The Dublin Citizen (Dublin, Tex.), Vol. 8, No. 7, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 9, 1997 Page: 1 of 30
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I
The Dublin
SOUTHWEST MICRO PUBLISHING
2627 EAST YANDELL DRIVE
EL PASO, TX 79903
2/7/98
Citizen
50*
Volume 8, No. 7
Dublin, Texas 76446
Thursday, October 9,1997
State * Capital
HIGHLIGHTS
l( Lyndtll Williams t Ed Starling
TEXAS PRESS ASSOCIATION
District attorney asked
to investigate allegations
of employment fraud
AUSTIN — After he was for-
mally sentenced last week, State
Sen. Drew Nixon, R-Carthage,
said he will complete the remainder
of his second term in office after he
serves his 180-day jail sentence.
Nixon, 37, pleaded guilty in
September to misdemeanor charges
of solicitation of a prostitute and
illegal possession of a weapon.
He was arrested in downtown
Austin on Feb. 18 after offering
an undercover Austin policewoman
posing as a prostitute $35 for
sexual acts. A loaded handgun was
found under the seat of his car.
Nixon does not have a permit to
carry.
Ttavis County Court-at-Law Jud-
ge David Puryear sentenced
Nixon to 180 days in the Travis
County Jail beginning Oct. 17. But
Nixon’s lawyer said the senator
will ask to serve his sentence in
East Texas, “where this man lives
and has his family and his work.”
Nixon is an accountant.
When the senator appeared be-
fore the court for sentencing, Judge
Puryear admonished him for engag-
ing in behavior that “not only vio-
lates the laws of the state of Texas,
it violates the trust of the people of
Tbxas, perhaps your constituents. It
discredits you and the public office
you hold.”
Nixon agreed, saying, “My
actions were inexcusable, and I did
let down every constituent in my
district." But despite Democrats’
call for his resignation, Nixon said
he saw no reason to resign from
public office. “I intend to serve
out my time as a Texas state
senator. My decision in that regard
is final."
Nixon said he had no plans to
seek re-election in 2000, when his
term expires.
When asked if his legal problems
hurt the Republican party, he said,
“I think the voters judge each
one of us independently, and I
don’t think that one Republican
having a problem would affect
other Republicans.”
Pay Phone Rate Cap Lifted
The Public Utility Commission
last week changed pay telephone
rules in Tbxas to conform with re-
quirements of the Federal Telecom-
munications Act of 1996.
Starting Oct. 8, the PUC will
allow pay phone owners to charge
pay phone users more than 25 cents
per local call.
Texas has more than 150,000 pay
phones, including 86,000 owned by
Southwestern Bell Telephone Co.
Kate Lowery, a spokeswoman for
Southwestern Bell, said a raise in
the charge for a local call is in
the works, the Austin American-
Statesman reported.
However, Scott Rospisil, execu-
tive director of the Tbxas Payphone
Association, said a dispute between
the private pay phone industry and
the long distance companies at the
Federal Communications Commis-
sion probably will delay increases
in local call charges.
Lotto Case Will Be Heard
A New Jersey policeman who
has been unable to collect a $10.4
million Tbxas Lotto jackpot may get
to turn in his winning ticket after
all.
The Tbxas Lottery Commission
refused to pay Scott Wenner, con-
tending that the ticket was illegally
sold by a now-defunct company that
sold tickets from other state lotter-
ies. Wenner thought he had won the
jackpot in November 1994.
Wmner sought relief in federal
court, but a Houston federal district
judge dismissed the case. Wenner
appealed, and the 5th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals in New Orleans
overturned the dismissal in an
See CAPITAL page 2
By KAREN WRIGHT
Citizen Editor
Erath County District Attorney
John Terrill has been asked by
Dublin’s special legal advisor to
investigate allegations of fraudu-
lent employment benefits paid al-
most six years ago to a former
part-time police dispatcher and her
husband.
Attorney Ben D. Sudderth has
turned over copies of city em-
ployee files and payment records
to the district attorney’s office
after completing his own inquiry
which was prompted by an anony-
mous letter.
The letter, received by the
Stephenville Empire-Tribune in
August, indicated that the city had
issued checks to the husband of a
temporary dispatcher although he
was not a city employee. The letter
indicated that the dispatcher was
drawing unemployment during the
Ordinance officer
makes his point
about equality
Dublin Police Officer Jim Hall
proved he was serious about equal
ordinance enforcement by issuing
the City of Dublin a warning for
high grass.
Hall, who resigned several
months ago as city ordinance of-
ficer, was re-hired on Sept. 29 for
the same part-time position which
will average about 20 hours a
week.
Although he will continue to
function as a police officer, his
primary responsibility will be to
enforce the city ordinances.
According to Hall, he is prepared
to issue “one warning per viola-
tion.”
“If 1 write you a warning for a
grass violation, that's the last one
you will get,” he said. “You may
get a dozen tickets but only one
warning. If you take care of the
grass violation but then you move
two pigs in, you’ll get one warning
concerning that violation before
you are cited."
The city judge, working from a
schedule of violations, determines
the fme for each violation.
same period.
In a report distributed to city
council members Friday, Suddeith
indicated that between December,
1991 and mid-January, 1992, the
city issued several checks to the
husband of a former Dublin police
officer who was employed to dis-
patch while the regular dispatcher
was on maternity leave.
An examination of canceled pay-
checks and pay stubs during the
period in question showed that
nine checks totaling $1,017 were
issued to either the dispatcher, her
husband or jointly. The checks
apparently were signed by former
city secretary Jean Malone and
former city manager David
Johnson, according to Sudderth’s
report.
Dispatcher radio logs do not
show that the husband ever signed
in, and other dispatchers who were
interviewed by Sudderth’s office
indicated they were not aware of
him ever working as a dispatcher,
according to the report.
In a summary of possible legal
ramifications, Sudderth's report
said the Texas Labor Code pro-
vides that anyone who has received
improper benefits is liable to the
state for repayment. The offense is
a Class A misdemeanor punishable
by a fine not to exceed $2,000,
confinement in jail for not more
than one year, or both. If it’s
determined that improper benefits
were received, the maximum fme
or jail sentence, according to the
Sudderth report, would depend on
whether each incident were charac-
terized as a separate offense.
Whether or not the city is liable
for penalties will be investigated
by the district attorney’s office.
Sudderth's office was hired by
the council during a special meet-
ing on Sept. 1 “on matters con-
cerning past and present internal
affairs of the city including the
inspection and audit of monetary
matters, records, claims of and
against the City of Dublin, expen-
ditures, payments, income, re-
ceipts, and contracts, and the rela-
tion of all such matters to the city
and city employees and persons
purporting to be city employees,
past and present.”
Dublin’s math team brought home the team sweepstakes plaque, as well as individual honors, from the
weekend Math and Science Tournament held at Stephenville High School. The event was hosted by
SHS academic coaches and was open to schools ranging in size from 1A through 5A. Dublin team
members are, front row, left to right, Kyle Jurney, Melody Barnes, Lauren Carr, Amanda Riley and
Lindy Stone. Back row, Janet Smith, Landon Stone, Kenneth Strickland and Joylyn Rainey. In Number
Sense, Amanda Riley placed fifth. In the Calculator contest, Landon Stone placed second, Lindy Stone
was third, Kenneth Strickland was fourth and Lauren Carr was sixth, giving Dublin the first place team
honors. In Mathematics, Lindy Stone was third and Amanda Riley was sixth which placed that team in
first place also. Photo by Robin Cole
Public hearing on city budget tops regular meeting
The public hearing on the pre-
liminary 1997-98 city budget is set
for 7 pin. Monday, coinciding
with the regular monthly meeting
of the Dublin (Tty Council.
The preliminary $1.4 million
budget was adopted two weeks
ago. Councilman David Mulloy,
who made the budget presentation
to the council, recommended the
council reduce the tax rate from
$0.5905 to $0.5786 per $100 valu-
ation to finance the proposed bud-
get. '*■
Under the proposed tax rate, the
owner of a home appraised at
$25,000 would pay about $3 less in
city taxes than last year if his
appraisal remained unchanged, ac-
cording to Mulloy. Because total
property value has been assessed at
$54 million this year (up more
than $3.7 million from last year),
most local property owners will
pay higher taxes even if the tax
rate is reduced.
In the budget presentation,
Mulloy recommended an increase
of 20 percent in water billing; He
said the Upper Leon River Munici-
pal Water District was scheduled
to increase by 10 percent (or about
$27,000) the cost of water to the
city, effective Oct. 1.
He also reminded the council
that replacement of the city water
tower will cost about $400,000 and
that only $240,000 has been bud-
geted currently.
The increase will raise the mini-
mum water bill from $13.50 to
$16.20.
At press time, the agenda for the
regular council meeting had not
been prepared. It will be posted on
the front door of city hall Friday.
"Funny money" didn’t make the cut
Other than being too short, being the wrong color and on the wrong
paper, the counterfeit $20 bill looked pretty good - at a quick glance.
But equipment at Dublin National Bank caught the bogus bill and
now Dublin Police Chief David Johnson is encouraging local residents
to be on the lookout for others.
The bill was a 1995 series with the serial number of G26873957J.
Other bills could have the same serial number “if the counterfeiter is
lazy,” Johnson said, “but they might not.”
Chief Johnson suggests that anyone who has a suspicious bill should
look for the following clues:
* The phony bill may be slightly shorter than a real one.
* The bill may look very aged, as if it had been washed a few times
in the washing machine.
* The letters which spell out twenty behind the green seal may be
too wide.
* When it is held up to the light, it shows no rag content.
* The green ink on the back of the bill is not the right color and may
look smeared.
Anyone who has one of the counterfeit bills should contact a bank or
the police department. Phony bills will be turned over to the Secret
Service.
“The banks have means of detecting bogus bills immediately and
I’m sure they will be glad to work with anyone who might have one,”
Chief Johnson said. “This may be the only one that shows up, but
there could be more.”
Inez Grauke earns her wings (with her seatbelt on)
By CAROL KUNZ
Contributing Writer
When Inez Grauke was invited
to fly to Anguilla in the West
Indies, she debated whether her
desire to go would be greater than
her fear of flying.
“I’d never flown and never in-
tended to," she laughed. “But ev-
eryone in my family had flown,
even my grandchildren, so I de-
cided if they could do it, I could
too.”
The invitation came through her
daughter, Claire, and son-in-law,
Robert, who were headed to the
West Indies on business.
The American Eagle landed on
an air strip “the size of a postage
stamp” on the Caribbean island
which is only six miles wide and
16 miles long.
Inez Grauke with her prized conch from Anguilla.
“This is the only airline small
enough to land there,” Mrs. Grauke
said. “I don’t think anything else
would have been able to stop in
time.”
Mrs. Grauke, an artist, viewed
the island with a trained eye.
"The sand was almost white and
the water a teal blue," she said.
“Rock fences are around the
houses. The homes are all small
and very colorful but built to
withstand hurricane winds."
On top of the homes are built
large square cisterns which hold
enough rain water for the whole
family to use for everything. They
boil what they use for drinking
water.
"1 found out I could buy bottled
water in the grocery stores and I
was advised to drink before I got
thirsty because the sun dehydrates
the body so quickly.”
The climate was warm, but not
as hot as Mrs. Grauke had been
accustomed to in Texas. The sea-
sons are opposite from ours and
“that's why they have tourists from
October to March when we are
having winter."
Although each room had a fan,
the trade winds were steady, she
said;
“You have to drive very care-
fully because a large percentage of
people have goats that wander
across the road.”
Her favorite trees were the flame
trees with red blooms. The turpen-
tine tree has large bumps which
reminded her of humps on a camel.
“The natives say the tret holds
water in those bumps for times of
need," she said.
“Anquilla is one of the top 10
tourist spots in the world but most
of the curio shops are located in St.
Martin,” she said. “Tourists take a
short boat or ferry ride to St.
Martin to shop.”
Before tourism, Anguilla sold
sea salt as its main industry.
“Conch shells are used for deco-
ration these days but they still
cook the little mussels that live
inside. That’s all they had to eat a
long time ago because food was
not shipped in like it is today. The
shells almost were considered en-
dangered.”
Mrs. Grauke spent a lot of time
in the rural areas of the island but
did see what the natives call The
Valley where the post office and
other businesses are located.
The road to The Valley was very
narrow with speed bumps so you
could only drive about 30 miles an
hour. It was a holiday and people
of all ages were walking along the
road where there were no side-
walks - an arrangement which
concerned her. And there were no
street signs “because people just
know who lives in the different
bays.”
She was amazed to see the
eating places . had no walls - only
a roof and floor. “It was all open
and yet there were no insects.”
Mrs. Grauke said she stored up
mental scenes of the island and
painted them as soon as she re-
turned home. She painted the teal-
colored water and white sand, but
did not paint the sticks that used to
be palm trees before the hurricanes
of a year ago.
Asked if she would like to make
the trip again, Mrs. Grauke proudly
displayed the plastic flight wings
given to her by the airline's crew
to mark her first flight.
“I don’t know. It was a long ride
- 17 hours - on that little plane. I
saw beautiful clouds and then
looked back to see lightning one
time. I knew the pilot must have
known what he was doing but 1
tried not to think about it too
much."
She adds, however, that she
never took her seat belt off during
the entire flight.
Civil War buff relives
Gainesville incident
Guests of the Dublin Historical
Society’s second “Historical Hap-
pening” will turn back the pages
Saturday night to the dark days
of the Civil War when Linda
Barbee DeWeese tells the story
of the Gainesville hangings.
Mrs. DeWeese, who appears in
authentic Civil War costume for
her presentations, will discuss the
1862 incident in which 42 men
were killed (40 were hanged and
two shot) after being sentenced
by a “citizen’s court” which
found them guilty of being Yan-
kee sympathizers.
The program, which begins at 7
p in., is free to the public and
refreshments will be served. Any-
one with Civil War artifacts is
encouraged to bring them for a
“show and tell.”
I
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Wright, Karen. The Dublin Citizen (Dublin, Tex.), Vol. 8, No. 7, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 9, 1997, newspaper, October 9, 1997; Dublin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth762022/m1/1/: accessed July 8, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Dublin Public Library.