Albuquerque Journal from Albuquerque, New Mexico • Page 1

ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL Monday Morning, January 30, 1989 Copyright 1989, Journal Publishing Co. Daily 350 Sunday $1 109th Year No. 30 104 Pages In 6 Sections nactive Judges i -4 To Grab Share Raises Of Huge THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Kaffir 111 it i- JIM THOMPSON JOURNAL Members of the Baca family, operators of the South Valley's Mushroom Store, debate the area's boundaries. From left are WASHINGTON Warren Burger, who stepped down as chief justice of the United States in 1986 and hasn't heard a case since, stands to receive a pay raise because he claimed status as a "senior judge" rather than full retirement. Burger is not alone.

An additional 305 senior judges also legally qualify for the active-duty pay raises according to administrative records obtained by The Associated Press that indicate one in five do no legal work. The title of senior judge, created by Congress in 1919, allows federal jurists to sharply reduce their caseloads while still qualifying for active-duty salary increases. Federal judges are appointed for life, though they may choose to resign at any time. Most senior judges hear cases, but Burger says he doesn't have the time. By contrast, since he followed Burger off the bench in 1987, former Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell has served on the 4th U.S.

Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, and next month will sit on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Florida. Burger declined to answer questions about his impending pay increase and his judicial workload other than to say, "I'm too busy to sit." Most senior judges do substantial work and as a group they handle between 10 percent and 15 percent of all federal cases. "Across the nation, the federal judiciary would be a mess without the help of senior judges," says Appeals Court Judge Frank Coffin. Receiving active-duty pay raises while accepting no cases may not seem equitable, but it is not unlawful.

Whatever Congress actually expected of the senior judges, current statutes require nothing in return for the active-duty salary Gregory, Edward, Ignacio "Nash" and Phillip Baca. Residents have many different ideas on where the South Valley begins. 7 "7" South Valley Boundaries Lie aiJLC Tn Minds. Hearts of By Robert Rodriguez Warren Burger Expects $60,000 raise increases. A report compiled by the Administrative Office of the U.S.

Courts provides rare caseload data on senior judges. For the year ending June 30, 1987, the study showed that 56 of 271 senior judges, or 21 percent, handled no cases. Of the 56, 49 were older than 75. Judges who retire by resigning receive pensions that equal their last year's salary, but not subsequent increases. If Burger had taken full retirement in September 1986, his annual pension would be $108,400.

Instead, he received a 1987 increase to $115,000 and next month he stands to receive a 52 percent boost. Burger, who spent much of his career campaigning for higher salaries for judges, took senior status even though he knew at the time he would be working as the full-time chairman of the celebration of the 200th anniversaries of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. The largest salary increases in a decade for top federal officials take effect Feb. 8 unless Congress JOURNAL STAFF WRITER around whether the South Valley goes east of the Rio Grande, and whether parts of Albuquerque that lie west of the river should be included. To those who believe that the Valley lies only in the county's unincorporated areas, its eastern boundary hugs the bank of the river and extends up the mesa.

Its northern boundary is Central Avenue, between the river and Coors Road, and the Isleta Reservation forms its southern border. Historically, five centuries-old communities Los Padillas, Pajarito, Atrisco, Armijo and Five Points define the South Valley's core. MORE: See SOUTH on PAGE A3 drag to the north. However, in the last few years, the debate over what is the South Valley has grown as community leaders search for a common identity and grapple with the issues of consolidation, incorporation and economic development. "Everybody has a different idea of what the valley is," said Julie Stephens, a 10-year resident and commmunity activist.

"Discussing the boundaries helps me to understand better the relationship between the South Valley as a community and its relationship to the city of Albuquerque. Without discussion we are at risk of becoming more confused and losing our identity." Geographically, the discussion centers WHAT AND WHERE is Albuquerque's South Valley? Depending on who you ask, the answers to the seemingly simple question vary, based on geography, history and lifestyle. In some ways, the area is a mishmash of rural and urban. Paved roads lead to dirt ones and towering Cottonwood trees line the remains of ancient acequias. Large chunks of farm land still can be found in the Valley's southern reaches, while miles of businesses crowd Isleta SW, the area's main Afghan Rebels Battle To Seize Highway as Soviets Retreat Operators Retain Nostalgic Charm On Otis Elevator THE ASSOCIATED PRESS By Steve Brewer JOURNAL STAFF WRITER 3 its- "Si diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

He refused to elaborate. Rebels based in Pakistan reported Sunday that Soviet bombing and missile attacks along the highway have killed 600 civilians and injured 1,200. "The mangled bodies are still under the debris," the Afghan New Agency said in a telexed statement. It was unclear whether the rebel-backed agency, operated from Pakistan, was repeating a similar report it made Saturday. Official Radio Kabul, monitored in Islamabad, Pakistan, said Sunday night that Afghan troops had carried out "successful military operations" with civilians who want to keep the 260-mile Salang Highway open.

"The inhabitants of the Salang Highway assisted the forces, as they hate the robbers, and complete security has been restored on the highway," it said. MORE: See REBELS on PAGE A3 ALONG THE SALANG HIGHWAY, Afghanistan -Afghan troops and Mujahideen guerrillas fought for control of this highway Sunday as the Soviet army moved out what may have been the last convoy to leave Afghanistan by truck. A convoy of Soviet soldiers driving armored personnel carriers and trucks loaded with missile launchers and other equipment cruised through a Soviet bunker checkpoint as helicopter gunships hovered nearby, offering cover. The highway, the only road to the Soviet border, winds through mountains where the rebels are waiting for the Red Army to complete its withdrawal. Two ground-attack jets streaked overhead and then disappeared behind the snow-covered mountains just beyond the hills surrounding the capital of Kabul.

"This could be the last convoy," said a Soviet i 1 i v7tL Anti-Obscenity Camp Seizes on Killer's Plea if lit- I A. i I Save the elevator jokes. Mary Aragon and Emma Medellin have heard them all. "The thing that people say every day is 'You must have your ups and Ms. Medellin said.

"We just make it a joke. We're used to it." The women still can work up smiles when a new elevator rider drags out the same old lines. They've had a lot of practice. Miss Aragon has been operating the old Otis in the Sunshine Building downtown since 1971. Ms.

Medellin has worked at the six-story office building since 1985, but she operated an elevator elsewhere for 14 years. The women believe they are the only human elevator operators left in the city, and perhaps in the state. All the other skyscrapers have turned to automatic push-button elevators that simply function, without cheerful greetings or smiles. Miss Aragon said many of her riders prefer the old elevator. "They come in and say the modern ones go too fast and they close the doors real fast on them," she said.

"And they jerk once in a while," Ms. Medellin added. A ride in the old Sunshine Building elevator is as smooth as a drive on a new highway. Through a window installed last year, passengers can watch the floors glide by and can get a nice, if brief, view of downtown. Passengers summon the elevator by pushing a button that triggers a buzzer in the elevator and a brass meter that shows the requested floor.

The operator resets the buzzer automatically, scarcely pausing in her motion to look at it. The elevator lifts its passengers effortlessly, pausing at the appropriate floor while the operator pulls open the protective grating, then yanks a handle that opens the steel doors. "Everybody says, 'You must have a MORE: See ELEVATOR on PAGE A3 0 If 1 A In an llth-hour interview before his execution in Florida's electric chair Jan. 24, Bundy told religious broadcaster and psychologist James Dobson that he began looking at soft-core pornography in grocery and drug store magazine racks as a youngster, and eventually found himself craving more sexually violent pornographic material. "Bundy's statements support what many clinical psychologists MORE: See ANTI-OBSCENITY on PAGE A3 By Rick Nathanson JOURNAL STAFF WRITER Serial killer Ted Bundy warned about the evils of pornography just hours before being executed.

His last words have been heard in New Mexico, where citizens groups are pushing for tougher anti-pornography and obscenity laws. Others involved in the statewide, anti-pornography controversy say Bundy's view was oversimplified, and they caution about the dangers of trying to legislate taste or morality. Ted Bundy Hooked on pornography Good Morning 1 JIM THOMPSON JOURNAL ACTION LINE B2 DEATHS C15 SCIENCE B8 CLASSIFIED C8-14 EDITORIALS A6-7 SPORTS CI -7 COMICS C18 HAPPENINGS C7 TRENDS B1-6 CROSSWORD B2 HOROSCOPE B2 TV B7 DEAR ABBY B2 MOVIES C7 WEATHER C15 Mary Aragon, left, and Emma Medellin run the 65-year-old Otis elevator in the Sunshine Building. They may be the last human operators in the state. hear cases.

Maybe he's too busy cashing his paycheck. Weather Fair. High in the lower 50s. Low in the lower 20s. C15.

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