St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 8

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH INSIDE NEWS ANALYSIS: Haitian struggle is rooted in tradition 5D EDITORIAL: Missouri is considering reformulated gas to cut ozone emissions COMMENTARY: Outgoing elections chief would make balloting stronger in nine ways' 7D OBITUARIES WEATHER 4D 6D T. LOUISMEGION SECTION FRIDAY; OCTOBER 22, 1993 BILL MCCLELLAN ON MY OWN County Fights Return Bout Over Escrows mercy of the escrow agent and developer, Council May Give Accounts To Treasurer the escrow accounts, said County Counselor John Ross. Ross didn't tell the council about the investigation until last month. In January, after accepting streets that developers refused to finish, the county began filing lawsuits to gain control of the funds.

Last week, the county filed 11 suits against Community Title. Now, the council appears poised to do what their predecessors failed to do a decade ago. It's drafting a measure that would direct the county treasurer to hold escrow money and release it as work was finished. "I'd like to say we've come up with a creative solution," Ross said. "But a lot of what we're coming up with now was kicked around in 1983, 1985 and 1989.

The system allowed this to occur, and the system had no safeguards in place. The county was at the By Carolyn Tuft and Phil Sutin Of the Post-Dispatch Staff Escrow accounts to finish subdivision im provements in St. Louis County came up short a decade ago, as they have today, county counselor's office memos show. A measure 1985 to change who controls the money became mired in a debate over how much change was necessary. On Thursday, the County Council wran gled over similar issues, but four of five Democratic council members indicated they would pass a measure next month to correct the escrow system.

James H. White, a longtime assistant coun selor, said some cabinet members under then-County Executive Gene McNary realized in 1983 that escrows held by banks and title companies for subdivision improvements were missing or released without county approval. No Yoking, An Egg Hit i i- 1 4 fx 4 Trying To Land Team More Fun Than Having It THINK ABOUT THE last time you read a really wonderful book. Do you remember how sad you were when you realized you were almost finished with it? That's the way I feel about the effort to bring an expansion football team to St. Louis.

It saddens me that the National Football League will name its two expansion cities next week. That's because there is no way that a football team can provide the quality of entertainment we've been afforded by the slapstick effort to get a team for St. Louis. The team itself, if we get one, is going to be a letdown. Don't get me wrong.

Football is a fine game. It's always fun to watch a game in which 300-pound guys run into each other for 59 minutes, and then, in the waning seconds, a 140-pound kicker determines the game's outcome. In fact, there's a lesson there. You don't have to be big to be important. Appropriately enough, there has been a lesson in the expansion game.

You don't have to be poor to be stupid. But hey, let's not be negative. Let's appreciate what we've been given. The fun really began in August of 1991 when this newspaper ran a front-page story about the first challenge to the Jerry Clinton-James Orthwein partnership. The Rev.

Larry Rice announced that he was putting together a group of investors. A fellow who turned out to be unemployed said he was representing the unnamed investors. "We're crunching the numbers," he said. Ha Ha Ha! Of course, it turned out that the Clinton-Orthwein partnership didn't need any outside challenge. It imploded in a classic Old Money-New Money dispute.

And when the rest of our local Old Money sided with Orthwein, we were treated to New Money's desperate and hilarious search for out-of-town investors. The very first thing you have to understand about these two new NFL teams is that most likely they are not good investments. That is, the league has priced the new teams too high to appeal to shrewd investors. The price is $140 million, and start-up costs are estimated at an added $75 million. Truth is, though, very few people buy a football team as an investment.

Instead, it's what the marketing people call an "ego-driven" purchase. Owning a football team is a way for a guy who made a fortune in some business that nobody ever heard of to say, "Hey, I'm Somebody." Like Robert McNair, for instance. He's the Texas millionaire who made his fortune in "cogeneration," which has something to do with using steam to provide electricity to factories. Earlier this week, Clinton said he was thisclose to finalizing an agreement with McNair. Despite his mundane business, McNair is a colorful character.

Last spring, the Houston Post ran a society story about the "Old South Plantation Ball," which raised money for The Confederate Museum. The pre-ball party was held at McNair's home, which the Post described as a "fabulous mansion." The story, written by Frenchy Falik, reported that many of the party-goers showed up in Confederate costumes. Oh, wouldn't McNair be a hit around here? "The St. Louis Rebels intend to draft the best available white athlete." Unfortunately, the day after Clinton said he was thisclose to finalizing the deal with McNair, the deal seemed to fall through. Of course, nothing is final.

This is a story that changes every day. As I write this Thursday afternoon, the new hope is some guy who married into Sam Walton's family. Plus, the guys from Civic Progress are making a belated appearance. And never forget John Connelly, the huckster from Pittsburgh, who has been in and out of the picture. If he gets the team, we better nail down that new stadium or he'll end up hauling it out of town and selling it back to us.

Meanwhile, the fans and the media have turned on Clinton. Not so long ago, he was the "street fighter" who had dumped the rich guy. Now, he's the pathetic figure whose ego might cost us a chance at a team. At the same time, Orthwein is giving us a new definition for petty. When a reporter asked Orthwein's spokesperson if Orthwein might step into the breach and somehow save us at the ltn hour, the spokesperson referred to the positive cover age Clinton received when he ousted Orthwein two months ago.

"The reaction at the time pretty much said to Jim that the fans and the media thought that Jerry approach was the way to go." It's the sort of thing Marie Antoinette would have said had she had a spokesperson. And somewhere lurks Fran Murray, the guy with no money but a million plans, the guy who talked us into building a football stadium in the first place. You don't think, do you, that he might somehow link up with the Rev. Rice's investors and emerge victorious at the last moment? Oh, I'll miss this when it's over! It's so nyich more fun than football team would be, Inflation Depleted Funds- White has worked for the county under Republican and Democratic administrations since 1969; he specialized in zoning laws.7;.; White said that in 1983, he, the county planner and the highway director suspected banks and title companies were mixing money held in escrow for subdivision improvements with money for home construction. The third parties were releasing the "escrowed money without the county's approval, he said.

"Our efforts to find the monies that were supposed to be in escrow were not successful," White said. McNary and his successor, H.C. Milford, both Republicans, said this week that the escrow problem in the 1980s involved too See ESCROWS, Page 3 Ex-Dealer Pleads Man Who Once Sold Cars i Here Faces Fraud Charges ByTimO'Neil Of the Post-Dispatch Staff Terry W. Fisher pleaded not guilty Thursday in St. Louis to accusations that he defrauded Mercantile Bank of $1.1 million arifi laundered money while his car-dealership empire crumbled.

1 Fisher, 44, of Creve Coeur appeared in the federal courthouse downtown before Magistrate David D. Noce. Fisher is free on bond after being arres'tS9 in Miami Tuesday when he flew there from Grand Cayman Island, where he helps run a hotel. Fisher is the former president of the old Terry Fisher Automotive Superstore in St. Peters and Terry Fisher Ford in Bridgeton.

On Oct. 7, a federal grand jury here indicted him on 23 counts, alleging that he Fisher," defrauded Mercantile, lied on the application in borrowing $500,000 from St. Johns Banlc and Trust, laundered money through several other banks and lied to the grand jury. At his peak in the late 1980s, Fisher soJ3 six makes of cars and trucks and employe 124 people at his giant Superstore just north of Interstate 70 in St. Peters.

But Mercantile forced him to close it in August 1991ob grounds that he owed $6.8 million. The superstore, witi massive glass windows and a high black frofj entry, is on a 28-acre tract. Behlmann now has the property. T5 The indictment alleges that FisherdV frauded Mercantile by failing to repay loans that covered the cost of cars while they wer for sale on his lots. It alleges he instructed his staff not to pay Mercantile when cars 'yretS sold and to conceal the sales from the banE! Fisher kept his Ford dealership untiLeb ruary 1992, when he filed for bankruptcy.

The indictment also alleges that Fishey laundered money through several bank ac counts. Fisher's wife, Pamela, cashed checki for some of that money, the indictment says. Last month, St. Johns Bank foreclosed on their 13-room home on 1.3 acres on Fallen Leaves Court in Creve Coeur. St.

Louis County estimated its value at almost twice the $235,000 they paid in 1981, according to county tax records. Fisher said he now is a director of the Sleep Inn Grand Cayman, a hotel on that Caribbean island. The Fishers have four children. Fisher declined comment after the hearing Thursday. U.S.

Attorney Edward L. Dowd Jr. had asked for $1 million bail, but a federal judge in Miami set it at $200,000 Wednesday. Noce affirmed the lesser amount. Fisher satisfied the bail with $20,000 cash and his signatures and that of his wife, Pamela.

David B.B. Helfrey, Fisher's lawyer, said: "There is a viable defense. Car dealers move around money all the time." Noce set a trial date for Dec. 6, but Helfrey said he would seek more time. Helfrey said Fisher knew of the indictment when he flew to Miami.

Fisher, originally from Hannibal, entered the car business in the 1970s as a part-time salesman at Jim Robertson Chevrolet in Kirksville, where Fisher and his wife attended Northeast Missouri State University. Pamela Fisher's late father, Rod Smith of Quincy, 111., was a partner in Robertson Chevrolet. The Fishers moved to Quincy, where he worked for a time at Rod Smith's Chevrolet dealership and then opened his own, Terry Fisher Pontiac. In 1981, Fisher bought the old Ken Bender Buick-Pontiac in St. Charles.

He expanded with the superstore in 1988. "He could really sell cars," said a former associate who did not want to be identified. Court records and the indictment say his troubles began in September 1990, when he first became delinquent on payments on his car-inventory loan. I Not Guilty McNary cabinet members tried to persuade the County Council to take control of escrow funds from banks and title companies and give it to the county treasurer. The idea stalled when the St.

Louis County Home Builders Association heavy contributors to Republicans and Democrats alike complained the change would penalize good developers as well as bad ones. A problem with missing escrows surfaced a year ago under the Democratic administration of County Executive George R. "Buzz" Westfall. The Federal Bureau of Investigation last year seized escrow records of the now-defunct Community Title Co. controlled by James P.

Davis, a major contributor and friend of Westfall. The investigation is focused on money believed to be missing from Dropping Contest I would be grossed out if I had to dissect something. We make clay models, and we probably learn more. .9 KEVIN LOTZ, student opposed to dissecting animals what they have learned in KIND. A biology teacher at Washington University said although it was possible to get a college degree in biology without ever dissecting, he believes there is value in it for anyone interested in a health profession.

"Each animal is different. If you study the material in a text or on a computer, you might think every animal is the same," he said. He asked that his name not be used because he feared confrontations with animal-rights Trains will leave St. Louis for San Antonio and Houston on Sunday, Tuesday and Friday. Return service will run on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

The rail line also is closing 15 ticket offices including one in Centralia, 111. and reducing staff at two others to eliminate 33 jobs beginning Tuesday. Trains will continue to stop there. Passengers with reservations can buy tickets from train conductors, but other passengers will have to buy their tickets at other Amtrak stations or from travel agents. Amtrak will try to move employees affected into other jobs, Robertson said.

The company wants to eliminate an additional 149 positions this year to save money but has yet to decide where to make the cuts. Amtrak employs about 25,000 people. Its revenues for the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 1992 were $1.3 billion, down from $1.4 billion the previous year. Figures for the last fiscal year were not available.

Cynthia Todd of the Post-Dispatch contri- Students On Dissection: 'Cut It Out' KIND-ness Moves Students To Seek Biology Class Alternatives LEFT: Nancy Christen, a mathematics teacher at Mullanphy School at 4221 Shaw Boulevard, dropping a specially designed egg container Wednesday from a second-floor window of the school. The pupils were participating in their annual Egg Drop Contest. BELOW: Youngsters waiting to see if eggs from the fourth- and fifth-grade classes survive the fall or hit the ground. Photos by Karen Elshout Of the Post-Dispatch Staff groups. He said he thinks junior high students should be given a choice.

Science teachers at Ferguson Middle School, Barbara Rain and Nancy Schnell, started KIND at the school in 1988. Today, Rain and Sheron Howe, another science teacher, work with the 20 or so members. "I think dissection teaches students it is OK to kill an animal," Howe said. "Learning alternatives may be the only opportunity for some students to gain respect for animals and eventually, for each other." KIND members also study endangered species. They write letters on behalf of causes they support.

They sponsor information booths on environmental issues. Every year, they clean out a nearby lake. They also started a recycling program. Gwen Kluegel, a senior at McCluer High School, said she has attended KIND meetings See STUDENTS, Page 3 Carbondale Amtrak Change 5r. Louis to Centralia route St.

being replaced by non-stop Loiils bus service raiiovIUo Centrallai Service from St. Louis being eliminated Du Quoin 25 miles Carbondale Post-Dispatch map buted information for this story. By Patricia Corrigan Of the Post-Dispatch Staff Some students here are refusing to participate in a traditional junior high school rite dissection in biology class. "I don't think it's right to kill animals," said Amanda Swann, an eighth-grade student at Ferguson Middle School in the Ferguson-Florissant School District. Kevin Lotz, Swann's classmate, said, "I would be grossed out if I had to dissect something.

We make clay models, and we probably learn more than if we did dissections." Lotz and Swann belong to KIND, or Kids In Nature's Defense, a group sponsored by the National Association of Humane and Environmental Education in East Haddam, Conn. One of the local group's projects is to seek out alternatives to dissection, such as models, diagrams and computer graphics. The students then practice in their science classes Amtrak To Cut Service To By The Associated Press Amtrak will stop running trains between St. Louis and Carbondale and will reduce its daily runs between St. Louis and San Antonio and Houston to three runs a week, officials said Thursday.

The changes will begin Nov. 4 and will end Amtrak service to Belleville. The city had been a stop on the St. Louis to Carbondale line. Belleville has no Amtrak station or employees.

The cuts are two of several steps Amtrak is taking nationwide to save $10 million a year. The rail line failed to get an increase in federal subsidies, said Howard Robertson, an Amtrak spokesman. Amtrak had asked Congress for $381 million, $30 million more than the rail line now receives, to offset declining ticket sales. The St. Louis to Carbondale service is part of the River Cities route between Kansas City and New Orleans.

To replace the service, Amtrak will start running a nonstop bus between St. Louis and Centralia where passengers can make train connections..