MATT LIN/The Daily Campus Contact Tom Crosby at
Tom.Crosby@UConn.edu.
ATLANTA (AP) — Delta Air
Lines Inc. and Northwest Airlines
holders of 16.8 percent based on
Monday’s closing stock prices.
Corp., squeezed by record high Delta Chairman Daniel Carp
fuel prices and a slowing econ- will become chairman of the new
omy, are combining in a stock- board of directors and Northwest
swap deal that would create the Chairman Roy Bostock will
world’s biggest carrier. become vice chairman. Delta
The boards of both compa- President and Chief Financial
nies gave the deal the go-ahead Officer Ed Bastian will retain
Monday. his titles.
Delta said the combined air- The new board will be made
line, which will be called Delta, up of 13 members, seven from
will have an enterprise value of Delta, including Anderson, and
$17.7 billion. It will be based in five from Northwest including
Atlanta, and Delta CEO Richard Bostock and Doug Steenland,
Anderson will head the combined the current Northwest CEO. One
company. director will come from that trend
Under the terms of the trans- has shifted in recent years as
action, Northwest shareholders more carriers, particularly Delta
AP will receive 1.25 Delta shares for and Northwest, have sought to
each Northwest share they own. increase international service.
The exchange ratio represents
a premium to Northwest share- please see JOB, PAGE 3
CONTENTS
Classifieds....... 7 Focus.............. 9
Comics.......... 12 Sports........... 16
Commentary... 4 Weather.......... 2