The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 67, No. 6, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 13, 1979 Page: 1 of 20
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Pirkle still denies bite
Court finds Pirkle guilty of aggravated assault
by Anita Gonzalez
The University Council Court
has found Larry Pirkle, a Jones
School graduate student and
former Will Rice College member,
guilty of aggravated assault
against Campus Police Officer
Juan D. Medina. Pirkle's trial was
held on campus Saturday.
Pirkle, who pleaded guilty to
charges of public intoxication,
disorderly conduct, and evading
and resisting arrest, denied that he
bit Officer Medina on the leg in a
police station scuffle. He was
declared guilty by the seven-
member University Court of
aggravated assault after a Ave and
one-half hour trial.
Pirkle's sentence bars him "from
all social functions within the
hRESHER
Volume 67, number 6
Thursday, September 13,1979
New party guidelines sought
by Rolf Asphaug
In response to indications that
Rice University student functions
are prone to alcohol abuse, student
and administration leaders have
met privately to draft a set of
campus party guidelines.
Proposed guidelines covering
bartending, security and general
aspects of alcohol policy are being
examined by the informal
committee and will be voted on
two weeks from Friday.
At Proctor Sam Carrington's
request, the group first met on
August 31. The immediate concern
was over the Casino Party incident
and its connections with excessive
alcohol use on campus.
Present at the meeting were
Campus Business Manager H.R.
Pitman, Campus Police Chief
Harold Rhodes, Proctor
Carrington, Brown College
Master Franz Brotzen, Student
Association President, John
Cockerham, Willy's Pub Manager
Peter Rudenberg, Rice Program
Council President Chris
Montgomery, and Rice Memorial
Center Director Martha Vest.
"We sat down and discussed
why this (incident) may have
happened," said RPC President
Montgomery. The group also
concluded that an "abundance of
alcohol" at the Casino Party
played a part, according to
Montgomery:
Fifty cases of champagne had •
reportedly been bought for the
Freshman Week bash.
The group gave Montgomery
and the college social committee
chairmen a mandate to come up
with guidelines for campus party
alcohol use to be considered at a
meeting September 28.
Carrington proposed that
students draft their own plan
because he felt it would be more
respected by the student body,
Montgomery said.
Montgomery requested that the
actual provisions of the proposal
not be disclosed until the other
committee members have had a
chance to review the plan at the
September 28 meeting.
confines of Rice University"
except football games.
According to a letter from
University Court Chairman Tom
Willcutts, the Court, which can
only recommend penalties to the
Proctor for approval, recom-
mended that Pirkle "only be
allowed to use those academic and
administrative facilities which are
necessary for the completion of his
academic career at Rice
University."
Carrington approved the
recommended sentence on
Monday. Pirkle did not appeal the
Court's verdict or sentence.
The Court aquitted Pirkle of
two other charges of assault, which
were alleged to have happened at
the Rice Memorial Center prior to
the aggravated assault, "because of
the lack of convincing evidence to
substantiate these charges."
Says Willcutts in his letter to
Carrington, "testimony by
witnesses who were near the
incident did not suport either
allegation of assault." The Court
also points out in the letter that
"the confusion caused by the loud
music, the dense crowd, and the
innocent restraining of the police
officer could have been the basis
for the assault charges."
Pirkle was accused by Officer
Medina of several violations
against the Texas Penal Code,
including aggravated assault, after
the Freshman Week Casino Party
on Friday, August 24.
Willcutt's letter states that the
Court had three main consider-
ations in mind when deciding on
what sentence they would
recommend to Carrington:
"(1) that Larry has never been in
any other similiar trouble before
this incident to the Court's
knowledge, (2) that Larry is now
restricted from those activities in
which he might become
intoxicated, which the Court
believes played a very significant
part in his disorderly conduct, and
(3) that there were mitigating
circumstances surrounding the
incident of aggravated assault
which the Court views as the most
serious of the offences."
Pirkle could have appealed the
Court's decision or sentence to the
University Court of Appeals by
Wednesday, but chose not to.
"The only reason that I would
have appealed was to clear the
record as to the fight and convic-
tion of aggravated assault. 1 really
would not have fought for a lesser
sentence but for a change of verdict
on the aggravated assault
indictment," Pirkle says.
Pirkle continues to deny the
charge by Medina that he bit the
officer. Pirkle says Medina
testified in court Saturday that "he
(Medina) had me in a headlock
see Pirkle, page 5
Owls drop SWC opener, 35-17
Grand master key
stolen from Campo
by Michael Trachtenberg
A set of keys taken from an
unattended campus police car
Sunday morning included at least
one, and probably several
campus master keys,
Sunday morning about 8:30, a
Campus Police officer was
ticketing cars parked in the fire
lane by Lovett College when his
car keys were taken. The officer
was within 25 feet of the car
according to second-hand reports.
The officer immediately notified
Tim Case, president of Lovett, in
case the keys were found and
brought to him.
In the afternoon, the officer
reported to a meeting of the Lovett
Council that the key ring had been
stolen and that there was a master
on the ring. The meeting was held
to determine possible college
action on the affair. The officer
also filed a report with the Campus
Police office Sunday.
Case stated that the officer told
the CC that he had lost eight keys:
a grand master key, four building
keys, a padlock key. and two
ignition keys.
Campus Police Chief Harold
Rhodes stated initially that only
car keys had been taken and that
see Master, page 6
Bathroom rime
blacked out?
v
It would seem that bathroom
humor in Fondren Library is not
always appreciated by the
administration. ®
One page of the August Fondren
Library bulletin, TheStafTSpeaks,
features "A selection of printable
graffitti from Fondren restrooms,"
including such gems as "Pacifica
lives," "A woman without a man is
like a fish without a bicycle," and
"Humans are proof....God does
not exist."
But a few pages later. Chief
Librarian Sam Carrington reports
somberly that "all the restrooms in
the Library are being painted, in
the hope it will discourage graffitti.
If not, the men's room in the
basement will be painted black "
by Alison F. Whittemore
Pro football teams are allowed
four pre-season games to make
mistakes, learn and adjust. Not so
for college squads who sometimes
must learn their shortcomings the
hard way—in league competition.
That's the way it was for the Rice
Owls Saturday night in Dallas as
they dropped their first SWC tilt to
Mustang Mania, 35-17.
The game's first half was an
example of what the Owls can do
right, while the second half showed
just what can go wrong.
The game began on a Wcs
Hansen kick to SMI). Within two
minutes, cornerback Rickey
Thomas picked off QB Mike
Ford's pass. A six yard return from
Thomas plus a 15 yard facemask
penalty brought the ball to the
SMU 36 yard line. Randv Hertel
calmly took over and sent fullback
Frank Wilson and running back
Earl Cooper out for some fancy
footwork down to the Ponies' six.
Hertel then kept the ball and
zipped around the left side
defenders for the first score of the
game and, with Hansen's extra
point, the scote was 7-0.
With the ball back in SMU's
hands, f r o s h runner Eric
Dickerson proved he was the star
he was publicized to be. He gained
31 of th'e 80 yards needed on the
way to the Mustangs' first TD.
Thomas and free safety Mike
Downs did the best they could with
five tackles between them but with
four minutes left in the quarter the
score was tied 7-7, and the Maniacs
in the stands began to settle down
again.
Rice ended the quarter with a
quick march to SMU's 29 yard
line. Hertel. Wilson, and Cooper
were again the main mo\ers the
longest i tin w as I rum 11et tel u p i lie
right side lot a ll> \aid gam
"--Ml' \ dele i^e held. and I l.i u •. h
booted a 46-yarder for 3 points.
In the second quarter, Rice
received the ball on an SMU punt
and Weldon Meeks started the
move to the goal with a 20 yard
rush. Tight end Robert Hubble
grabbed Hertel's up-the-middle
pass and hustled to SMU's 13. On
the four yard line, with fourth and
one, the Owls gave the ball to
Wilson who charged to the one.
After two runs up the middle were
stopped cold, Hertel dinked one
over the heads of the middle
defenders right into Hubble's
waiting hands for Rice's second,
and last, II) of the game.
SMU scored its second TI) after
Hertel injured his ankle and was
forced temporarily to the sidelines.
The Mustangs'drive was aided bv
see Miscues, page II
Randv Hertel flips TD pass to Robert Hubble.
phtUo h\ TW (\
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Muller, Matthew. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 67, No. 6, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 13, 1979, newspaper, September 13, 1979; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth245412/m1/1/: accessed June 20, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.