The Facts from Clute, Texas • Page 1

DEADLY THREAT FBI arrest men for possible possession of anthrax for use as a weapon Headlines, Page 8A ANC.l HTON Street closures to begin Monday County, Page 6A SKATING Skater Chris Witty wins second medal Sports, Page IB FRIDAY Vol. 84, No. 350 Copyright 1998 Facts FEBRUARY 20, 1998 Clute, Texas 77531 50C Covering Brazoria County Where Texas Began www.tnefacts.com ISO Wayne Duncan accepts plea bargain, avoiding trial, jail time By JAMES A. BERNSEN The Facts ALVIN The former police chief of Alvin ISD admitted to tampering with governmental records this week and will pay restitution to avoid time in jail. Wayne Duncan, who resigned Dec.

5 after the school initiated an investigation into allegations of embezzlement and corruption, pleaded guilty to the charges Tuesday. Tampering with governmental records is a state jail felony. As part of the plea agreement, Duncan will pay a total of $7,058.21 in restitution and will forfeit his peace officers' license. He has already paid $527.14 of that Duncan to embezzling amount. Alvin ISD Superintendent Virgil Tiemann said the school district is content with the judgment, which he said represents the total the school is "out" because of Duncan's activities.

"We are satisfied with the restitution and we appreciate the district attorney's attempts," he said. "It is an unfortunate situation and we feel this is adequate." While the superintendent is satisfied with the agreement, one of Duncan's former employees says restitution See EMBEZZLE, Page 2A El Cid murder trial A convicted drug dealer's credibility was called into question Thursday when his testimony portrayed a reputed Freeport gang member as an accessory to murder. Freeport resident Manuel "Tony" Castillo, 22, is standing trial for the 1995 murder of a Clute man. Page 7A PARTISAN POLITICKING Willy, Toth spar at candidates forum By JASON SPENCER Facts ANGLETON Despite the notable absence of several high-profile candidates, Thursday night's bipartisan political forum still managed to generate a respectable amount of debate. Wary of an unfriendly crowd, a handful of candidates 'decided to attend a small meeting of the Brazoria County Women's Bar Association instead of the Anglrtqn forum.

So in the absence of those candidates, most of the Verbal barbs thrown during the forum hosted by county peace officers and veterans at the Angleton American Legion Hall came from the lips of Republican county judge candidates John Willy and John Toth. Toth, an Angleton newspaper publisher who is hoping to keep Willy from serving a second four-year term in the county's highest elected office, wasted no time taking the offensive in front of the estimated 200 people who attended the event. Toth criticized Willy for his decision in 1996 to vote a Commissioners Court resolution opposing a contract to bring garbage to an Alvin landfill from Houston just months after writing a letter supporting such a measure. "What you say and how you vote matter," Toth said. More forum coverage Page 3A The missing candidates Page 2A County bar poll Page 3A went on to criticize Willy's decision in 1996 to cast the deciding vote against converting the county's road and bridge department to a single unit road system.

Willy defended that decision and said the 1996 Optional Road Law proposal would have been ineffective. "We implemented a good Optional Road Law this year not the farce that was presented in 1996," Willy said. Willy went on to list the county's accomplishments under his leadership the last three years. "Your county government right now is in the best condition it's been in in many years," Willy said. "I'm proud of our county government and I'm proud of what we've accomplished." Since he took office in 1995, Commissioners Court has created the first ever county wide economic development partnership, given pay raises to sheriff's office See FORUM, Page 3A Facts photos: Todd Yates County Judge John Willy, top, speaks to opponent John Toth during the political forum in Angleton Thursday.

A standing-room only crowd was on hand for the forum. A Asbestos trial Jury awards mill workers $115 million By PEGGY O'HARE The Facts ANGLETON A Brazoria County jury Thursday awarded $115.6 million to a group of former Alabama steel mill workers exposed to an asbestos-containing grinding wheel. The verdict was a stunning blow to The Carborundum Company, which manufactured the cutting wheel in question. But the emotional impact of the massive award was felt far and wide in the courtroom, moving to tears several of the mill workers who suffered serious medical problems after being exposed to the asbestos. After concluding the company acted with gross negligence and malice, the jury awarded the plaintiffs a whopping $100 million in punitive damages.

That does not include $15.6 million in compensatory damages awarded for the 21 plaintiffs' future medical care, future physical impairment, future mental anguish and physical pain. Of the $100 million in punitive damages, each plaintiff was awarded an equal 4.76 percent share, or $4.76 million. The $15.6 million in compensatory damages for future medical care and pain will be split differently. tary Journey Eighteen of the former mill workers diagnosed with asbestosis will receive $850,000 each. Three other plaintiffs who appear to suffer symptoms of the illness, bul whose X-rays did not confirm asbestosis, will receive $100,000 each.

Ten of the 12 jurors agreed on -the decision. Attorneys for Carborundum said the company will appeal and ask for a new trial. The heart of the case focused on whether the company knew the Black Magic Diamond Wheel contained asbestos and continued to use it anyway. Attorneys for the 21 former steel mill workers said the men inhaled asbestos fibers shot into the air by the cutting wheel and fell victim to a "conspiracy of silence." But the defense argued there was no evidence to indicate the grinding wheel was defective or that the men suffered from any asbestos-related diseases. Plaintiff attorney W.

Mark Lanier urged the jury to send a message to the world. He asked for punitive damages higher than the recent $15.3 billion settlement between Texas and the tobacco industry. "If a person kills someone, you can throw them in jail. You can't See TRIAL, Page 2A Hensley battles life-threatening complications By RHONDA MORAN The Facts Sue Hensley, the Angleton High School nurse and cable TV personality whose progress after a bone marrow transplant is being chronicled in The Facts' series, "A Solitary Journey," remains a patient at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

She is battling life-threatening complications and at least two infections, her husband, Richard Hensley, said Thursday. Despite that, Sue has been able to dictate a few entries for the journal she has been keeping about the experience, and they will be published in Sunday's edition of The Facts. Richard Hensley said his wife has had some degree of graft-versus- host disease all along, which means the marrow she received in the Dec. 19 transplant is rejecting her body. Drugs to control the rejection have not worked as well as hoped, but other treatments remain to be tried.

Her immune system was compromised by the transplant, making it harder for her to fight off bacterial pneumonia and a painful intestinal infection. "She's back on daily dialysis, and it appears that will continue for now," Richard Hensley said. "There is bad stuff going on, but she's a fighter and will continue to be." Sue Hensley was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 1995 after she found a lump in her side. Although she underwent chemotherapy and radiation, the cancer kept recurring, and Hensley eventually sought treatment at M.D. Anderson.

The marrow transplant, while risky, offered her only chance for complete cure. The marrow she received in the transplant came from an unrelated donor located through the registry of the National Marrow Donor Program. Sue Hensley is comforted by her husband, Richard, and mother, Myrtis Young, Tuesday at M.D. Facts photo: Todd Yates Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Sue Hensley underwent a bone marrow transplant on Dec.

19. TV FACTS The complete If viewing guide Inside INDEX Business 4B Dear Abby Weekend, 3 Editorials 4A Nation 9A.10,11A, 12A State 5A Weather 8A TEXAS VISIT First lady stumps for Garry Mauro State, Page 5A HOOPS Columbia boys ready for bi-district match Sports, Page IB.