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Volume 104, Issue 10
The independent student voice of PCC. Serving Pasadena Since 1915.
November 10, 2011
'Kitty litter' murder trial under way
Ex-student charged in
PCC graduate's slaying
Neil Protacio
Staff Writer
The long delayed trial of a for¬
mer PCC student charged in the
2007 slaying of his girlfriend, con¬
tinued Wednesday in Alhambra
Superior Court.
Isaac Campbell is facing a mur¬
der charge in the killing of his girl¬
friend Liya "Jessie" Lu, a PCC stu¬
dent, and sealing her body in a
trashcan in a plastic bag filled with
kitty Utter.
The trial began on Monday after
four years of postponements.
On the stand Wednesday was
Dr. Pedro Ortiz, a deputy medical
examiner of the Los Angeles
County Coroner's Office, who per¬
formed the autopsy on Lu.
"I could find nothing remark¬
able about the cadaver," Ortiz said
of the 5-hour autopsy, "except that
the body was in an advanced state
of mummification."
According to Ortiz, the body
was mummified because the kitty
litter absorbed the heat that would
otherwise have decomposed her
body. Her body was also in such a
state that it required special exam¬
ination.
Her body was discovered by an
acquaintance of Campbell's,
Michael Darby. Campbell had
asked Darby if he could store some
things in the garage of his house,
including the blue recycling bin Lu
was found in.
In April 2009, Darby testified in
a preliminary hearing that he
opened the recycling bin and
found clothes.
"There was kitty litter under the
clothes, it was just poured in
there," Darby said at that time.
"There was a bag in there. I
opened the bag a little bit and I
smelled death. If you've ever
Continued on page 7
Veterans appreciated
Gabriela Castillo
/
Courier
Veteran Norm Lefebreve stands by his WWII Jeep in the Quad for a Veterans Day event on Tuesday. Others
came out with their military vehicles and memorabilia from WWII, Vietnam, and other wars.
All three
trustees
re-elected
Michelle R. Brown
News Editor
All three incumbents were re-elected by a substan¬
tial majority in Wednesday's election for Pasadena
Area Community College Board of Trustees.
Jeanette W. Mann (Area 2) got 67.87 percent of the
vote, William Thomson (Area 4) led with 84.67 per¬
cent, and John H. Martin (Area 6) won with 65.33 per¬
cent.
Major election issues included the state budget
cuts, redistricting, and helping in-district students get
the classes they need to transfer or graduate.
"The election results were a forgone conclusion due
to the 'Incumbent Protection' redistricting designs of
1992 and 2002," said Candidate Martin Enriquez-
Marquez in an email. Enriquez-Marquez was defeat¬
ed by Thomson for the Area 4 seat, and lost with only
376 out of 2,453 votes.
"I'm very grateful for the opportunity to serve/'
said Thomson, who is currently board president. "I
regret that [Enrquez-Marquez] has taken that
approach."
According to Martin, who worked on the committee
responsible for the current districting, the divisions are
Continued on page 7
Collegiality under
attack, faculty say
Revisions to honesty, integrity policy approved
Mary Nurrenbern
Staff Writer
Revisions to a new policy on student
conduct and academic honesty and
integrity, were approved by the
Academic Senate, at a meeting on
Monday.
According to the policy, the district
acknowledges the importance of aca¬
demic integrity and also the responsibili¬
ties of the faculty members.
The policy seeks to maintain a safe,
orderly and constructive campus envi¬
ronment in which there is freedom to
learn and respect for the dignity of all
members of the college.
"The policy has been worked on for
three years," said Edward Martinez,
Academic Senate president.
The policy covers conduct, which is
subject to discipline and identifies con¬
duct that is prohibited by college policy.
This includes cheating, plagiarism, fabri¬
cation, and willful or persistent smoking
in any area where smoking has been pro¬
hibited by lawful authority.
The policy is still being read and
reviewed by the Senate. Questions, were
raised about what is in the policy.
"Is there anything in the policy about
obscene language?" asked Tad
Carpenter, Performing and
Communication Arts division instructor.
After the Senate reviewed it, the
Continued on page 7
Natalie Sehn Weber
Online Editor
The process of realigning teaching divisions is a
thinly veiled effort by PCC's administration to
destroy shared governance, faculty members and
staff claimed at a Board of Trustees meeting last week.
About 230 people attended the emotionally
charged event, according to Mary Thompson, Board
of Trustees administrative assistant.
English Professor Emeritus Jane Hallinger said the
realignment process would result in a "tremendous
erosion" of PCC's culture.
Shared governance, she said, "fosters a sense of
empowerment, equal partnership and a vested interest
Continued on page 3
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Smart phone battle
The war between
iPhones and
BlackBerry's continues
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w*»*<*e • &ns- -sr; *-* ^
Chorus of Lancers
Fall Choral Recital
reduces audience to
sighs of awe
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