The Capital from Annapolis, Maryland • Page 1

Lawmakers are back in DAYBREAK Healthy breakfast can get day off to good start Cl Homemade trmnoto chopped and NBA ponders life without Jordan See Sports Bl TOMORROW: RAIN, DETAILS: PAGE AiS A cute, security threat? rlyy bans at NSA ASSOCIATED PRESS By SARA MARSH StaffWriter Richard Ryan was a strapping -foot. 4-inch, iT-year-old Navy sailor when he smoking free cigarettes to pass the rime while at sea during World Warll. By the time the former 'Crofton resident died in March 1995, smpking-induced "cancer had ravaged his once-vital body, letaving him little more than, a 130-pound shadow of his But Mr. Ryan's suffering and premature death could have been- avoided if he had never started smoking, said his son, Anna polls lawyer John Ryan WtffTri5ntDeTr' urges toliaeeo boost aimed at teeii smoking 1KB of a statewide coalition yesterday in urging State legislators to support- a measure that would -increase the cigarette tax by $1 per. as a means of deterring teen-agers frofn smoking.

State legislators, who returned to Annapolis morning Tor the opening of the annual 90-day session, are expected to consider-the tobacco measure, which Glendening is backing. Previous attempts to pass a cigarette tax increase of pack have died in the But this year will "be different. Vincent DeMarco, executive director of the Maryland Children's Initiative, vowed yesterday during a news conference at Anne Arundel Medical -Center. The initiative is a coalition of more than 350 religious and care groups from across Maryland who Believe raising of cigarettes makes harder for teen-agers to buy For first time, this year's measure also would put a state tax on snuff and chewing tobacco. This is the right thing to do from a moral and policy 'Standpoint a.n^^ political standpoint." Vincent DeMafco Maryland Children 's Mttat ive from Anne Arundel County had better policy standpoint and from ar political Mr.

DeMarco said. Some legislators disagree, however, "argu threat to national security National Security Agency Fort George G. Meade banned the popu Jar; mechanical pets from its premises. workers; the super-secret spy agency issued a warning toy, which is em bedded computer chip that, allows it to--litter 200 100 English and 10Q "Personally owned photographic, video and audio recording equipment are prohibited items. This includes toys, such as with built-in recorders that repeat, the.iaudio synthesized sound to mimic the original signal," the Furby Alert read, according, to published reports: can only describe it as a medical nightmare.

Man seeking deadly story of Agent Orange Quest called 'hobby of necessity' introducing items tato NSA spaces. Those who have should contact their Staff Security Office for guidance." The Furby resembles an owl. with, of hair between its huge pink 'ears Because of its ability to repeat some of what it hears, NSA officials were worried "that people would take them home and they'd start talking classified," one source said The NSA is the largest em ployer in Anne Arundel By DAVID BROWN StaffWriter henra trace of Agent Orange forces chopped 18 million gallons of Agent Orange on Vietnam. The herbicide, which contains harmful dioxins, scorched acres, of triple in the state. The National Security Agency has banned the popular Furby toy from its Fort Meade facility.

Because of its ability to repeat some of what it hears. NSA officials were worried "that people would take them home and they'd start talking classified." INSIDE REGION: Governor seek? takeoverof conn system. A4 KENT ISLAND: Baker to urge more flay-care inspections A12 -WEST COUNTY: Residents join to church vandalism. C3 4 sections. 48 pages a 413 trtckied-dowitlrv Furman's leg during a flight mission in Vietnam, he paid; it little mind After he was in the middle of fighting a war, and; had little time to "worry, about a- glorified weed killer that, at the time, was only an annoying splotch on his leg that was starting to itch Thirty-years later, after struggling through 13.

hospitalizations, a wound that bled for six years, and countless hours of asking "why?" the 52-year-old Crownsville resident is he-calls- his "hobby of necessity" delving into what he calls the government's cover-up of the fiarmfol-fiffects: of Agent -What heaJleges-is He claims the government knew of the defoliant's harmful effects years'before troops began spraying it in the jungle, and the Navy may dumped thousands of gallons of excess Agent Orange in the sea. Tve seen so many lives said Mr. Furman, Who has talked to veterans ravaged by thedefoUant on their death beds. Between-1961 and 1971, U.S. sticks, "Those places looked like a bomb hit them," said Mr.

Furman, a former Air Force draftee The idea was to lay bare Viet Cong hiding spots, and kill-off any vegetation that might be used for food. Furman said he was able to gain access to classified documents that spelled out how hazardous the material before it was put to use: He claims that volunteers would ingest Agent Orange during tests and, among other things, would -leap-out-wradtws-and-later-- ---develop tumors, "I can only describe" it as a medical nightmare." he said "It -was known the stuff toxic tojiuman beings that it Was considered active biochemical Mr. Furman discovered that he was exposed to enough dioxins to kill 10 people, baffling doctors who thought be dead. But throughout his medical ordeal, the Veterans Administration has denied that any medical problems resulted- from Agent Orange until recently Of the 70.000 Americans who've It was known the stuff was so toxic to human beings that it was considered active biochemical warfare." Furman, Agent Orange victim Iry Furman of Crowrisvllle looks over some documents detailing. with Agent Orange.

A Vietnam veteran whose life was changed by the chemical, Mr. Furman has made It his life's work to find put government knew about and covered up information on the claimed ill effects from the herbicide, Mr. Furman said, a little more than 4 percent have been compensated. But 90 percent of those people were term inaf patients. "It them any good," Mr.

Furman said, adding that his Own civil rights lawsuit against the government is unresolved after 25 years. Just as shocking as the knowiedge is what it did with the Agsnt Orange after the war was over, said. He said the Navy commissioned two ships to burn 1.23 million gallons of.the herbicide at sea. One the ships, he said, was in drydock the whole time. The other ship, whose crew was hit hard hy the contaminants arid was facing deadline pressure to dispose of chemicals, decided to do the unthinkable, (See ORANGE, Page A16) Embezzler sidesteps prison sentence Company owner decries lack of justic A6- Comes.

68 Kert lote'-y Vtoves ce Beat WeK B6 B15- E7- C3 By MARY ALLEN Staff Writer. A retired Navy captai.n who em bezzled more than S300 from the Annapolis company that employed him avoided a jail yesterday. arrest, probation and community' service instead The sentence for Victor A KARCHER Classified (41O) 26S-70OO Circalatlon (410) 2648OO From Kent lsland(8OO) 327-1583 www.hometownannapolis.com 9 8 7 5 2 2 0 0 0 0 i 7 Road, disappointed the president of Tritech Field Engineering, but was called "entirely appropriate" by Karcher's lawyer, "It just seenis if very hard to find justice anymore." said Mark Circb. who heads the "coitipany, which employs 12 people He had asked Judge Ronald A. Silk worth to or der.

restitution and jail time, so his i could be repaid a a could -get the punishment -of. living behind bars Glen Burnie urged the judge to be mindful of Karcher's' lengthy military service record, which included three tours of duty, in the Vietnam War. The Naval aviator flew 300 combat missions in southeast Asia "This man is a real American (See KARCHER. Page Al 6) The A judge yesterday gave Victor A. Karcher probation for from rTeM The crtme brought trying to the flrm and from teft, Susanr Burfce, Bleftn Stmom, company owner Mark Circo, Adam Day, Mark Komon and Charmaine Butler, chad saved plunge at dock Quick reaction averts disaster StaffWriter A 3-year-old toddler plunged into the chilly waters of Spa Creek yesterday afternoon when the stroller she was strapped into rolled offCity Dock.

But thanks to the quick action of" two nearby men who rescued her, ttie child-suffered no injuries. The girl and her- mother were close. to the dock's edge across from Market Space when the accident occurred at about 2 "We were feeding the ducks," said the mother, an Annapolis resident who asked: that her arid her "Next stroller went into the The girl, named spent less than a minute in -the Water, One of the rescuers, Mark Brittoh' of Cape'Sf Cla1re7 was sitting" at the dock reading a newspaper after a job interview had-been canceled. He had locked his keys in, the car and was waiting for his mother to bring him another set when he. heard the splash and heard Casey's mother scream.

Without "a second of thought," he ran at a full sprint and saw Casey's frightened expression and her stroller slowly sinking He dove in the water. "She had her mouth open like she was trying to but couldn't," he said. Her body was partially strapped into the stroller, which drifted about three to four feet from the dock The wat-r to her dark curly hair as she struggled to stay afloat Mr Brifton the water was "pretty but he didn't really notice- He grabte'J Casey's foot and moved her ovi-r to the side of the dock, where Thomas. Brew of Anna polis lifted out of the water Mr. -Brew; a -Waiter MangiaJs- restaurant ori Main Street, saw the accident from across the street while standing outside on his break He said Casey's eyes were wide and she s'eerned -stunned ss.he lifted- "tter breath hart been taken away, and wa.s in total shock." Brew said "The- child didn't say a word." minutes and wrapped her- in blankets City police were not called to the scene.

More than an hour later at Anne Arundel Medical Center, the girl while eating Goldfish snacks and drinking juice (See CHILD, Page A 16).