Casper Star-Tribune from Casper, Wyoming • 17

star Wyoming Bl Saturday, September 8. 1990 Star-Tribune. Casper, Supreme Court hears oral arguments in Lacey, Keller cases Recanted evidence, sanity of defendant raise sticky questions is a case in Rock Springs which raises the same issue. Also, Gosar said that his client has not been deemed by a judge to be competent to stand trial. Justices Golden and Richard Macy questioned whether there was any "judicial economy" in deciding a case likely to soon be rendered a non-issue by new psychiatric findings.

Urbigkit said the court should decide the issue. "It's been two years this man has been held in confinement. We need to get this case over with, don't we?" he asserted. Urbigkit asked that Gosar address the substantive issue. Forced medication of a person not subject to involuntary commitment, Gosar asserted, would violate "the most basic right that we possess the right to control what goes into our bodies." I le said the side effects of the proposed medication can be adverse and "these drugs have not been subject to much study." Cardine questioned whether the effects of the drugs arc relevant.

He asked whether Keller takes an absolute position against forced medication by the state. Gosar dodged that question, suggesting it was up to the court to decide, but that weighing the effects of the drugs could make a difference in its decision. Cardine rejected that logic, but said that if weight was to be given to the effects of the drugs, the cases should be sent back down to District Judge Leimback to consider those factual issues. Pauling argued that the state's position is reasonable since it seeks only limited medication for a limited period of time for the compelling purpose of putting Keller on trial. By BILL LAZARUS Star-Tribune staff writer SHERIDAN Two extraordinary criminal cases took new twists in arguments before the Wyoming Supreme Court here Thursday.

Cheyenne lawyer Dan Blythe asserted that the state failed its duty to inform the defense of exculpatory evidence hen it did not notify Kevin Lacey's attorneys of his wife's pre-trial waverings, "Due process and the confrontation clause (of the Constitution) require a new trial on the issue of the credibility of Diane Lacey," Blythe argued. Based on Diane Lacey's testimony, Lacey was convicted of kidnapping and aggravated assault, and eventually sentenced to spend a total of 30 to 42 years in prison. But after trial Diane Lacey recanted her testimony, alleging that she had been forced by prosecutors to give false testimony in order to be released from an Oklahoma jail and to keep her children. Dist. Court Judge Harry Leimback found Diane Lacey's recantation to not be credible in a resulting hearing on a defense motion for a new trial.

Later, according to Natrona County District Attorney Kevin Meenan, Diane Lacey gave a statement to police in which she said that her recantation was false. Meenan said that he then decided against prosecuting her for perjury "given what the poor woman had gone "I'm satisfied that her original testimony at trial is true." Meenan said in an interview. He noted that Diane Lacey's latest denial of her original recantation never became public or part of the record hich the Attorney's office had her arrested, and brought her back to Casper to testify. Blythe said the stale had the duty to inform the defense of that incident and each pre-trial instance where Diane Lacey told prosecutors that she had lied to police about being abused by her husband. Assistant Attorney General Mary Guthrie asserted that Blythe's argument poses "a false hypothesis.

He is assuming that what Mrs. Lacey said that that hearing (for a new trial) was true." Guthrie also noted that Diane Lacey had described herself as being an "habitual She acknowledged that the state "did take a very great interest in her welfare" in bringing Diane Lacey back from Oklahoma. But, in any event, Guthrie maintained, Diane Lacey testified at trial that she had not wanted to testify against her husband. "It was there in the case and nothing was done about it," Guthrie said. She noted that Judge Leimback had not restricted defense questioning of Diane Lacey.

Justice Richard Macy appeared to be thinking along similar lines. The jury, he said, was "appraised that Mrs. Lacey was wanting to change her story. Apparently, the jury didn't believe her. Apparently that's what the jury should decide." Drugs for competence In the case of Michael Keller, four out of five justices expressed relunctance to decide the issue of whether the state can force a defendant to take mind altering drugs to be made competent to stand trial.

Keller has been found too sane to bo Supreme Court can consider. Blythe did not attempt to argue that Diane Lacey's original post-trial recantation was so credible that a new trial is in order. That almost certainly would have been fruitless since appellate courts must defer the credibility evaluations of the trier of fact, in this case Judge Leimback. Instead, Blythe argued that prior to the trial the prosecution "did not provide exculpatory evidence to the defense" concerning Diane Lacey's wavering statement and her relunctance to testify before the trial. Such information, he maintained, could have been used by Lacey's former lawyers to cast doubt on the credibility of her testimony.

'Can't the judge also disbelieve that she told the district attorney that she was lying" in her original statements to the police. Justice Joseph Cardine asked. Blythe responded that no such evidence was presented during the hearing on the defense motion for a new trial. Justice Michael Golden said that the record shows that the defense was informed of Diane Lacey's interest in recantation before the trial. But Blythe said that incident involved Diane Lacey herself informing her husband's former attorney Wayne Skaggs that she wanted to recant.

Shortly thereafter, Skaggs withdrew as Lacey's attorney, objecting to the court of his client's "continual trying to coerce the victim into changing her testimony." Diane Lacey subsequently fled to Oklahoma to avoid testifying. The District committed to a mental institution, and too crazy to participate in conducting his defense in a rational manner. He stands accused of aggravated assault in the baseball bat beating of the male companion of an ex-girlfriend. For two years Keller has been in legal limbo, held by the state, mostly at the Wyoming State Hospital in Evanston, which does not believe that Keller belongs there. But new facts alleged in a recent habeas corpus petition in district court to obtain Keller's release and trial has raised doubts among the justices as to whether the Supreme Court appeal has been rendered "moot" or of mere theoretical, rather than actual, importance.

The habeas petition alleges that two state hospital psychiatrists have now found Keller adequately sane to be put on trial. "It's a question of whether he got well or the state hospital found another way to get him out of there," commented Chief Justice Walter Urbigkit. Justice Richard Thomas noted that if Keller is found competent to stand trial, there would no longer be a "compelling state interest" in having him drugged, and the issue would fall away. "What happens is that we will be giving an advisory opinion," commented Car-dine. Due to the constitutional restrict on courts deciding just "cases or controversies" courts avoid providing such advice.

But both David Gosar, Keller's public defender, and Wyoming Assistant Attorney General Michael Pauling urged the court to decide the issue. Both said it would arise again, and Gosar noted there Five-year recreation liim ling on the table Plan will designate federal money for projects around state r. 3 Anti-abortionists rally in Gillette By KATE MISSETT Star-Tribune correspondent BUFFALO A draft plan to determine federal funding allocations for various outdoor recreation facilities over the next five years was issued by the Wyoming Department of Commerce last month. Final public comments on the State Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan must be received by Saturday, Sept. 15, in order to be recorded in the final version of the plan.

The document lists 1 05 priorities for possible funding, with some counties, like Albany and Hot Springs, requesting only one priority each, while one county Carbon asks for 1 1 different projects. Included are such things as park land acquisition, golf course improvements, sports fields, picnic shelters, swimming pools, shooting ranges and bike trails. Matching funds from the Federal Land and Water Conservation Fund will be distributed to state, county and community governments according to the needs listed in the plan. In a mid-August letter to public entities eligible for funding, Joe Bonds of the Wyoming State Parks and Historic Sites Division of the Department of Commerce noted that the document is designed to guide funding decisions for the next five years. "If your future project applications are not recognized as a need within your county it will likely not be funded during the life span of this document," Bonds wrote.

In the first 23 years of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, Wyoming received some $2 1 million dollars. One-sixth of that money $3.75 million went to Sweetwater County, while Hot Springs County received only $171,319. The disparity, according to the plan, is the result of "population administrative effectiveness, aggressiveness of individual (Commerce Department) commissioners appointed by the governor, and awareness of local communities regarding the availability and processes associated with the funding." Information for the plan was gathered by a statewide mail survey to 2,000 resident heads of households, a statewide inventory and issues survey of all public sector outdoor recreation providers, telephone interviews, informal and formal interest group meetings, and a comprehensive review of drafts by all interested parties prior to publication of the final document, according to the plan. Factors examined in the document include population, age of users, public access, handicapped access, and cost of maintaining recreation facilities. Strategies to deal with these issues are also addressed, including the lack of depth of the planning process itself.

While the plan calls tourism the second largest industry in Wyoming, with the most recent annual revenue estimated at $1.5 billion accounting for more than 20,000 jobs statewide, out of state visitors to Wyoming are not considered. Rather, recreation patterns of Wyoming residents are studied, with preference, use and facility statistics given for 28 different outdoor activities. Statistics are analyzed on a county-by-county basis. Residents wishing to comment on the State Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan can examine the it by contacting the Wyoming State Parks and Historic Sites Division of the Department of Commerce, Barrett Building, 2301 Central Avenue, Cheyenne, WY 82002. Comments must be received no later than Saturday, Sept.

15. GILLETTE (AP) As many as 100 anti-abortion activists are ex pected at the state Right to Life convention in Gillette today. During the convention, a Montana mother of eight and an expert on ultrasound imaging in pregnancy will deliver keynote speeches and workshops. Alana Myers of Montana organizes teen rallies throughout the advocating abstinence for teens considering pre-marital sex. She and Shan Richard, a Michigan ultrasound technician and author, will speak at the convention closing banquet.

Among the hour-long workshops to be offered are political and me dia updates by convention organizer Cheryl Rodgers and Larry Hell of Green River as well as a discussion about RU486, the French abor tion pill. There will also be videos about abortion and one of Myers' pro- chastity workshops aimed directly at teens. Teens will also compete for a $100 prize in an oratory contest ex ploring the effects of abortion on their generation. Politicians congregate in Sheridan Mead, Sullivan release campaign spending sums SHERIDAN All but one of the candidates for the state's top three elected positions will speak today at a forum here sponsored by the Wyoming State Bar Association, the lawyer's group announced recently. The speakers will include Gov.

Mike Sullivan, his Republican challenger Mary Mead, U.S. Rep. Craig Thomas, his Democratic chal-longer Pete Maxfield, and Republican U.S. Sen. Al Simpson.

Simpson's Democratic opponent, Kathy Helling, will not be pre sent, but has sent a statement that will be read aloud at the event, bar association Director Tony Lewis said Friday. The forum will run from 9 a.m. to 1 1 :30 a.m. at the Wyo Theatre in downtow Sheridan. It is free and open to the public.

Topics to be discussed will include land and water issues, public funding for controversial art, and the proposed swap of a scenic easement in Teton National Park for federal coal near Sheridan. IX'wcv Vamtcrliiifl Sui-1 nbuite Rawlins cracks down on teen keggers Ami a fifth of oats A pair of horsemen take advantage of the twentieth-century fast service mentality during the Labor Day festivities in Meeteetse. RAWLINS (AP) Rawlins officials are trying to cut down on "keggers" attended by teen-agers by requiring liquor dealers to obtain more information from the buyers of kegs. The Rawlins City Council is reviewing an ordinance that would re quire liquor dealers to record the serial number of each keg sold along with information from the driver's license of buyers. Sullivan: Funds for IV users should remain flexible in Wyo City Attorney Dave Clark said the regulation will allow police to His $6,500 in PAC donations included $500 each fromn Yellow Freight of Overland Park, and Burlington Northern Rail PAC.

Mead's report shows nearly $150,000 in individual contributions. The major single donations came from her parents, former Sen. Cliff and Martha Hansen, $20,000, and from her brother, Peter Hansen, $5,000. Sullivan received $105,000 in individual campaign contributions, none higher than 1 ,000. Four years ago when he was a political newcomer, Sullivan received $110,428 and spent $101,817 on the Democratic primary election, which he won easily over three other candidates.

The Democrat's committee report shows $12,500 spent in January for a poll by Garin Hart Research, Washington, D.C.; nearly $6,000 to Mountain States Lithographing, Casper, for bumper stickers and stationary; $1,100 to The Illustrator, Laramie, for banners; $4,500 to Strategies West, Inc. Cheyenne, for a voter file plus $6,500 to the sime company in consulting fees, and $1,720 to First Lady Jane Sullivan for campaign expenses. Sullivan's campaign manager, Richard Lindsey, said Friday the payment to Jane Sullivan was reimbursement for travel for the family to attend a campaign fundraiser in Washington, D.C. Sullivan also spent roughly $7,500 for radio ads around the state in mid to late August. Lindsey said the ads ran on 25 stations for three days before the August 2 1 primary election.

Mead spent $14,500 with Tar-rance and Associates, Houston, Texas, for two polls, one in late May, and a second in early July. By JOAN BARRON Star-Tribune capital bureau CHEYENNE Republican gubernatorial candidate Mary Mead has raised $36,000 more from supporters then Democratic incumbent Gov. Mike Sullivan as they get ready to face off for the general election Nov. 6. The Mary Mead for Governor campaign committee reported $297,761 in contributions for the primary election, including $140,000 in loans from the candidate herself.

Sullivan's committee received $142,559 in contributions through the August 3 1 reporting period, including $21,000 in loans and contributions from the Democratic incumbent. Mead, who had an active primary challenger in Rep. Nyla Murphy, spent $285,792 on her successful battle to win the GOP gubernatorial nomination. Sullivan, who had only token primary opposition from Ron (Suds) Clingman, a Rock Springs motorcycle repairman, spent $11 5,966, less than half Mead's total. Mead had nearly $12,000 going into the general election while Sullivan had a $26,000 balance.

Mead received $5,500 from Political Action Committees, including $3,000 from U.W. West; $2,000 from Questar Better Government Committee of Salt Lake City and $500 from the certified public accountants" PAC of Cheyenne. She serves on the board of Questar Corporation. Sullivan, who supports testing of triple trailers, received PAC money from both the trucking industry, which favors the triples, and the railroad industry, which opposes them. trace the purchasers of beer kegs at parties where minors are consulti ng alcohol.

In the past year, there has been an increase in the number of keg parties held but no one knows where the kegs are coming from, he said. If the ordinance is adopted, liquor dealers who refuse to comply with it would be subject to penalties including a $750 fine and up to six months in jail. Liquor store dealer Lorraine Ogburn said the ordinance will just create extra work for liquor dealers and won't make much difference minors use false identification. Gulf soldiers' student loans deferred ment that half of an anti-drug block grant $170,279 be spent on IV drug abuse prevention. Upon the request of the Wyoming Legislature in 1989, Wyoming's congressional delegation assisted in amending the federal block grant program to allow the waiver.

That waiver must be renewed. Sullivan emphasized that Wyoming has appropriated $2.3 million during the current fiscal year for substance abuse treatment and prevention services. However, he said the state wants to make sure all its resources are used in the best manner. While all 20 community programs have the capability to treat intravenous drug users, IV drug abuse has not been a major problem, the governor said in a news release. CHEYENNE (AP) Gov.

Mike Sullivan has asked federal officials to extend a waiver allowing Wyoming to use money set aside for intravenous drug prevention programs for other drug programs. Because intravenous drug use is not a problem in Wyoming, large sums of money should not be spent here to fight it, the governor said in a letter to Frederick Goodwin, head of the federal Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administration. "We want to put our state and federal drug abuse prevention money where it is needed not in dealing with a big city drug problem that simply doesn't exist in Wyoming," the governor said. He asked the federal government to again waive its require CHEYENNE (AP) Under a special deferment program of the Wyoming Student Loan Corporation, Wyoming residents called to service in the Persian Gulf can postpone payments on their students loans for up to three years. WSLC President Dick Baker said only a phone call or letter is re quired for members of the armed services to defer payments on their student loans.

Military personnel were mobilized so rapidly to the Persian Gulf that they may not have been able to make payments on their loans or obtain the paperwork required for a military deferment, Baker said..