The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 1

EMMAMAPOL "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is Liberty" II Cor. 3:17 2i SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2003 I EZZZ a A GANNETT NEWSPAPER I INDYSTAR.COM "Every Hoosier lost their governor and their friend." Joe Kernan, immediately after being sworn in as governor on Saturday (m Kernan sworn in as state's 48th governor in a solemn ceremony 0 Governor's family honors his living will, OKs end to life support A public funeral in Statehouse is being planned for this week sfpniMiMs mm mjnucn. miii ii i rP4Mv CITY EDITION I $1.75 Plane returns body to Indiana By Mary Beth Schneider mary.beth.schneiderindystar.com Gov. Frank O'Bannon, 73, died Saturday morning at the Chicago hospital where he had been in intensive care since suffering a massive stroke five days earlier. At 6 p.m., Lt.

Gov. Joseph E. Kernan was sworn in as the state's 48th governor in a somber ceremony in the Indiana Supreme Court chambers. O'Bannon, the nation's oldest governor, was pronounced dead at 11:33 a.m. at Northwestern Memorial Hospital Late Friday, his blood pressure and heart rate began to drop, and the swelling in his brain began to increase.

Following the dictates O'Bannon himself had set in a living will, his family decided to use no further medical means to keep him alive. About 11:10 p.m. Saturday, an Indiana Air National Guard plane carrying O'Bannon's body landed at Indianapolis International Airport First lady Judy O'Bannon was on hand as six Indiana State Troopers carried the casket to a waiting hearse. His body was to be taken to Crown Hill Funeral Home. A public funeral in the Indiana State-house is being planned for later in the week.

Details were not available late Saturday. O'Bannon's wife of 46 years, Judy, was with her husband when he died. "She certainly did not want the governor to suffer," spokesman Jonathan Swain said. "She knew that he was ready." Dr. Wesley Yapor, the neurologist who treated O'Bannon, said the stroke had damaged the entire right side of O'Bannon's brain.

As his condition worsened rapidly Friday night and Saturday morning, Yapor said, a "very personal discussion" was held with the O'Bannon family, and life support was disconnected. There was, Yapor said, nothing else to be done. Hours later, Judy O'Bannon was back in Indianapolis, at the Supreme Court chambers, to witness Kernan's swearing in. She stood and applauded as Kernan entered the room and remained standing as he took the same oath of office that her husband had taken in 1997 and 2001. With the state's new first lady, Maggie Kernan, holding a family Bible, Supreme Court Justice Theodore Boehm administered the oath of office to the new governor.

His right hand in the air, Kernan, in a steady voice, promised to support the U.S. and Indiana constitutions and govern the state of Indiana "to the best of my abilities, so help me God." With those words, Kernan, who last year said he didn't want to be See O'Bannon, Page A8 COMING UP In Monday's Star Sports section, find out how the Indianapolis Colts fared against the Tennessee Titans. WHAT HAPPENED Gov. Frank O'Bannon died at 11:33 a.m. Saturday, five days after suffering a massive stroke.

The swelling in his brain increased, and his blood pressure and heart rate dropped. Based on O'Bannon's living will, his family allowed him to be removed from life support. At 6 p.m., Acting Gov. Joe Kernan was sworn in as governor. WHAT'S NEXT Kernan asked that today be "a day of remembrance for a life that was lived to the fullest in the service of tha people of Indiana." A public funeral at the State-house is planned for later this week.

Kernan must choose a lieutenant governor, but he is under no deadline. A simple majority vote in the House and Senate must ratify his choice. 7 PAGES Roots: From newspaper reporter to III basketball player to bird-watcher, O'Bannon was the consummate Hoosier. A8 Medical effects: Stroke affected half of O'Bannon's brain; organs donated, per his will. A9 Obituary: O'Bannon followed his family's tradition of public service.

A10 Timeline: A look at O'Bannon's life, career and family. A10 Photo page: Images of O'Bannon's life through the years. Atl Editorial: A committed public servant friend to Indiana. A12 Lawmakers react: Politicians grieve for "a gentle man." A13 Ruth Holladay: Columnist remembers a good man who didn't hold a grudge. A13 Business leaders react: O'Bannon is credited with leading change to improve economy.

A14 OGo to lndyStar.com for the latest news on the governor's death and succession. Go to lndyStar.comfeedback to offer your condolences to the O'Bannon family. Go to lndyStar.comfactf1les for a biography of the governor. Go to lndyStar.comobannon for complete coverage of the governor's illness and death. INSIDE ONLIN Low: Rain likely mi INDEX Arts Editorials -IMO i.

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