Wisconsin State Journal from Madison, Wisconsin • 2

2D STATE Wisconsin State Journal, Monday, August 31, 1992 -52ESSBEO nrSTrTriTl Bishop O'Donnell has heart attack Dane County Regional Airport flicks. Since it became a Landmark Theater in 1976, the Majestic has been the only theater in Madison to screen alternatives to mainstream movie releases. Some of the notable showings at the Majestic in recent years have been "My Left Foot," featuring Oscar winner Daniel Day Lewis and Oscar nominee "Henry Last year the theater screened a restored version of director Orsone Welles' "Citizen Kane" and this year featured the Humphrey Bogart classic "Casablanca" in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the movie. In addition to hosting a variety of film festivals, it is also the only Madison theater that shows the cult film, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," at midnight most Saturdays. Until its closing, the theater will be showing the film version of E.M.

Forester's "Howard's End." For showtimes, call 255- By William R. Wineke Wisconsin State Journal Bishop Cletus O'Donnell, retired leader of the Madison Catholic Diocese, remained in critical condition Sunday night at St. Mary's Hospital, where he was taken after having a heart attack Saturday. O'Donnell, who celebrated his 75th birthday Aug. 22, retired as bishop of the 11-county diocese April 28 because of poor health.

He has suffered from diabetes for many years and had a stroke last September. The diocese is currently without a permanent bishop. Auxiliary Bishop George Wirz is serving as diocesan administrator until Pope John Paul II appoints a successor to O'Donnell. Diocesan officials had no official comment on O'Donnell's illness Sunday. The bishop is being treated in St.

Mary's coronary intensive care unit. O'Donnell served as Madison's bishop for 25 years before his retirement. He previously was an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago. He was the second bishop of the Madison Catholic Diocese, which was formed in 1947. The first bishop, William P.

O'Connor, served from 1947 until O'Donnell arrived in 1967. O'Connor died in 1973 at age 86. During his years as bishop, O'Donnell instituted the reforms mandated by the Second Vatican ll Cletus O'Donnell i Council enthusiastically and made the diocese a model of what he believed the council envisioned for Roman Catholicism. At the same time, O'Donnell up-, held traditional Catholic teaching in, areas, including opposition to abortion. While he encouraged change in the diocese, he discouraged experi-, mentation that waved ecclesiastical red flags in the face of Vatican, teachings.

The diocese has an estimated 245,800 Catholics who are served by 152 diocesan priests, 21 religious order priests and 431 nuns. Seat belts a factor in low death rate Increased use of seat belts is a likely factor in the 27 percent decline in the number of people killed in Wisconsin traffic acci- dents so far this year, state officials said. Last year through Aug. 24, the state's death toll was 527. Through the same period this year, the number of fatalities was 387, or 140 fewer people.

The figures from the state Department of Transportation include accidents involving motor vehicles, motorcycles and collisions of either with bicyclists and pedestrians. There also have been fewer total crashes involving fatalities 351 compared with 445 over the same period in 1991, a decline of 21 percent. Officials say a combination of greater seat belt use, enforcement of traffic laws, and newer, safer roads are likely factors in the decline in fatal crashes. It's not known whether the cooler weather blamed for reducing travel and tourism this summer could also figure in the matter. A survey last May showed 59.3 percent of drivers and their pas- sengers were buckling up, com- pared with 56.4 percent in a sur-vey taken in fall 1991 and 53 percent in the spring of 1991.

"I think people are just starting to realize it's not that difficult to buckle up, and it definitely can save your life," said Dennis Hughes, of the state Department of Transportation. So far, 89 people who were passengers in cars died in crashes, down from 151 in 1991. "That's where we've seen the biggest aggregate change," Hughes said. Dahmer suit: The mother of Jeffrey Dahmer's first victim is seeking $50 million from the serial killer's family, saying the Dah-mers should have realized their BIRTHS St Mary's Hospital Aug. 29, 1992 Danette GLADEM Pete RODRIGUEZ, Poynette, daughter.

Betty Mark KINDERMAN, Madison, daughter. Sharlene Earl WILLIAMS, Cottage Grove, daughter. Sharon SHOULDERS Raymone CHEFFIN, Madison, daughter. Dispute brews over: public record access in Columbia County From National Weather Service High Sunday 86. Monday 88.

Tuesday 89. Wednesday 67. Thursday 63. Friday 68. Saturday 81 Low 61.

67. 67. 57. 46. 46.

54. Week's ave. 77. 57 son was a threat. Dahmer pleaded guilty in May to a single count of aggravated -murder for the 1978 beating death of Steven Hicks, 18, of Coventry, a town near Akron, Ohio.

Dahmer, then 18, was living alone nearby when he picked up the hitchhiking Hicks, drove home and killed him. He has said Hicks was the first of 17 young males he killed, cut up and, in some cases, cannibalized after sex. Dahmer is serving a life sentence for the killing, along with 15 life terms for killings in Milwaukee. In her lawsuit, Martha Hicks said Dahmer's parents should have known he "was deviant and destined to cause injury and death to others." The lawsuit alleges wrongful death and charges that Dahmer's parents and stepmother were negligent. His father and stepmother were also accused of failing to supervise their son when the family lived in Ohio.

Named as defendants are Dahmer; his mother, Joyce Flint of Fresno, and father and stepmother, Lionel and Shari Shinn Jordan Dahmer of Granger, Ohio. Recycling mixup: A Waukesha woman nearly lost her life savings of $57,788 when the newspapers she stashed it in were taken to a recycling center. The woman, who police refused to name, had hidden the cash, bonds and certificates of deposit in a stack of newspapers, which a DEATHS Madison BOSOLD, Francis, 76, In a Madison hospital, Sunday. PROUTY, Margaret, 84, In a local nursing home, Friday. Area Cazanovia CONNORS, Charlotte Evelyn, 76, in a Reedsburg hospital, Saturday.

Lake Mills CRETNEY, Ernest 69, at home, Saturday. 'I want the voters to know that although I've been a tough, hard-nosed businessman, I've always run an honest Joseph Checota to believe in me now have some doubts because of the negative campaign waged against me by one of my opponents," Checota said in a campaign statement that announced live TV and radio call-in shows around the state. "I want the voters to know that although I've been a tough, hard-nosed businessman, I've always run an honest business." Checota went on a positive offensive over the weekend once he at a In or of in to Mean 74. 78. 78.

62. 55. 57. 68. Precipitation 0.00 0.00 0.90 Tr Tr 0.00 0.38 Week's total 1.28 relative unknowingly placed on the street for pickup.

"She thought she had everything in a safe spot," said police Sgt. Jeff Fulwiler. The items were discovered Thursday in a leather folder by a sorter at the recycling center in Waukesha, a Milwaukee suburb. "If he hadn't spotted the stuff when he did, it would have continued up the conveyor belt and been baled in a bale and then shipped off," said center manager Bill Ashby. Majestic Theater to close for good The Majestic Theater, Wisconsin oldest continually operating theater, will close Sept.

13. An employee at the 86-year-old theater confirmed Sunday that Landmark Theaters, a California-based chain that operates the Majestic, will cease business on that date. The employee referred all questions to Landmark's district manager in Milwaukee, who could not be reached Sunday. The Majestic, which was built in 1906 as a vaudeville theater, has hosted vaudeville acts and play productions, Hollywood mainstream movies and skin Montfort TURNER, Lois 63, in a Fennlmore nursing home, Sunday. River Falls AVERY, Frank 77, in local hospital, Wednesday.

Waupaca WOBSCHALL, Jimmy, 16, a Madison hospital, Friday. Obituaries3D TODAY'S FUNERALS NYGAARD, John 11 a.m., Mount and Moody agreed they would end a negative exchange on television to get back to the issues. Both candidates, however, continue to criticize the other's TV ads as gross distortions. "Half truths," Checota said. "Scurrilous," Moody said, ir Russ Feingold, meanwhile, tells voters in TV ads, debates and personal appearances that he never did would stoop to the mudslinging Checota and Moody.

Feingold, a state senator from Middleton who declares himself part of a tight three-way race, focuses his campaign on issues and Kasten. "I think the issues contrast is finally coming out a little bit late the campaign," said Feingold, due to make a northern swing today raise money and collect endorsements from former Gov. Anthony Earl and others. Feingold and other observers I Knife fight: Two men were jailed Saturday after a knife fight in Brittingham Park left both injured. Police responded to a call from a nearby business that Van Jackson was bleeding heavily from his right hand.

Jackson, 40, told police that Dannie Walls had rushed him with a pocketknife as the two were arguing in the park. It took seven stitches to close a cut in Jackson's hand that doctors said was most likely a knife wound, according to a police report. When police picked up Walls in the park, he denied having a knife and claimed Jackson had stuck him in the head with a bottle, according to the police report. Walls, 44, had a cut to his forehead but refused medical attention. Police did not recover a knife.

Walls was arrested and tentatively charged with endangering safety by use of a dangerous weapon. Jackson was tentatively charged with disorderly conduct and held on a probation violation. Both men, neither of whom has a permanant address, were being held in Dane County Jail. From staff, AP reports Olive Lutheran Church, 4018 Mineral Point Road. PEDERSON, Myra, 11 a.m., Gunderson Funeral Home, 5203 Monona Drive.

BRITT, Emma, 2 p.m., Gruber-Gunder-son Funeral Home, Cross Plains. HEFTY, Paula, 11 a.m., Salem United Church of Christ, Verona. HELMKE, Mabel, 11 a.m., Christ Lutheran Church, Stoughton. ASLESON, Obert 11 a.m., First Lutheran Church, Stoughton. Tornado Continued from Page ID struction, the couple walked back to look at the damage a dozen times Saturday night.

Sunday, friends and relatives came to help with the cleanup, offsetting the annoyance of a few gawkers. Across the street, a group of young girls shivered in the cool wind at the Jehovah's Witnesses Kingdom Hall. Their families were busy making repairs to their homes down the road. Lisa Pemble, 13, said she saw the twister from a window in her cellar. The sky was light gray, and the thin, vertical line of the funnel danced off to the east.

"It was over in about 45 seconds," she said. Part of her home was damaged, and she won't be able to go into her bedroom "for months," she reported. A woman surveys the Wautoma senior citizens center Sunday afternoon after it was destroyed in a tornado Saturday. State Journal photoJOSEPH W. JACKSON III said the two Milwaukee-based candidates had no choice but to stop because voters were rejecting the tactics and the candidates who used them.

Democratic voters will pick an opponent Sept. 8 for likely Republican nominee Bob Kasten. Moody is seeking to put the negative exchange behind and consolidate his progressive support, which many say is being siphoned away by Feingold. "I don't see it that way. I can't tell you.

I don't know," Moody said to that suggestion. "I think voters could go one of three ways." Moody said he stopped polling four days ago. "It was a close race, but we were ahead," he said. "I've always thought it was a three-way race." "I think Sen. Feingold has gained some ground," conceded Checota.

HL- i I i i yw i i i I I I i 1 W--v By Richard W. Jaeger Regional reporter When are public records not public records? When your political opponent's wife wants to see them. That appears to be the interpretation and answer given by Columbia County District Attorney Mark Bennett in at least two recent requests to see his log of pending cases. In July, Terri Knaapen, wife of Republican district attorney candidate David Knaapen, a Portage attorney, filed a request with Bennett seeking to review the log kept by his office. That log purportedly showed when police reports were submitted to Bennett, as well as if and when he filed charges as a result of those reports.

She made the request verbally and then in writing July 9. What followed that request was a lengthy exchange of correspondence among Knaapen, Bennett and the state attorney general's office, the last on Aug. 6. In answer to the first request, Bennett said: "In light of a recent Wisconsin Supreme Court decision, I need to review your request." In that same July 13 letter, he went on to say he would provide the records "as soon as practicable" but might have a problem because he would be short-staffed because of vacations. Knaapen responded July 16 saying that, if Bennett was short-staffed, she would be willing to copy the records herself.

Bennett responded July 17 with a two-page letter saying he had received Knaapen's request, and he made some reference to saying it was after her husband had received his complaint filed with the state Elections Board charging Knaapen with an alleged violation of campaign finance laws. Bennett went on to say: "It is noted that your husband is a candidate for election to the job of district attorney, and that the request is made on his behalf. "Accordingly, it is perceived your request is purely political in nature. "As such, your request does not pertain to the right of discovery and inspection of records in a specific criminal case pending in the courts. "Wisconsin law is crystal clear my files, as a matter of public policy, are not open to your request." He said that because the district attorney's files contain raw data in the course of an investigation, they could be sensitive.

"Indiscriminate inspections of prosecutorial files for political purposes, as demanded by you, will seriously undermine the orderly administration of justice in Columbia County, and destroy the public's confidence in the legal system." Bennett's response drew immediate response from Knaapen, who took her cause to Alan Lee of the state attorney general's office. Lee responded Aug. 3 saying Bennett's decision was erroneous. "Under Wisconsin's public records law, a requester need not state a reason for requesting the record. Whether your husband is a candidate for district attorney is, therefore, absolutely immaterial.

In fact, under the statute a requester need not even reveal his or her identity when asking for public records," Lee wrote. The assistant attorney general went on to say: "It is my opinion that the fact your husband is a candidate for district attorney is not sufficient reason to deny access." He also said there is no state law making the district attorney's logs exempt from disclosure. Bennett, in a letter to Lee, said he didn't deny Knaapen's access to the documents because her husband was a candidate, but because he felt "the public interest in non-disclosure outweighs the right to inspect." He said he also disagreed with Lee's opinion and interpretation of the law and made a request for a formal attorney general's opinion, "(Bennett) knows that will take several months and by that time the election will be passed and the peo- pie of Columbia County will nof be given the truth on Mr. Bennett's foot dragging on criminal cases," -Terri Knaapen said, referring to. the opinion request.

Contrary to Bennett's stance against the Knaapen request, he had given a Madison woman access and copies of that log covering a period from Jan. 1, 1990, to Feb. 28, 1991', The woman claimed to be the victim of a sexual assault which; Bennett's office did not prosecute. The woman said she received a' second set of copies of the log book -covering March 1, 1991, to Sept. 1991, but when she made a similar request for further records it was in Bennett's office.

She contended Bennett's log' book "mysteriously" showed a re-1 duction in the number of sexual assault cases reported to his office after she made her first request for such records. She said the earlier records showed an average of three i sexual assault cases per month, while the later records showed three over a six-month period." "It is blatantly obvious that you are attempting to thwart my investi-; gation of your performance in sexual assault cases. What have you got to hide, Mr. Bennett?" she wrote. Bennett said he denied the woman further access to the records based on a 1991 state Supreme Court ruling protecting district attorney files from being open to public inspection.

Lee, however, contends the ruling does not apply to Bennett's withholding of records. "The court did not hold, and was never asked to hold, that all records in the district attorney's office are exempt from public inspection." He said the case cited by Bennett "stands for the proposition that the prosecutors' case files are closed." That would be files involving active charges or finished cases and not a status listing of cases as Bennett's log purports to be. "I disagree with the assistant at- torney general's ruling," Bennett said. "That is my right and that is why I have asked for a formal opinion." Checota opens phone line to talk issues By Jeff Mayers State government reporter Want some phone time with Joseph Checota? Give him a call. Checota, the multimillionaire businessman turned populist, is apparently pulling out all stops this week to rehabilitate a reputation damaged during an intense exchange with U.S.

Rep. Jim Moody over the TV airway. Checota, who talked to callers on his toll-free "issues line" for about three hours Saturday, pledged Sunday to try to return any telephone call placed to him. "I'll return as many phone calls as time permits," Checota said after the second Democratic U.S. Senate primary debate in three days.

Checota said voters so far have reacted "very favorably" to his apology and explanation. "I know many people who used 'v I -r 4, ar Hi firth i.