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REPUBLIC BEST AVAILABLE COPY CITY THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC A8 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 19870 Other county recorders FLIGHT Continued from A1 Checking recall petitions Poletis is serious job for Here are thumbnail sketches of the 1 4 recorders outside Maricopa County: Apache County: Mary B. Chavez, a Democrat, has been recorder for 1 1 years. Chavez said the Republican Party has asked to have an observer on hand for counting the signatures on petitions to recall Gov. Evan Mecham. Chavez said she doesn't support the governor, "but I don't support the recall either.

I don't know if he's bad enough to be recalled." 1 Hi lui i nillj tm" Cochise County: Christine M. Rhodes, a member of the executive committee of the state Democratic Party, has been in office since January 1973. Observers from the Mecham Recall Committee and the Republican Party have permission to be present for the counting, she said. Rhodes is the only recorder to confirm she signed a recall petition. Coconino County: Helen I.

Hudgens, a Democrat, has been recorder since July 1975. Hudgens said she did not sign a recall petition but adds, "I believe very strongly in the right of recall, and on this particular issue, I am not supporting our current governor." 1 Gila County: Mary V. DePaoli, a Democrat, has been a county recorder for 13 years. She declined to answer when asked if she supports Mecham or the recall, saying only that she did not sign a recall petition. Graham County: Shirley Angle, a Democrat, has been in office since April 1978.

Angle declined to say whether she signed a Mecham recall petition, "since we have to handle the papers here." She said she does not support Mecham but would not say whether she favored his recall. Greenlee County: Katie Clonts, a Democrat, is in her third year as recorder. She said she did not sign a petition and declined to comment on whether she supports the recall or Mecham, saying, "A public official needs to maintain neutrality." JV-. Peter SchwepkerThe Arizona Republic Maricopa County Recorder Keith Poletis shows off the computer that will be counting and checking signatures on recall petitions. La Paz County: Lois "Kelly" Hesse, a Democrat, has been recorder since the county was formed Jan.

1, 1983. Hesse said she did not sign a recall petition and does not know how she would vote in a recall election. Mohave County: Joan McCall, a Republican, has been the recorder for 1 5 years. McCall said she has no opinion on the Mecham recall, adding, "I'm too busy to worry about it" i Navajo County: Jay H. Turley, a Democrat, is in his 19th year as recorder.

Turley is a cousin of former state Senate President Stan Turley, R-Mesa, who once referred to Mecham as "an ethical pygmy." Jay Turley said he did not sign a recall petition and would not have done so even if he had seen one. up r. By SUSAN LEONARD The Arizona Republic Maricopa County Recorder Keith Poletis is a chest-beating Republi- can. He is politically ambitious. He loves his job and loves job news coverage of it.

He is a perfectionist. He is hard to work for and has gone through numerous assistants, tie was ac cused by Supervisor George Campbell last year of mismanaging the recorder's office, a charge Poletis denied. He has been controversial. Now, the first-term recorder finds himself on the hot seat again and it's a hot seat that could make or break his political career, depending upon how he handles it. The fate of the recall petitions against Evan Mecham filed two weeks ago rests largely in Poletis' hands, because about 70 percent of the 386,648 petition signatures were obtained in Maricopa County, -t Poletis and the state's 14 other county recorders are supposed to check the petitions to see if they contain the valid signatures of at Jf least 216,746 registered voters, the nqmber needed to force a recall i election.

"I'm taking this as seriously as 'f anything that I've ever done in office," Poletis said Monday. "The outcome will affect the state for tens of years." Poletis, 35, a Republican who has I been the Maricopa County recorder since 1985, said he did not sign a recall petition. But he would not comment on whether he supports Mecham or the recall movement, saying it would be inappropriate. Poletis has never actively supported Mecham and, in' fact; endorsed Burton Barr oyer Mecham in the 1986 Republican primary for-governor. But Poletis also has a reputation of being a die-hard Republican who is friends with Edith Richardson, a former Mecham aide who resigned to organize groups supporting the governor.

Most of the people involved in -the political process said they believe Poletis will be impartial and do a good job, but some are concerned because they have had trouble getting information from him about the procedures he plans to follow. Poletis said his views and his friendships will not influence anything his office does. He said he has not had any; contact with Mecham. or any of the governor's assistants. only people who have tried to influence this process are members of the recall committee, and I will give them the benefit of the doubt because they have worked hard and fire concerned about the process," Poletis said.

He said the committee has requested that he not comment to the media until his office has finished checking the petitions and that heN not allow officials with the Republican and Democratic parties to observe the checking. But Poletis will not be granting either request. He plans to give updates on his office's findings every 10 to 14 days and will allow members of both political parties, the recall committee, the governor's office and the news media to observe the work. "My main job is to convince the public that we're going to handle MECHAM Pima County: Richard J. Kennedy, a Democrat and former Tucson city councilman, has been recorder since 1980.

He intends to hire up to 50 temporary employees to help verify signatures. Kennedy said he did not sign a recall petition, adding, "It's not in my best interest or in anybody's best interest to have my signature on a petition." Pinal County: Kathleen "Katie" Felix, a Democrat, has been a recorder for three years. Felix said she did not sign a recall petition because she was concerned about a possible conflict of interest. She would not say whether she supported Mecham or the recall. Santa Cruz County: Mary Lou Sainz, a Democrat, has been recorder since 1980.

Sainz said she did not sign a recall petition because "I want to remain neutral." i Recall timetable These are the steps remaining in the move to recall Gov. Evan Mecham, excluding any possible court challenges: 1. The secretary of state sends copies of the recall petitions to each county recorder today. 2. County recorders have until Jan.

18 to verify the signatures as those of registered county voters. 3. If the secretary of state determines by Jan. 25 that at least 216,746 registered voters have signed the petitions, she notifies the governor, who has until Feb. 1 to decide whether to resign or run in a special election.

4. If the governor resigns, the secretary of state becomes governor. If the governor decides to run, the secretary of state on Feb. 2 calls for an election within 100 to 120 days. 5.

Challengers have from Feb. 12 until March 31 to collect at least 3,336 signatures on nominating petitions in order to have their names placed on the ballot. Political affiliations are not included on the ballot. 6. The recall election could be held anytime between May 12 and June 1.

If the governor loses the election, he is recalled from office. If the governor wins, he serves the remainder of his term, until January 1991. is necessary so "that the public will have confidence that the legal requirements have been met." Jennie Cox, chairwoman of the Maricopa County Democratic Party, said she has had trouble getting information from Poletis' office about his planned procedures, so she does not know if she will have many concerns. signed to warn the crew when the flaps are not properly deployed! The Phoenix-bound jet crashed seconds after taking off, killing 154 of 155 passengers and two people on the ground. j' Much of the testimony during the National Transportation Safety Board hearing centered on a Klixon circuit breaker manufactured by Texas Instruments Inc.

A circuit breaker is designed to protect wiring from an electrical Douglas had warned airlines in the early 1980s that Klixon circuit breakers used in its aircraft might have come from among a bad batch of breakers made in 1979 and 1980. The problem with the Klixon circuit breakers seemed to disappear after 1983, although many pf those manufactured during the earlier two-year period remained in use, Jack McDonnell, director of flight guidance and control for Douglas, said in testimony Tuesday. Douglas officials sent 315 breakers from the bad batch to the manufacturer for testing in 1983, and they all worked properly, McDonnell said. Douglas rejects as faulty 0,5 percent of, the circuit breakers it receives, he said. Rod Peters, manager of Northwest's avionics shop in Minneapolis, said in later testimony that after the crash of Flight 255, circuit breakers in all of the airline's fleet were examined.

After several faulty ones were found, it was decided to replace all of them, he said. Breakers from another manufacturer were installed in their place. Airline officials were concerned that the Klixon circuit breakers could appear to be working when they actually were not, he said. The Air Line Pilots Association' has suggested that a bad circuit breaker might explain why Flight 255's takeoff warning system failed The safety board is not expected tqj decide the probable cause of the crash until at least next spring. Robert Peterson, design engineering supervisor for Texas In: struments in Attleboro, said the company has produced 50 million circuit breakers for aircraft since 1960.

Peterson, who said he has known of about only 25 faulty breakers in his 25 years with the company, described the Klixon circuit breaker as "very reliable." The circuit breaker for the takeoff warning system of Flight 255 was found after the crash, but investigators have been unable to determine exactly when it was. made, because it was so badly damaged. Investigators have beeri unable to determine what caused 4 power interruption from the circuit breaker to the warning system. A safety-board operations repori said the audible takeoffi warning system worked properly twice earlier on the day of the crash, including just two hours before the crash. Earlier on the day of the crash, the system was checked as part of a routine test of the Central Aural Warning system by a different flight crew in Santa Ana, before the plane departed for Minneapolis, the report said.

"The captain recalled that as he. initially entered the cockpit, all circuit breakers were in, and thaj this was further verified during the before-start check," the report saidl Later in the day, a Northwest pilot seated in the cockpit's observer seat said he heard the warning system sound as the plane taxied on a runway at Saginaw, before the plan took off for the Detroit-area airport. Cecelia found with belt on, fireman says Detroit Free Press DETROIT A firefighter who helped rescue Cecelia Cichan has labeled as "all wrong" speculation by a federal investigator that the child survived the crash of Northwest Flight 255 because she was nci wearing a seat belt. "When I read that, I about threw my Cheerios across the room," John Thiede, 22, said Tuesday. Thiede5, a Romulus, volunteer firefighter, was among spectators at the second day of a National Transportation Safety Board hearing on the Aug.

16 crash. An unidentified safety-board investigator was quoted in a published report Tuesday as 6aying Cecelia, 4, the only survivor of thfe crash that killed J56 people, may have lived because the formey Tempe girl was suspended in air a the plane crashed. Thiede said Cecelia in he'r seat, and her seat belt was on." Firefighters and other rescue workers have said that a. woman was found in a seat atop Cecelia but that it was not her mother. The mother's body was found belted in a Vseat Bome distance away, investigators say.

Cecelia, whose parents and brother died in the Crash, now lives with relatives in Alabama. Yavapai County: Patsy Jenney, a Republican, was appointed recorder in July 1972. Jenney said she did not sign a recall petition but has mixed emotions about the recall movement: "It's really a sad situation that it has come to this." Yuma County: Glenys Schmitt, a Democrat, has been recorder since 1979. Schmitt said she did not sign a recall petition. "As an elected official, I shouldn't, since my office is doing the checking," she said.

"I want to be impartial and beyond criticism." this as thoroughly, as objectively and as accurately as possible," Poletis said. 7 He said he will, compile lists of all the names his staff finds valid and invalid and will make the lists available for public inspection, 'something that has not been done with other petitions, such as those for initiatives and candidates. The lists of invalid names will explain why each name was declared in-: valid. Ed Buck, founder of the Mecham Recall Committee, said, "We have no reason to believe Mr. Poletis is going to be anything but fair." Buck added, however, that his committee plans to watch Poletis' work closely because Poletis has said that "any county recorder worth his salt can throw out 50 percent of the signatures." Poletis acknowledged making that statement but said he also told Buck that he does not plan to do that.

Poletis could disqualify 'numerous signatures by requiring that they be complete, proper names, but he said his office will accept common nicknames, such as Peggy for Margaret or Bill for William. Poletis and all the other county "recorders are supposed to start checking the petitions this week and make a determination about their validity within 60 days. Secretary of State Rose Mofford, who has been making some preliminary checks of the petitions, will turn the petitions over to county recorders today and Thursday. Poletis said his office will, for the first time, check every petition signature against signatures on voter-registration cards. Most of the state's other recorders said they will do the same.

Attorney General Bob Corbin has said that recorders don't need to check all signatures. But Poletis said he plans to check all signatures because he thinks it Continued from A1 Lee Watkins Denies making a threat and says he is confident about his case. 90 minutes behind closed doors. It was not clear, however, how much" time he spent in front of the grand J'ury' The grand-jury investigation of the alleged threat is believed to include a look at when Mecham first learned of the threat against Carlson, which sources said was made last Wednesday. The threat allegedly was made in a conversation between Watkins and Peggy Griffith, head of the governor's Office of Women's Ser-vices.

Watkins allegedly told Griffith that Carlson, a key witness in the fr ll CI 3 i I i tip indictment against the governor before the court can make a ruling on whether the attorney general should be removed from the case." Barnett Lotstein, an assistant state attorney general, said that there was nothing improper about the subpoena and that Mecham has blamed many people, from prosecutors to the press, for his troubles. A hearing to discuss whether Attorney General Bob Corbin should be removed from the investigation into the Wolfson loan was delayed until today because of Mecham's grand-'ury appearance. Mecham, in his television interview Monday evening, was reluc-. tant to discuss the alleged death threat against Carlson, saying he "knew very little about the details." "I haven't any involvement in it," the governor said. "I told you In cases where the signatures are questionable, the names will be turned over to handwriting experts, who will determine whether they are valid, Poletis said.

The cost of the checks will be $50,000 to $70,000, about $10,000 of which will be for the handwriting experts, he said. In addition, by calling Mecham to testify in the threat case, the jurors will be given an opportunity to see him under questioning before he is brought to the grand jury to testify on the ban, which observers say is a more important case to the attorney general's office than the threat case. Because the investigations are before the grand jury, Corbin has refused to comment on anything having to do with them. The hearing on whether Corbin should be removed from the investigation is scheduled to start today at 10:30 a.m. before Judge Michael Ryan of Maricopa County Superior Court.

Miller is claiming that Corbin's office has a conflict of interest in investigating Mecham because the state's chief prosecutor and his staff consulted with Mecham's staff on matters being investigated by the grand jury. The Arizona Supreme Court ruled Nov. 10 that the attorney general has a right to probe claims of public officials' wrongdoing unless prosecutors advised Mecham and his staff on the specific issues under investigation. Besides the Mecham-Corbin issue, Ryan will hear legal challenges to grand-jury subpoenas issued to Mecham aides and associates. Arizona Republic reporter Venita Hawthorne James contributed to this report But.

she questioned Poletis' plans to compare all the signatures, terming it "a waste of taxpayers' money." Poletis said that the signatures will appear on computer screens at the same time as a voter's other information and that it will normally only take seconds to determine if they are valid. reported outside the governor's offices, The Republic was told. After top DPS officials became aware of the alleged threat, DPS Director Ralph Milstead called Carlson at home and warned her of the threat. Carlson also spoke with members of the attorney general's office and was offered protection by the state. She declined the protection.

Martinez, Johnson and Milstead all were in the grand-jury room on Monday, but none would comment on the case. The grand-jury testimony on the alleged threat precedes testimony that is expected in Corbin's probe of why Mecham had not reported the Wolfson loan. Mecham officially reported the loan on Monday, saying its omission had been "an honest mistake." However, the probe is expected to be sent to the grand jury as soon as the panel finishes hearing the case on the alleged threat Because Watkins is a key witness in the loan probe, the attorney general may have decided first to take the threat to the grand jury to increase pressure on him, observers say. If Watkins were indicted on the threat allegation, Corbin could have more influence over Watkins when he testified on the loan and on whether any favors or appointments to state boards were awarded in exchange for(it, the observers say. state's probe of whether Mecham broke the law by not reporting the $350,000 campaign loan, would end up "in the bottom of a river" if she didn't keep quiet Griffith appeared before the grand jury on Monday, and Watkins testified Tuesday morning.

Watkins has denied making the threat and said Tuesday that he is confident about his case. Watkins, who Monday was placed on leave with pay because of the investigation, would not comment further. Watkins', boss, Administration Director Max Hawkins, also appeared before the grand jury on Tuesday and would not comment afterward. Carlson, who has not been sub-' poenaed in the probe of the alleged threat, had said that she was told the conversation between Watkins and Griffith took place Friday. However, The Republic has learned that the conversation actually took place Wednesday and that Griffith reported it Friday to a state DPS officer assigned to guard Mecham.

The officer, Sgt. Frank Martinez, reported it to Bo Johnson, his boss and the head of Mecham's security detail, The Republic has learned. Johnson passed the information on to his superiors in the DPS. Mecham on Sunday removed both Martinez and Johnson from the detail because the matter had been that I know little or nothing about which you're talking about." He added that "perhaps my chief of staff was" aware of the alleged threat but that he had "hardly talked to him" Monday. Chief of staff Richard Burke appeared before the grand jury on Monday but would not comment to reporters.

Mecham walked into the grand-jury room at 2:50 p.m. Tuesday, less than an hour after a television set and videocassette, recorder had been wheeled in. The governor, who did to reporters gatherea outsiae the. grand-jury room at Maricopa County Superior Court, spent about.