Florida Today from Cocoa, Florida • Page 24

my R1 STATE NEWS INSIDE LOCAL NEWS INSIDE rv A It 'Dismal science excites pupils in Pensacola elementary economics class, 7B. Weak seal shuts down Crystal River nuclear power plant, 8B. Got the sniffles? Local drug stores may have the answer, 1B. Moving company van catches fire, destroying much of three families' belongings, 1B. I II us I i Wayne Mixson becomes shortest-term governor 1 tt 1 SUNDAY, January 4, 1987 12B Traffic accidents claim 22 lives FLORIDA TODAY Wires TALLAHASSEE At least 22 people have died in traffic accidents in the state since New Year's Eve, the Florida Highway Patr61 reported Saturday.

At least 11 of those deaths were alcohol related, officials said. At least three of the victims were pedestrians. The official highway patrol counting period began at 6 p.m. New Year's Eve and ends midnight today. Officials have predicted 34 people will lose their lives on Florida roads in that period.

Juvenile center escapee dies FORT LAUDERDALE A pair of juvenile center escapees from Tampa led Broward police on a high-speed chase that ended when the teens' stolen car slammed into a bridge railing Saturday. The 16-year-old passenger was pronounced dead at the scene in Broward County, about 15 miles west of Fort Lauderdale. The driver, a 15-year-old, was in serious condition at Humana-Bennett Hospital in Plantation, said Sheriffs spokesman Al Gordon. Detectives said the youths would have By Susan Traylor FLORIDA TODAY TALLAHASSEE After almost eight years as the state's lieutenant governor, John Wayne Mixson, a 64-year-old Panhandle rancher, took office Saturday for an unprecedented three-day term as Florida's 39th governor. He succeeds Bob Graham, a two-term Democratic governor elected to the U.S.

Senate this fail and required to give up the governorship at noon Saturday, when his congressional term began. Under the state constitution, Graham's gubernatorial term does not actually end until noon Tuesday. Thus, Mixson, who has lived a heartbeat away from the governorship since he became Graham's running mate in 1978, now succeeds him and will serve until Tuesday, when Bob Martinez begins his four-year term. "How sweet it is, Gov. Martinez," Mixson exclaimed after state Supreme Court Chief Justice Parker Lee McDonald administered the oath of office Saturday morning in the chambers of the state House of Representatives.

Martinez, Graham, most of the state Cabinet and a majority of the state Supreme Court justices were among the more than 400 invited guests who attended Mixson's inauguration. The ceremony was held amid jokes about the brevity of his term the shortest in Florida history and praise. Even though his term is short, Mixson has the full powers of any governor. He can make political appointments, declare emergencies, sign death warrants and call out the National Guard. Mixson and his wife, Margie, are staying at the governor's mansion during his term and plan to give a small party for Mixson's staff there tonight.

A special meeting of the Cabinet also has been called for Monday to give Mixson the opportunity to preside there. Quoting from the Gettysburg Address, Mixson told his inaugural crowd, "Abraham Lincoln said, The world will little note nor long remember what we say Well, actually, that's appropriate because we're not going to say or do much in the next few days." 39th governor, 10B. I FLORIDA TODAY AP BIG DAY: Florida Supreme Court Justice Parker Lee McDonald, foreground, administers the oath of office to Gov. Wayne Mixson. Margie Mixson and former Florida Gov.

LeRoy Collins, left, witness the beginning of the three-day term. Visitors for the little Prince Scare 17-year-old shot in Daytona Beach Associated Press i If. A vJ 42" 11,1 l'4i a A suffered only minor injuries had they been wearing seat belts. The teens, who escaped last month from Hillsborough House, were in a 1987 Honda CRX that was reported stolen on Dec. 30, the spokesman said.

Charges against the driver were pending. Four arrested in drug raid MIAMI Four suspected drug smugglers from Florida's Gulf Coast were arrested and 800 pounds of marijuana was seized in a raid on a Pompano Beach home Saturday, a U.S. Customs spokesman said. The arrests and drug seizure were the result of a two-month investigation, said spokesman Cliff Stallings. Officers from Customs, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Lighthouse Point Police Department also seized $20,000 and two boats, including a 42-foot sailboat, Stallings said.

The suspects were identified as Alfonso Moffo, 60, of Clearwater, and Michael D. Brener, 20, Patricia Arliss, 24, and Donald J. Cotter, 26, all of Naples. Burglar alarm among loot DAYTONA BEACH A burglar alarm was among the $4,083 in goods stolen from a Daytona Beach man's sports car, police said. Barry Zinn, 25, told police he discovered his 1980 Triumph convertible had been broken into on New Year's Day.

Also missing were the car's seats, a radar detector, radio, speakers and a tank of nitrous oxide. Zinn told police the car's burglar alarm had been set to go off. Police reports show the car was broken into through its convertible top. 911 crew helps couple save dog FORT LAUDERDALE Emergency 911 dispatchers here helped a distraught couple save their choking Welsh Corgi by giving telephone instructions on how to give the dog the Heimlich maneuver, the pet owners said. When Douglas Mutch found her pet choking Friday, "she was hysterical," said her husband, R.W.

Mutch. Dispatchers directed Mrs. Mutch to place her fingers under Homer's chest and squeeze. She relayed the instructions to her husband. 'He started breathing easier almost right away," Mutch said after the ordeal.

"In five minutes he was back to normal. Homer's been acting a little weird today, but he seems to be fine. In fact, he's barking right now." DAYTONA BEACH Four Daytona Beach residents driving around town decided to shoot at a group of youths to scare them, but the gunshot seriously wounded a 17-year-old girl, police reported. Richard A. Siler, 23, a former Texas football player, was charged with attempted murder in the wounding of Terri Harry, who was listed in serious but stable condition Saturday at Halifax Medical Center.

Harry was hit in the forehead early Friday, possibly by a ricocheting bullet, police said. "The shooting may have been an accident," said Sgt. Paul Crow. Siler's brother, Clarence, 19, told police he was playing with a 9mm handgun in the car when he saw a group of youths near the Halifax Park maintenance office and told the other three occupants: "Let's scare them." "My brother shot at the ground. The bullet hit a garbage can or some other still object," Clarence Siler said in a statement to police.

"Then someone fell. We turned around for a second and was on our way back when a police car drove up as we turned into the lot at a friend's house." Describing the shooting for investigators, Richard Siler said: "I took he gun and attempted to fire it." The gun wouldn't fire, so he leaned out the car window and pushed "the back of it." He told police the gun then discharged. Clarence Siler and the brothers' companions, Ray Broxton, 24, and Bryan Watson, 18, were charged as principals to attempted murder. All four were booked into the Volusia County jail pending a court appearance. Bond was set at $5,000 each.

Richard Siler attended the University of Illinois at Champ-aign-Urbana and later transferred to Texas as a tight end. He was a free agent in the St. Louis Cardinals' football training camp last summer. Laura Elliott. FLORIDA TODAY HOLIDAY HOME: Snookey, left, also known as Ed Nalewaik, cheer Aurila Prince, 3, of La Belle, a patient in the children's and Tuffet the tiger, or Paul Cushman, both of Fort Myers, ward of Lee Memorial Hospital since Thanksgiving.

Rain helps tanning colons shino 2 high court retirees pleased with record Associated Press By Tom Duller FLORIDA TODAY FORT MYERS Karen Mrozinskl, of South Bend, gave up on Florida sunshine after a week of rainy weather. Instead of spending more time on the beach, she went indoors to a tanning salon. "I've got to go home with a tan," said Mrozinski. "It's unreal' said Merna Throne, operator of a tanning salon on Sanibel Island. "We're booked solid until Monday, and we've turned away 50 people a day." And at $3 per 30-minute sessions, out-of-staters still are signing up even with sunshine starting to peek through.

Cameron Yates, winding up her Christmas vacation from Grosse Pointe, said it's simply easier than waiting for warm wee then "I was lying out a little bit, but it's too cold," Yates said. Given a choice between a tanning bed and the beach, though, Mrozinski prefers the the beach. "I'd take a clear, warm day at the beach because I can see all the men walk by," she said. they must make way for younger jurists. Both started on the court in the same year and both will step down at the same time.

Neither, however, plans to abandon pursuits and interests that led them to the court. Adkins, author of several books on law, will finish a novel on racial prejudice he witnessed as See JUSTICES, 1 IB TALLAHASSEE The Florida Supreme Court's two eldest members were ready to leave office Tuesday, confident that the state of justice has improved under their guidance and service. Justice James Adkins 71, and Justice Joseph Boyd 70, step down not by their own choice, but by law. Florida's mandatory retirement law says M1 hf. Brevard backs foundation with license plates Tammy White Inside track: Receptionist in Governor-elect Bob Martinez's transition office.

From the beginning: Worked for his campaign as part of a college class at University of South Florida. Almost one year after the Challenger disaster, it is clear Brevard County has not forgotten. On Friday, Brevard County drivers bought about 1,200 of the special Challenger commemorative license plates that went on sale for the first time that day. People spent hours in line waiting for the special plates, which will serve as a continuous reminder of the space program. In addition to being a nice thing to display on a car, the sale of the plates will be the prime fund-raising tool for the Astronauts Memorial Foundation, which plans an astronauts memorial and education center at Kennedy Space Center.

That figure could be even higher if some motorists donated an additional $25 to the foundation for reserving a plate with the letters "KSC" on it. It is difficult to believe there was some opposition in the state Legislature when the idea of a Challenger tag came up. It is to the credit of local lawmakers who were able to get it passed that the special plates are on sale now. AN OPEN QUESTION: After many months of talking about it, Brevard County commissioners finally are going to take a close look at an open-container ordinance at their Tuesday meeting. Perhaps the biggest question about the ordinance is one of enforcement, with some people asking whether a county ordinance can be effective if none of the cities have similar ordinances.

After all, it is difficult for a driver to know where he can drink beer in his car and where he cannot. But if the county acts on this issue, the other municipalities might very well follow the lead. A perfect example is the earlier bar closing hours Cocoa Beach instituted one year ago. Within months, the county and every city except Palm Bay were closing their bars by 2 a.m. or earlier each night.

Maybe this time the county will lead instead of follow. WAY TO GO: Florida Lt. Gov. Wayne Mixson has the right idea about being governor. Mixson, sworn in Saturday to fill the last three days of Bob Graham's term (Graham resigned to become U.S.

senator) admits he plans to do nothing important during his brief term of office. Mixson said he plans to make a few appointments, sleep in the governor's mansion and send out some letters on stationery that lists him as Florida's governor. Imagine, a governor with no grandiose plans, no lofty goals. He won't hire anyone, fire anyone, or raise taxes. Oh, if all governors were so harmless.

Irn -1 flcksa mk7mimmmmm Memories: "It was great, fun, very active." Campaign pressures: "I always had a positive attitude. There wasn't much terror (over the possibility of defeat)." Lessons learned: "There were a lot of hectic, last-minute things it makes you better organized." With an additional $17 for the plates going to the foundation, Friday's sale in Brevard alone will generate more than $20,000 for the foundation. I r. thai.