The Greenville News from Greenville, South Carolina • Page 9

1 SECTION Monday August 10, 1998 Obituaries 4B Business 6B Greenville Police Chief Mike Bridges said in his 30 years at the department, there have never been any children abducted by strangers in the city, nor are there any children reported missing now. Instead of just telling kids not to talk to strangers, Stephens says parents should also teach children how to react to situations. "Replace the word stranger with anyone, anywhere. Children cannot advantage of," Gaines said. "They're able to get close to the kids because they're like their aunt, uncle, family friend somebody that the family trusts, so the child also trusts them and don't suspect they'll do something like that." In Greenville County, 249 people were reported missing in 1997 and five of them are still missing, according to Sgt.

Hank Harbin of the Greenville County Sheriffs Office. Out of the 637 runaways reported, 633 have been found. against children and abductions are perpetrated by people the child is familiar with, or somehow the child is acquainted with the perpetrator," said Roy Stephens, founder and executive director of the Missing Youth Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Omaha, Neb. Fewer than 15 percent of abductions are committed by the classic, unknown person and the rest are committed by someone the child knows, said Stephens, a former pri vate investigator who specialized in missing and abused children cases. The victims are usually between 9 and 12, Stephens said, but other age groups aren't exempt.

Offenders prey on children they know because the victims trust them, said Ken Gaines, clinical professor at the University of South Carolina's School of Law. "Kids trust them because they're familiar with them and they're not inhibited. That familiarity is taken Offenders use trust to prey on children By Breea Wiilingham Staff Writer Telling your kids not to talk to strangers may not be enough to keep them safe because the person most likely to abuse or abduct your child is someone he or she knows. vast majority of sex crimes See CHILDREN on page SB ipirits high despite caved-in roof Greenville native heading up new television company IT" By Deb Richardson-Moore Staff Writer It was a seriously big story for media-watchers: Tina Brown, the sizzling, 44-year-old celebrity editor of The New Yorker left that venerable magazine last month to start a publishing and multimedia arm of maverick Miramax Films. A three-page spread in Newsweek detailed the wooing of Brown by Miramax's "loud, cheap and smart" Weinstein brothers, Bob and Harvey, and told how the uncanny hit-makers responsible for "Pulp Fiction," "The English Patient" and "Good Will Hunting" were moving into the magazine biz.

Almost incidentally, the article mentioned that the brothers were also launching a third prong into television. What the story didn't mention was the Greenville connection. Heading that new television division is Greenville native Billy it' 1 kv -i n) in (m tfflWn Services go on: Monaghan Baptist Church plans to rebuild after Saturday. Services were held in the gym Sunday. Four million child molesters reside in the U.S.

A typical molester will abuse between 30 and 60 children before being arrested, and as many as 380 during the offender's lifetime. One in three girls and one in seven boys will be molested at least once before age 18. Source: US of Justice Campbell, a 1978 Christ Church Episcopal School grad and former CBS vice president. Son of Trish and William Campbell who still live near downtown Greenville, Billy has been r. Billy Campbell working in the in- dustry since 1987, when he was hired by a TV executive who spoke to his class at Harvard Business School.

His new job as president of Miramax Television will offer Campbell, 38, a unique opportunity to build a television studio from the ground up and, he hopes, to break new ground by luring film and journalism voices into his medium. See CAMPBELL ok page 4B done work for the county before and through newspaper ads. "We're surprised that Mr. Sloan has brought this case," Lambert said. "We believe it doesn't have any merit.

We're going to challenge it." School District spokesman Oby Lyles said the school construction started in the spring and is already 15 percent completed. The grading has been done and foundations and walls are being built, Lyles said. The Greer Middle School will be located on East Gap Creek Road, the Mauldin Middle School will be on Holland Road and the Riverside Middle School will be on Hammett Bridge Road, he said. Last year, Sloan sued the county to halt construction on an $18 million road paving project for also not seeking competitive sealed bids. Initially Sloan convinced a judge to halt the road project, but the council rewrote its purchasing ordinance, A second Sloan lawsuit filed challenging the rewritten purchasing rules was dismissed.

Sloan has been more successful in his battle over the county's $216,000 special projects fund. He won a fight in May to prevent a councilman's request to spend $1,900 on computers for a charity group. The fund's guidelines restrict expenditures to infrastructure projects like road and drainage repairs. Andrea Weigl covers courts. She can be reached'at 298-4297.

referendum School board sued over middle school construction project right," Freeman said. "We have insurance and we will rebuild." As Freeman's sermon came to an end, he told the congregation his reaction to the damage. i "As I looked at the rubbish I saw faces, familiar faces and I thought, 'What if this had happened tomorrow at I saw the center section where the youths usually sit and the roof and rubble that was in the space. If that's not a sobering thought, nothing else is." No cause for the collapse has been determined, but Freeman said he hopes someone from the insurance company will come today. The church had paid off the $2 million sanctuary and adjoining classrooms in April.

Some of the congregation's young members find the idea of Concealed weapons Congregation at Berea church remains optimistic By Vanita Washington Staff Writer BEREA It was standing room only at Monaghan Baptist Church Sunday as members of the congregation poured into the church's gymnasium for morning services. Members were forced to drive past the ruins that until Saturday had been the church's sanctuary. Cars slowed to observe the damage and others stopped to take photos. The church's roof caved in Saturday afternoon, demolishing the sanctuary and forcing Sunday morning services to be held in the gym. This didn't pose a hardship because many church members are no strangers to the gym: I They held services there for years I before the sanctuary was built in 1990 off West Parker Road.

And despite the tragedy that befell the church, spirits were high and peo- pie were optimistic. "I think this is a message from God," Deacon Bruce McDonald said. "The message could be taken so many ways, it could mean that God is telling us that we're going to grow." During the services, interim i Pastor Clarence Freeman told the congregation not to panic and that all church functions would contin- ue normally. "Everything is going to be all By Vanita Washington Staff Writer More than 16,000 South Carolinians can now legally carry handguns in their purses, strapped to their belts' or wherever they want, because they have received their concealed weapons permit. Ike Ray, of Laurens, got his permit earlier this year but he questions whether it was worth it, "I got the permit because I rent trailers and you never know what people will do and I wanted protection," said Ray, who keeps' his revolver in his car.

"But I don't carry it on me and there are so many restrictions about where you can take them." The-restrictions prevent permit holders from carrying their weapons inside places that serve alcohol, police departments, polling places, schools, day-care centers, hospitals and anywhere that firearms are prohibited because of federal law. Even private businesses have the option of prohibiting people from carrying weapons, according to the law that went into effect two years figo this month. "We haven't had any reports of Inappropriate use of firearms," said Beasley says 16,000 get ermits for concedled weapons ii OMAR AU Staff the church's roof caved in worshipping in the gym odd. "It's kind of strange," said 13-year-old Amanda Harris. Her cousin 12-year-old Sarah Harris agreed.

While their friend Kimi Bagwell remembered being in the gym years ago. "We (the youths) all" sit together," Bagwell said. "And normally we sit in the front of the church, but we all sat upstairs here, it was strange." permits Total fJTT 3830 Total SUZiE RIDDLE Staff er any good. Since the law went into effect, the only changes have been in the permit's appearance said Ken Mid-dlebrooks, of SLED's Regulatory Services Unit. "We started with a cardboard-type permit with no picture and then changed to a driver's license-type card with a picture," he said.

According to Dorton, no new changes in the Legislature are expected anytime soon. Vanita Washington can be reached at 697-4453. More than two-thirds of South Carolinians favor a state lottery for education, according to a December poll. A governor's spokesman said Beasley has not changed his position. "All he's saying is that if it got to the people and the people ap More people are carrying concealed weapons.

Chart shows the number ot permits issued statewide since Aug. Ji yao. Female CmJL Ma Anderson Greenville 142 167H laurens 137. 198, 235 Oconee 29, 244, 273 Pickens Spartanburg 158,367,425 201 By Andrea Weigl Staff Writer A retired paving contractor who has repeatedly filed lawsuits against Greenville County over its road paving projects and special projects fund now has turned his attention to the county school board. Edward Sloan filed a lawsuit last week alleging the school board improperly handled the bidding pro-' cess for its $43.5 million middle school construction project.

An attorney for the school board said it did nothing improper and called the suit "frivolous." Sloan is asking a judge to halt construction on Greer Middle School, Mauldin Middle School and Riverside Middle School and order the school board to draw up new contracts, the suit says. School officials said the three schools each with a capacity are slated to open August 1999. Sloan's suit says the school board falsely declared the project an emergency in order to avoid having to conduct competitive sealed bidding for the construction contracts. Sloan's attorney James Carpenter said the only contract connected with the project that was a competitive bid was for the project manager. Attorney Ward Lambert, who is representing the school board, said all of the project's construction contracts were awarded through competitive bidding.

He said bids were collected from companies that have proved it he's not going to stand in the way," said Gary Karr. Karr said the governor could always veto the enabling legislation after a referendum. "But he's saying, 'No, I won't do A referendum would require a two-thirds vote of both the House and Senate. But a vote failed in the STATEWIDE: Female SOURCE: SLED the application and a bad recommendation from the sheriff. There have been 331 denials across the state.

There also have been 38 permits revoked. "If the person is charged with an offense, we take the license away until after the trial," Dorton said. "If the person is found guilty it's revoked, if not we give it back. A permit also can be voluntarily surrendered. That usually takes place if someone is moving out of the state where the card is no long- Capt.

Joe Dorton, commander of Regulatory Services Unit of the State Law Enforcement Division. In order to get the permit, applicants must take a course from SLED-approved instructors. Ray attended his course at Piedmont Technical College and it took two days. "School was interesting," Ray said. "They talked about when to use the weapon and when not to use it.

What to do if someone breaks into your home and other things like that." In addition to two days of classroom time, Ray also had to shoot his handgun on the firing range. He said that he hit the target 100 percent of the time. Ray spent a total of $125 for the privilege of carrying a concealed weapon. And the process took about three months. "The law gives us 90 days and right now it's running about 80," Dorton said.

"The bulk of the time is waiting for the FBI's fingerprint results. We check them here and then send them off for a nationwide check." The top reasons for people getting turned down for the permits are felony offenses, falsification of he'll allow told The (Rock Hill) Herald he would "give the people what they want" if voters supported a state-; wide lottery through a constitutional referendum. Democrat Jim Hodges, Beasley's challenger in the November election, has campaigned heavily for a statewide lottery with the money lottery if voters give support through going to education. Beasley in the past has called that a "quick fix." Hodges' spokesman George Shelton thinks that Beasley would say anthing to get re-elected and his latest lottery comments are "just a perfect example of that," he said Sunday. The Associated Press ROCK HILL Republican Gov.

David Beasley, who has long fought to ban video gambling in South Carolina, has said again that he will allow a statewide lottery if voters approve it in a referendum. I Beasley, speaking before Satur-' day night's GOP fund raiser here, Republican-controlled House earlier this year. "The governor has never fought a lottery," Karr said. "He doesn't have a role in it. They require a majority vote in the General Assembly, and frankly that's why it hasn't gotten approved in 15 years." i 3.