PCC Courier, December 05, 2002

Check out the PCC year in review see page 5 P Л S A D E N Honor the 2nd amend¬ ment, play paintball see page 11 A C l Lancers Get Knocked Out by Vikings see page 14 Courier Since 1£)15 VOL. 88 NO. 14 www.pcc-courieronline.com DECEMBER 5, 2002 College Explains Policy on Lawbreakers By Steve LuKanic Staff Writer Not long after Josue Gomez was severely beaten by three PCC stu¬ dents on the northeast comer of campus, he met with Ernestine Moore, vice president of student services. The 32-year-old Gomez, who suf¬ fered a broken nose, fractured cheekbone and numerous head and face contusions in the Aug. 27 beating, had heard that one of his attackers planned to return to PCC after serving the required jail time. Gomez wanted to make sure that would never happen. “1 wanted to know what the college’s position was on letting them come back,” Gomez said. “Would they treat them like nothing hap¬ pened and say it’s okay?” Moore assured him that if any of the three students ever tried to reen¬ roll at PCC, the administration would impose some disciplinary process which could, in fact, prevent them from attending school here. Still, says Moore, “we don’t have anything that says if a person has served their time — if a person has paid for a crime — that they cannot be enrolled.” All of which begs the question: what legal rights, if any, do students have when enrolling or reenrolling at PCC after they’ve been criminal¬ ly charged, convicted and served time? According to PCC Chief Philip Mullendore, it all depends on the nature of the crime and where and when it happened. “We really can’t discriminate because of a criminal record on an incoming student where it’s not related to campus,” Mullendore said. “It’s none of our business.” However, Mullendore added that if a crime happens on campus or is related to the campus, then the administration can take action as outlined in specific sections of the Education Code. Section 7603 1 of the code, entitled “President’s Duties,” states that “the adopted rules of student conduct may authorize the president of a community college or the president’s designee to suspend a student for good cause.” The code further defines “good cause” as including, but not limited to, a number of offenses, among which are “continued disruptive behav¬ ior, assault, battery, or any threat of force or violence upon a student or college personnel.” The fact that Josue Gomez was neither a PCC student or employee doesn’t matter, says Mullendore. Since the crime was committed on campus property, the attackers “clearly come within the cause for expul¬ sion,” he said. Mullendore added that some 300 parolees are currently enrolled at PCC (“which is probably good,” he says. “At least they’re trying to make something of themselves.”) However, of those students, only those convicted of'sex crimes are legally bound to report that informa¬ tion when applying to the college. That law, Assembly Bill 4, which went into effect Oct. 28, requires that all sex offenders — students, faculty, employees and volunteers— at all state colleges and universities must register within five days of work¬ ing and/or attending classes on campus. So, while it remains uncertain whether or not any of the men who beat up Josue Gomez — Daniel Sciolini, 18, Archie Thompson, 21, and Antonio Cervantes, 19 — will try to return to PCC, if they do, they’ll likely face an uphill battle. “It’s not like they just come back in and no one knows who they arc,” Moore said. “We have ways of flagging students.” Ordinarily, because the crime occurred on campus, Moore said, “we would go through the college administrative process.” That process could lead to a hearing where the Board of Trustees can vote to formal¬ ly expel a student, although Moore said she does not recall any PCC stu- PATRIOT Act Permits Snooping ® see VIOLENCE page 4 A Tale of Two Resignations Associated Students board mother, he was drawn to cross-cul- members are called “student-lead- tural communication even before By Robert Glassey Staff Writer Before the passage of the USA PATRIOT Act, the books you borrowed from the library were your own Patriot business. That sense of privacy was protected by the California Code and by librarians committed to the idea that there is no information that, is inherently bad and that no one, especially not the government, should be in the business of moni¬ toring what people read. “We don’t make value judg¬ ments on what people ought to look at,” said Mary Ann Laun, director of library services. But that philosophy has come under attack in the aftermath of Sept. 11. Now what books you borrow and what you do on the Internet could become the business of the FBI if they find reason to suspect 0 see Patriot page 3 Student Arrested for Armed Robbery By Andrew Campa Editor-InChief A PCC student was arrested last Tuesday on warrant from Florida charging strong-arm rob¬ bery. The student, 5-foot- 10-inch Cornelius Larry, currently on the Lancers’ football roster, was expected to travel with the team to the Potato Bowl this Saturday against Moorpark College. The crime in question hap¬ pened back in August and involved the theft of a “Playstation 2” console in the Florida city of Miramar, located 16 miles north of Miami. Although campus police could not identify the specifics of Larry’s involvement, the wide receiver is certain to have played his last game for the Lancers this season. “I felt a little empathy for the kid,” said officer John Hynes of campus police. “He’s going to miss out on the biggest game of his life.” Hynes, along with officer Beatriz Samorano, Sgt. Steve Lester and Lt. Brad Young were in on the bust that took place around 4 p.m. The. football team had just started practice at 3:30 p.m. when the officers entered Head Coach Tom Maher’s office. Maher had the uncomfortable task of pulling Larry from prac¬ tice and escorting the player back to his office. However, an arrest was not immediately made because Larry was in full pads. Campus police allowed Larryto get dressed in his street clothing. He was then cuffed and escorted into a police cruiser where he was transferred over into the custody of the L.A. Sheriffs station in La Crescenta. From there, Larry was escorted to the Twin Towers correctional facility in Los Angeles. Eventually, he will be extradited back to Miramar, Florida. “The kid had no prior criminal record and seemed like a nice young man,” Hynes said. “He was very mellow, and I did not feel that he would try anything funny.” Originally, campus police were unaware that a warrant was out for the player. A phone call by Miramar police changed Larry’s R.K. Fry /Courier PCC student Cornelius Larry was escorted to a squad car last Tuesday. fate. Within a couple hours, the four officers descended upon Maher’s office with the news of the warrant. Maher had no comment on the matter. Larry’s primary role on the team was as a special teams play¬ er. As of the Cerritos game, he had returned two kickoffs for 38 yards and had two special team tackles. ers.” Last week two AS officers focused on the “student” part when they submitted letters of resigna¬ tion at the Nov. 27 meeting. Elaine Wong, vice president for academic affairs, and Keenan Gosset, two-term vice president for campus activities, announced that each would leave office Dec. 11, after the final ASB meeting for this semester. The announcements were expected, since both Gosset and Wong had placed them on the agenda for the meeting. Wong even prepared suggestions for choosing replacements. Coincidentally, both students told Rebecca Cobb, student activi¬ ties adviser, that they were leaving on the same day. “It wasn’t my best day,” she said. “They leave big shoes to fill. Stephen Johnson, associate dean of student affairs, agreed. “They leave a great legacy on how to design, produce, and create a great number of outstanding activ¬ ities,” he said. “We’ve had show¬ cases, homecoming, the quiz bowl, and the town halls. They will be missed.” In spite of the loss, both advis¬ ers expressed confidence in the remaining AS officers’ ability to find suitable replacements. “This is a strong group,” Cobb said. “They’ve managed to work well together.” “Since they’re leaving at the same time, the board can deal with both vacancies at once,” said Johnson. “I’m sorry to see them leave,” said Garth Weir, AS president. “I wish they weren’t going. At the same time, we’re all students. As a student myself, I understand the need to put academics first. We will miss them both.” Gosset said he needed to con¬ centrate on his academic studies. His goal is to transfer to UCLA or USC with a major in intercultural communications. He has enjoyed his 1 8 months on the AS board, but the demands on his time have affected his grades in a couple of classes. Gosset started at PCC in the spring of 2000. The international student grew up in France. With a French father and a Vietnamese Carolers rejoiced in full force in the Quad Tuesday. deciding to attend college in the United States. ‘ When I was m France, the only Asian person 1 knew was my mother," Gosset said. At PCC he met many Asian students. Also, his mother has relatives living in this country. “All of my family here are Asian, not French,” he continued. During spring semester of 2001, Gosset decided to form the 1-20 club after he heard about a PCC international student who tried to kill himself. The name comes from a docu¬ ment supplied by the college to each foreign student. He wanted to give international students a way to meet and support each other, as well as creating opportunities for both international and non-interna- tional students to get to know each other. “One of my goals was to increase student involvement on campus, especially international students,” said Gosset. One student who got involved after meeting him is Catherine Li, AS vice presi¬ dent for student services. “Keenan was definitely an example for us. He was the first international student on the AS board,” said Li. “It’s nice, because I’m now the first female interna¬ tional student do that.” Wong is leaving for demic reasons, was accepted the University California Irvine (UCI),” she said. “I start win¬ ter quarter on Jan. 3.” The second-year math major wants other students to benefit from her past struggles. “People who failed in the past shouldn’t worry too much,” she said. Wong speaks from experience. Her first attempt at college did not work out. “I was the classic overachicver in high school,” she explained. Ф see AS page 3