Florida Today from Cocoa, Florida • Page 6B

Florida Reports From TODAY Staff Writers, Bureaus and Wire Services 6B TODAY, Thursday, June 25, 181 The State $200,000 sought in drug trial costs Haitians just 'dumped, advocates claim TODAY Wirt trvlctt ORLANDO The makers of the morning sickness drug Bendectin have requested more than $200,000 in trial costs from an Orlando couple who claimed it caused their son's birth defects Betty and Michael Mekdeci, whose suit was rejected in Apnl by a federal jury, said the costs claimed by Richardson Merrell Inc would wipe them out "It's legal intimidation," Mrs Mekdeci said Wednesday "They are trying to scare off other people from taking them to court But attorneys for the Wilton, Conn based drug company said the $206,122 request conforms to federal codes and laws "We feel hi costs are completely legitimate," company lawyer Alfred Schretter said of the bill filed last week in Distnct Court here "In fact, the actual cost of the tnal was far in excess of that amount Restaurant owner held on charge of arson BARTOW Restaurant owner Joseph Deutsch was charged Wednesday with arson in a Jl million fire at the Bartow Mall last March The 25 year old Touch of Class restaurant owner, whose business was located in the mall, was charged with two counts of second degree arson and placed in the Polk County jail under $40,000 bond The fires destroyed the restaurant and an adjacent Radio Shack store and caused damage to nearly all of the mall's 16 other stores 14 Michigan youths overcome by heat HUDSON Fourteen youngsters from Michigan were overcome by heat during a week long encampment sponsored by the Young Marines All were treated at local hospitals and released, camp officials said The incident occurred Tuesday as the temperature hit 94 degrees at the Moon Lake Baptist Assembly campgrounds, which is hosting a national encampment for 162 youngsters from around the country, ages 9 to IS The stricken youngsters were from Macomb County, Mich program leaders said Lawmakers get rundown on reapportionment TALLAHASSEE State lawmakers got a rundown Wednesday on the requirements'for federal approvalof the reapportionment plan they will draw up next year At a Senate sponsored redisricting seminar, experts explained the procedure for getting the federal government's pre election approval under the Voting Rights Act for a new legislative reapportion mentplan The Justice Department or a three judge federal tribunal in Washington must approve the plan lawmakers devise before it is put into effect Richard Engstrom, a political scientists the University of New Orleans, said one step lawmakers could take that would help them support their plan would be to do away with multi member House and Senate districts, which were used in some Southern states histoncatly to dilute the voting strength of blacks and other minority groups Transplant recipient dies at Shands GAINESVILLE The Tampa girl whose expensive bone marrow transplant was financed by donations from fellow citizens, died Wednesday afternoon after serious infection set it, Shands Teaching Hospital officials said. Spokeswoman Lisa Stewart said Mana Pinon, 16, died at i 05 at the University of Florida facility, StewatreportM earlier in the day that the girl was in serious condition because infection had set in The hospital said it could not release the cause of death, but Stewart said earlier in the day that the operation carried a high risk of infection, even though the procedure last month was termed successful The girl's family couldn't afford the $60,000 operation, but some $30,000 in donations poured in after The Tampa Tribune published a story about the girl's plight Orlando police chief takes state position ORLANDO Orlando Police Chief James Nur sey is moving into a top state law enforcement post amid reports he was pressured to qui) by the city's new mayor, Nursey, 36, boss of the 425 man police department for two years, handed in his resignation to Mayor Bill Frederick Tuesday. He will join the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, headed by another former Orlando police chief and close friend, James York Mayor Frederick denied the reports of friction between himself and the popular Nursey, who has been with the department 13 years and was appointed by former Mayor Carl Langford at the urging of York. Closing of hotel leaves 100 homeless MIAMI The forced closing of a skid row hotel that Miami fire inspectors say could collapse at any time has left about 100 residents of the building at least temporarily without a home. Some of the residents, forced out with only three hours advance notice, said they paid their $10 a nlght rent in advance, leaving them with no money to rent elsewhere if rooms In room short Miami could be found.

Five fire inspectors checked the 95 room Gibson Hotel Monday, determined it was uninhabitable and ordered it closed immediately, "We were concerned that the building could have collapsed (that) night," said fire department spokesman Steve Edelstein MIAMI (AP) The S. Immigration and Naturalization Service says it released about 100 Haitians into the custody of friends and relatives in a parking lot in northeast Miami. Angry Haitian advocates, already embroiled in a court battle to stop deportations of the refugees, charged Wednesday they were "dumped." INS Deputy District Director Richard Gullage said the agency had contacted sponsors, telling them to meet the refugees at the parking lot Tuesday evening, but about 30 did not show up. The Haitians were taken by bus to the site at the corner of busy Biscayne Boulevard and Northeast 79th Street, an area of Miami highly populated by Haitians Those refugees whose sponsors did not appear were informed they could return to the INS processing camp, but the Haitians declined the offer, Gullage said. "They were dumped out late at night," countered Samuel Constant, director of the Haitian Refugee Center Inc.

Constant said some of the Haitians were picked up by relatives after "news spread through the but that about 40 were left stranded. He took them to his refugee center, where they slept on mats and cots Tuesday night. After being fed by the Salvation Army Wednesday, most of the refugees were placed with relatives or volunteers In Miami, Constant said. He said nine Haitians remaining at the center Wednesday afternoon would be taken to relatives located in Broward and Palm Beach counties All of the Haitians were from the Krome Avenue camp, where about 1,300 refugees were being held as of Wednesday morning. The camp has tents and toilets house 800 under emergency conditions.

INS said It would settle for reducing the population to 1,000 "We are in a resettlement posture," Gullage said. "More 200 refugees have been resettled through volunteer agencies or the Office of Refugee Resettlement." jr ru wilw ill A ml I TODAY AP Stretching it Joe Petty, a worker at a St. Augustine shipyard, scratches his head Wednesday as he looks over the fishing trawler 'Mr. which seems to have come apart amidships. Actually, the vessel is bei extended eight feet to 88 feet to add space for fl storage and the new section will be in the middle.

Parents 'emotionally drained' after fight over baby's surgery SOUTH MIAMI (AP) On the eve of their daughter's, court ordered surgery, the parents of 11 day old Elm Daniels said they were rJ Dr. Glenn Morrison, chief of neurosurgery at Variety Children's Hospital in Coral Gables, began surgery, late Wednesday on the deformed baby, who has meningomyelocele, condition that left her spinal cord protruding from tier back when she was bom. Her parents, 33 year old Albert Daniels and his 30 year old wife Jennifer, had said they didn't want any steps taken to prolong the child's life, but the hospital went to court to obtain a circuit judge's order Tuesday. Tuesday night, the Daniels' who have a healthy 3 year old son named Eric, discussed their ordeal with a Miami News reporter. Here are excerpts from the interview: ALBERT: Elm was bom at 3.10 m.

Saturday the 13th In the delivery room. the 'obstetrician first noted the abnormality and identified it as spina bifida. Up to this point there had been no indication that there was anything wrong with either the unborn child or the mother. She did have an illness and was treated at South Miami Hospital during the third month of her pregnancy with antibiotics that are customarily prescribed for pregnant women There has been conjecture that this abnormality can be congenital or a one time kind of shot particular to this pregnancy or that it could be caused by a virus during the pregnancy They don't know. Jennifer's labor and delivery were astoundingly simple This was my second natural childbirth; I was there when Eric was bom.

REPORTER: Could you see anything wrong? ALBERT: Oh yes, he turned the child over It was a raw appearing area on her back through which the spinal nerve and the sur rounding membrances was protuding (The doctors) came into the recovery area. They gave a Short preamble, the intent of which, I believe, was to help cushion the blow. And Dr. Irwin Perlmutter (prominent neurosurgeon) in as kindly a fashion as possible gave us the facts as straight as he possibly could I remember his looking at me, trying to see if I'm understanding what he is saying, trying to reach out in some way to let me know that regardless of whatever was happening, he understood our situation and was trying to be helpful. JENNIFER: He told US that this child was going to lead a life of surgical procedure after surgical procedure, with a limited if unspe cif Ic lifespan, REPORTER: What were your feelings as a mother? JENNIFER: I'm the kind of person who can breeze through a pregnancy I'm of good peasant stock.

Doctor completes operation to help prolong infant's life MIAMI (AP) A neurosurgeon completed a court ordered operation Wednesday night on an 11 day old deformed baby whose parents had opposed any steps to prolong the infant's life. Dr. Glenn Morrison, chief of neurosurgery at Variety Children's Hospital, operated for three hours and 10 minutes on Elin Daniels, who was bom with her spinal cord protruding from her back, a condition known as meningomyelocele Morrison said it was too early lo determine if the sur gery would prolong the child's life. "The best the child could have is to walk with braces and be incontinent of bladder and bowel," Morrison said. "Years may go by, or she may have complications tomorrow.

We don't know." The surgery won't correct the situation, he said, "All we can do Is make the best of the situation. The child may still die with all the things we've done today." No complications developed during the opera tion, but Elin will be watched for possible bladder or kidney infections during the next few days, he said The girl's parents, Albert and Jennifer Daniels, awaited word of the surgery at home. They had said they didn't want any steps taken to prolong her life, but decided not to fight when Dade Circuit Judge Ralph Ferguson Tuesday ordered that Variety doctors be allowed to operate. Doctors said the operation to enclose the spinal cord and inhibit pressure on the brain bad to be performed quickly, before In fee tlon set in. Morrison said he talked with the Daniels by telephone for about 15 minutes after the operation He described their mood as "quite appropriately interested, as you would expect them to be." Doctors said in court that the fragile infant will never be able to walk on her own or control her bladder or bowels.

Without treatment, they said the Infant would likely Morrison said he could not predict how long Elin will live after the operation, adding that the surgical techniques for treating meningomyelocele have only been in use for 25 years and there's no solid record of how long treated individuals survive. But there was disagreement among medical experts at Tuesday's hearings about how long the child would live. "The choice should be up to the parents," Dr. Irwin 1 Perlmutter, former head of neurosurgery at Variety told the court. "There are some people who would pull out all the stops on the organ and play the sympathy as far as it will He added that, personally, "I would not take home my child with this kind of problem." Meningomyelocele is a severe form of the family of birth defects called neural tube defects or spina bifida.

They affect about 5,000 of the three million babies bom in the United States each year. I He said those Haitians released In the parking lot had been resettled through INS' own family reunifies tlon program. An estimated 2,000 Haitians who have arrived by airplane since February and boat since mid April have been held at the barbed wire camp until immigration judges can determine whether they can stay in this, country. Regents, liquor bills are signed There were no complications with the pregnancy whatsoever. I had no idea that my daughter new baby was going to be any different from the perfect son we had It was quite a blow I was devastated.

I think any mother any parent would be. We asked questions, but that was it. REPORTER: They have no hope? ALBERT: 'No hope' isn't really accurate. JENNIFER: There seems to be no disagreement to the best physical recovery that might be expected ALBERT: Elin possibly at best could walk on crutches or with a stroller. She will have incontinent bowel and bladder.

And we were told we should prepare ourselves for hydroce phalis (commonly called water on the brain) ALBERT: Variety Children's Hospital presented as evidence a 4 year old who had what I understand to be a parallel case. And I suppose the point was: here is this bright, shiny child. (But she was a child) who within her four year period of time had learned she cannot play with her friends as they play, has dysfunctions which can be embarrassing and had undergone I think there were six operations In four years What was this supposed to be an example of. I'm certain I don't know. JENNIFER: We will abide by the court's decision.

We will appeal. And In fact we, as the child's guardians her parents as directed by the court, went directly from the court and signed the necessary papers for surgery. We are realists. We will fight for what we believe is right. But we are realistic enough to realize there is a certain point at which the fight must stop.

We both believe that the justice system in this country is adequate and appealing this decision of the court will not prevent the operation from occurring ALBERT: We're emotionally drained For 10 days we've gone through this moment by moment crisis decisiondecision making: What seems right, what it feels like, what is logical, what our gut reactions are. TALLAHASSEE (AP) Gov. Bob Graham Wednesday signed bills to expand the Board of Regents, apportion new liquor licenses by lottery and make it easier to confiscate property and investments owned by drug smugglers Those were among 44 bills that Graham signed into law on Wednesday. The regents expansion bill by the Senate Education Committee would increase the panel from 10 to 13 members, including the addition of Education Commissioner Ralph Turlington The law also reduces the length of each regent's term from nine to six years, except for the student regent whose term will remain one year. "This measure will help to Invigorate the Board of Regents through a greater diversity of participation on the board," Graham said.

He called the bill one of his top priorities of the 1981 Legislature The liquor bill by the House Finance and Taxation Committee will require the use of a lottery system to apportion1 about 800 new quota liquor licenses that will become available because of 1981 census figures. The licenses will be sold at the rate of one fifth in 1981 and in each of the four following odd numbered years The new law also will shift the license quotas from the 10 year census to annual state population estimates In 1983, which is expected to result in about 500 more licenses through the end of the decade. Those licenses also would be issued by lottery. The law also includes a provision designed to prevent large liquor store chains from getting monopolies by limiting each retailer to no more than 30 percent of licenses in a single county. It also raises the fee for license transfers from $100 to $5,000 and imposes a three year waiting period in an effort to eliminate a black market In liquor licenses.

Another provision allows airlines to obtain liquor licenses for the sale of dnnks in their VIP lounges. Existing law prohibits the sale of liquor in the lounges and some airlines have been giving away free drinks. The anti smuggler bill by Sen Ken Jenne, Holly wood, sets up a procedure for placing liens against the property and investments held by people charged with violating the state's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations law. Mixson switches plans to drop out TALLAHASSEE (AP) Lt. Gov.

Wayne Mixson, who said Tuesday he was so unhappy with his role in the Graham ad ministration that he was considering not running for re boasted Wednesday that "Bob Graham is the greatest governor Florida has ever had." The turn around came after Graham held a 90 minute meeting with Mixson Tuesday to discuss his complaint that he has been shut out of policy decisions by Graham chief of staff Garry Smith and press secre tary Steve Hull. I During a swing through Miami Wednesday, the 59 year old Mixson apparently had reconsidered his comments to an Orlando columnist that he might not run for re election with Graham in 1982. "I think Bob Graham's the greatest governor Florida has ever had," Mixson said Wednesday. "I'm very rewarded to be a part ol his team." The governor returned the compliment in an interview Wednesday. "Wayne and I meet on a regular basis.

I became aWare that he had some concerns, we have 'discussed them and we moved toward a mutually satis factory resolution," Graham, said. "Wayne Mixson is a particularly close and valued adviser and source of Rood counsel on i the Legislature and other gov, eminent a Mnctaa" The mutual admiration Was a switch from the dissatisfaQ tlon Mixson expressed day; "Garry and Steve are the two pillars Bob leans on in making decisions, and they doqfl know how to handle the Legislature," Mixson told the coluirt nlst. I am completely out of It." i In this administration, Garry Smith does not Inform me of what the hell they are doing," Mixson continued, "To him I have no right to know." Neither Smith, who directed Graham's 1978 campaign, nor Hull, who handled press relations, would comment on Mlxson's criticism "I just don't think it would be appropriate," Hull said Upon hearing of Mlxson's complaints to the press, Graham called him In for a meeting Tuesday and later said the two were still a ticket. Graham said he could understand Mlxson's dissatisfaction "I ran empathize that the Job of lieutenant governor has luj continuing frustrations, much like the vice president and lieutenant governors in other states." Though Graham said he gave Mixson no new responsbiM uies, Mixson was reeling otnier, ine vuui we naa was veiy reassuring," the former House member from Mariaima said Wednesday, "I told him that I'd like to be his lieutenant gover nor again and he told me he'd like for roe to run." niiiiiiBPB Sep! jHtUH, mm mm tr flfsM VJfftH HiflB I "aiH' TtT TUMI WAYNE MIXSON singing new tune.