The Times from Munster, Indiana • 13

WEST THURSDAY, JUNE 5, 1997 S3 The Times Palatine MerrilMlie HE REGION A compilation of state and regional stories from Times staff and wire reports Palatine police eye parolee held in Tennessee fast-food killings A parolee charged in killing sprees at two Tennessee restaurants may have been in this Chicago suburb at the time of the 1993 murders of seven people at a Brown's Chicken Pasta Restaurant, police said Wednesday. "We think he is very important to our said Palatine police Cmdr. Jim Haider. "We're very interested in speaking-to anyone who knew (Paul) Reid when he was here." Reid, 39, was charged Tuesday with two counts of murder in Tennessee shootings that left five people dead. The attacks occurred at two fast-food restaurants in February and March in the Nashville area.

"We have reason to believe" he may have been here at the time of the Palatine killings on Jan. 8, 1993, Haider said. He declined to elaborate, however, and said Palatine police have no plans to send anyone to Nashville "in the immediate future" to talk with Reid. However, Palatine officers have been to Nashville in the past to share information about the Tennessee and Illinois killings, and investigators are continuing their close cooperation, said Haider. IN-PACT begins money campaign Group will use 28 acres south of county fairgrounds for administrative, employment center.

Credits hold key to advancement at Merrillville High School next year Under a new plan passed this week by the Merrillville School Board, freshman students attending Merrillville High School this fall will have to earri-aHeast 5-12 credits before being classified as a sophomore the following year. Principal Beverly Bashia said Students now will have to accumulate a specific number of credits at each grade level before advancing to the next grade level The credit-based grade classification system is designed to guarantee students continue to progress throughout their high school years, she said. "Freshman students, for example, will have to earn 5-12 credits before theyxan be classified as sophomores," Bashia said. "We think this is the fairest way to classify students rather than by how many years they have been in school." Airport hopes to find its direction There are local residents who know the area like the backs of their hands, and for them, the signs may not be necessary. But for the thousands who fly into the GriffithMerrillville Airport every year, the signs could be helpful.

Craig Anderson, airport manager, has asked officials from four communities for permission to erect directional signs to guide travelers to the airport. Anderson said the airport, located at 1705 E. Main Griffith, has 50 to 100 small aircraft landings daily from flights that originate throughout the United States and Canada. Officials order property owners to clean them up or face repercussions nrThe owners of four properties were ordered by. officials during an Unsafe and Abandoned Buildings hearing Wednesday to clean them up and make them safe or face the consequences.

The properties are the following: The site of the former Nicholodeon Video store, 5701 Harrison which was destroyed by a suspicious fire on March 20. The former Wendy's Restaurant in the 5700 block of Broadway, which has been boarded up for at least 15 years. The former Block House company at 6200 Cleveland where concrete blocks cover the grounds. An unoccupied and sometimes unsecured residence at 7030 Madison with a rotted porch. CHy" Calumet viy ijf iiii 1 John J.

Watkins The Times The new IN-PACT Center is well under way toward completion. Plumber Terry Cheek takes measurements for a vent pipe in the new building. Markham BY DIANE KRIEGEft SPIVAK Times Correspondent CROWN POINT A white elephant deeded to the county 100 years ago is turning out to be a blessing for Northwest Indiana's disabled. A 28-acre tract of wooded wetlands south of the Lake County Fairgrounds at the southwest corrier of Court Street and Franciscan Drive is being turned into a new central administrative facility and employment center for IN-PACT, the area's largest provider of residential care for children and adults with developmental disabilities. The nonprofit corporation, which helps about 900 clients from 18 communities yearly, kicked off a one-year fund-raising campaign at a press conference Wednesday morning to raise $500,000 to build the facility.

The property, donated to IN-PACT by the County Council and County Commissioners, was deeded to the county in the late 1800s, according to IN-PACT Executive Director Herb Grulke. The County Parks and Recreation Department attempted to map out a park area for the heavily wooded area in the late 1970s, but a wedand area covered too much of the tract to make it usable, so the county gave it to IN-PACT. The $1 million administrative and training building west of St. Anthony Medical Center broke ground in February thanks to funds saved by IN-PACT and several significant unnamed donations. The building should be completed this fall, Grulke said.

Commercial laundry, SSC eyeing Calumet City's State Street area A commercial laundry facility and South Suburban College are the latest groups that are discussing whether to settle in the city's State Street redevelopment district, Calumet City officials said Wednesday. The commercial laundry firm, UniFirst Corp. of Chicago, would like to build a-3 million to $5 million, facility on State Street between Douglas and Ingraham avenues. There they would launder uniforms, linens and the like, said Carl King, director, of community and economic development for Calumet City. UniFirst representatives could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

According to King, UniFirst would like, to relocate to Calumet City this summer when its lease expires on its Chicago facility. Calumet City is trying to negotiate a deal in which UniFirst would locate temporarily in a warehouse at 333 Plummer the former location of A Plus Food Service, until it has built a new facility on State Street, King said, The costs associated with UniFirst'6 stay at the 333 Plummer Ave. warehouse would be deducted from the tax break that the company would otherwise receive from Calumet City, King said. Genova blasts legislature's handling of gambling issue Calling the latest state legislative disaster," Mayor Jerry Genova blasted the way elected officials handled the education finance reform and gambling expansion issues this spring. Last week, the House passed Gov.

Jim Edgar's education finance reform plan, but the Republican Senate leadership failed to bring the bill up for a vote. Similarly, leaders failed to agree on a plan to expand riverboat gaming licenses in Illinois. Calumet City, one of the cities vying for a riverboat license, spent $35,000 this spring on lobbyists who were trying to secure a license for the community. Many area communities have signed on to a revenue-sharing deal and would each receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue should Calumet City garner a gaming license, according to projections from the South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association. "We have a governor right now whojis impotent and I think there's leadership in the legislature who are protecting the existing licenses," said Genova, a Democrat.

Genova said that he is hopeful, however, that legislators will eventually link education funding reform and gambling expansion. "We were very close on the last day of session," Genova said. "They were taking votes, but when education fell so did gaming." Genova said the legislature could discuss the two issues again during the upcoming veto session. was $20,000 cheaper per child, Grulke said. Additionally, group homes allow clients to become contributing members of society, rather than spending a lifetime in an institution at a cost of $90,000 per year.

"There is a waiting list for all services," Grulke said. "Our new building will help from an employment standpoint." The development of a nature trail will include restoring the area with native species of wetland plants and a natural waterfowl nesting area. Older children who are clients of IN-PACT will help clean the area and spread wood chips. The children will be paid for their work, Grulke said. When completed next year, the trail also will serve residents of St.

Anthony Assisted Living Center, Nursing Home and planned retirement community, as well as the Caritas Adult Health Day Services and Holy Family Child Care Center. The fund-raising campaign to raise half of the $1 million cost of the building is expected to come from donations by area businesses and foundations, Grulke said. Mailings will soon go out to about 400 of them The new building will quadruple IN-PACT's current office space and centralize its administrative staff. "With the expansion of our employment training services, we will more easily accommodate anticipated future growth," Grulke said. Plans also call for a nature trail, a wetlandsecological restoration project, a therapeutic riding academy and a summer camp.

Currently, IN-PACT's summer programs for youth are scattered throughout Northwest Indiana. IN-PACT opened its first home in 1983 in Merrillville. The experimental home for autistic children proved to teach three times faster than an institution and 3 cops injured over stolen shorts -'When Mary Funches walked into 6th District Circuit bond court on Wednesday, she looked as though she had gone several rounds with a heavyweight fighter. The purse: a $250,000 cash bond on charges she attempted to- kill a uniformed police officer, injured two Others and caused an estimated $10,000 damage to three patrol cars with her Pontiac Grand Am. from the lockup, aided by a Cook County Sheriff's deputy, the 40-year-old Glenwood resident squinted at Associate Judge Martin E.

McDonough through a swollen and blackened eye, and spoke to her public defender through swollen lips covered in adhesive bandages. According to Assistant State's Attorney Bill Delaney, Funches is charged with a laundry list of felony and misdemeanor citations, including attempted murder, two counts of aggravated battery to a police officer and felony retail theft. According to Matteson police Cmdr. Ken O'Keefe, Funches' wild ride began at approximately 8:45 p.m. on Monday when she was the passenger in a car being followed by security agents from the Lincoln Mall shopping center.

The security agents contacted Matteson police to inform them that Funches allegedly shoplifted several pairs of women's shorts from the Sears store in the mall, prosecutors said, Pblice eventually found Funches in a car in the parking lot of the Budgetel Inn, 5210 W. Southwick Drive in Matteson. There, they told Punches and the driver to exit the car. At that point, Funches allegedly threw the ojriver out of the car and proceeded to take the wheel, becoming both driver and assailant, O'Keefe said. She allegedly hit the accelerator of the car and struck one officer in the hand.

Continuing to speed forward, she allegedly struck a second officer head on, sending him onto the hood and over the windshield of the car. Heading north on Cicero Avenue, a third officer attempted to slow Funches down by positioning his car in front of hers; however, she allegedly rammed him, O'Keefe said. Police and prosecutors contend Funches sideswiped yet another patrol car and a civilian pickup truck on Flossmoor Road before slamming into a utility pole in the vicinity of 187th Street and Cicero Avenue in Country Club Hills. The force of the impact split the poje in half said O'Keefe. According to police, all three injured officers have returned to light-duty status.

Funches is scheduled to appear again in court forpreliminary proceedings later this month. Indiana ROUNDUP Lafayette Jury convicts man, 26, who got teen pregnant Paoli Lansing the charge. "If he had been 18, certainly, we would have had to look at it more closely," Bean said. Despite Rork's insistence, Bean said she is a victim. "We have now a 16-year-old youngster who is responsible for raising a child," he said.

"Her childhood is obviously over. Even if the defendant and the victim get married, the odds are against them." The charge was filed in February after county welfare officials notified the prosecutor's office of the birth. State law says no one under 16 is capable of giving informed consent to sex. A teen-age girl embraced the 26-year-old father of her child and said he should not have been prosecuted for having sex with her when she was 15. A jury convicted Robbin W.

Huckelberry on 'one charge of sexual misconduct with a minor, a felony charge could carry a maximum 8-year prison term when he is sentenced July 28. "We have nothing to deny. It's all true," said Krista Rork after the Tippecanoe County jury returned its verdict Tuesday. "For being honest, we get punished." Prosecutor Jerry Bean said he weighed the couple's difference in ages before filing Evansville Crown Point Classmates of shooting victim plan memorial A Paoli High School class reunion will include a somber mission: A visit to the gravesite of a classmate and an effort to solve his murder. Delmar Wilson was found shot to death three years ago, two years after his graduation.

The class of 1992 reunion is on Saturday. The next day, Wilson's friends plan a memorial Service at his grave in Stampers Creek Cemetery. "We're going to go out there, and then everyone will split up and go distribute some fliers to let people know we haven't forgotten about his murder," saki classmate Karie Baker Becht. Stacie Fields Durbin said the group will take the fliers with information about the killing to area businesses. She said about a dozen members of the class have agreed to help and that others will likely volunteer at the reunion.

Wilson's body was found in his car on a rural road between Fredericksburg and Hardinsburg in southern Indiana's Washington County early on the morning of June 12, 1994. He had been shot in the face with 5 a shotgun at close range. il Village appoints new fire chaplain Richard VanDyke likes to joke that he hacFto rely on his 19-year-old son to land him a job. VanDyke is the new chaplain for the Lansing Fire Department, where his son Robert has served as a cadet for the last three years. But while VanDyke came to know the department through his son, his commitment to his new post goes deeper than a father's pridein his child's work.

"For me, it's a real pleasure just to serve the community that way," said VanDyke, who moved here five years ago to become pastor of First Baptist Church of Lansing. "When I came here, one of the things I wanted to do wjis become involved in the community, not just be pastor of the church." As volunteer chaplain, VanDyke will respond to serious fire calls to be available to firefighters, their families and fire victims. He will also spend time with firefighters during training sessions and when they're not responding to emergencies. Beyond providing support for firefighters, VanDyke said a chaplain can play a critical role in a crisis by helping people find answers to the tough questions that arise. "When someone is seriously injured, or when individual firefighters are going through struggles, they're always going to ask the question, 'Why? Why did this happeji, why did this happen to he explained "I think pastors have the answers to those bottom-line Coroner investigates whether boy died from being punched Center Township Annexation challenge advances A legal challenge to the city's 1993 annexation has moved to the state level where it will be heard by the Indiana Court of Appeals.

Documents filed last week mark "he first big step in the appeal," said Ed Gnimmer, the, lawyer representing landowners opposed to the annexation. Grimmer filed a record of all previous court proceedings in the case, which began within months of the May 1993 annexation of 6.5 square miles of township land. The protesters now have 30 days to file their case, and the city Jras 30 days afterjrhat to respond, Grimmer said. authorities should take action against an 11-year-old believed to have punched Travis in the neck Saturday at She home of Travis' aunt, Kari Hibbs. After receiving the blow in the jugular region of the neck, Travis left the home and fell backward from the porch, hitting his head on the sidewalk.

He died Sunday at Welborn Baptist Hospital. The Vanderburgh County Coroner's office is investigating whether a 14-year-old boy's death can be linked to a punch allegedly thrown by a younger Coroner Dennis Buickel said an autopsy showed that Travis A. Norman died from swelling of the brain after he struck his head on a concrete sidewalk. Buickel said he is consulting experts to determine if.