The Daily Advertiser from Lafayette, Louisiana • 1

BIEWM) PEEP iBaapiH ilMHDllIB fiOlB BE QUIiail lilt '-mu- SAINTS DEFENSE IS PROVING ITS RANKING New Orleans delivers its best effort in stuffing Carolina SPORTS, 1C BATON Roue Vl1E UNIV 7S03-0001 www.acadiananow.com 50 cents Tuesday, October 17, 2000 Stakes huge in todays final presidential debate; Man relieved someone has been charged in wifes murder Analysis 2000 Debate information: What: The third and final presiden- tial debate Who: Democratic nominee Al Gore and Republican nominee George Bush When: 8 p.m. today Where: Washington University, St. Louis The format: Like the second debate, the third meeting between Bush and Gore will be in a superficially relaxed setting. The debate will include questions from the audience. The race: The Gallup tracking poll for Oct.

12-14 shows Bush with a 48 percent to 43 percent lead over Gore. The poll, which questions 790 likely voters, has a margin of error of 4 percent. TV coverage: Live coverage on ABC (KATC channel 3 in Lafayette, or channel 4 on Cox Cable); CBS (KLFY channel 10 in Lafayette, 11 on cable); Louisiana Public Broadcasting (channel 24, or 13 on cable); CNN (cable channel 24); FOX News Network (cable channel 46); and C-SPAN (channel 19). abandoned his stool to roam the room connecting with the audience and, more importantly, millions of TV viewers. Bush also fumbled a young womans awkward question about the federal debt and the economy, which then was dominating the political debate.

Gore has arguably the tougher task Tuesday night. Please see DEBATE on Page 6A Chuck Raasch Gannett News Service ST. LOUIS The final presidential debate of 2000 tonight has caution written all over it. The first two debates produced no major knockouts or memorable lines but did put fresh focus on Vice President A1 Gores style and persona. The Oct.

3 debate in Boston and the follow-up Oct. 11 in Winston-Salem, N.C., also allowed George W. Bush to show he belongs on the same stage as the vice president, although in both cases he left unanswered attacks on his record as governor of Texas. While neither scored decisively enough to capture the hearts of major blocs of undecided voters, on the positive side, both seemed to have avoided major slips that could push those voters to their opponent. These factors, plus national polls and Electoral College surveys that show the race the closest in perhaps 40 years, set a cautious stage for todays finale.

The format could help provide fireworks. It is a town hall-type meeting, with most questions coming from an audience of uncommitted citizens from the St. Louis area. A pollster employed by the commission that sponsors the debates chose them. Chairs for 144 such voters were being set up around a stage Monday at Washington University.

This town hall format in 1992 damaged the re-election hopes of Bushs father, former President George Bush, in 1992, and enhanced the relaxed and empathetic image of his chief challenger, Bill Clinton. The elder Bush was caught looking at his watch as Clinton Sebreana Domingue Acadia Bureau Writer CHURCH POINT Joshua Wilson has lived through 10 months of tragedy since the December abduction and killing of his 17-year-old wife, Tiffaney Wilson, in South Carolina. Now, Wilson said, the healing can begin. Police believe Tiffaney Wilson was killed by Reinaldo J. Rivera, 37, of North Augusta, S.C.

Rivera faces at least two more counts of murder in Richmond County, and Aiken County, S.C. Police have linked the killing of a fourth woman, whose remains were found Saturday near Interstate 20 in north Georgia, to Rivera. Rivera also faces rape, sodomy and aggravated assault charges. He is being held in the Richmond County jail. A Richmond County judge ordered Rivera held without bond.

Rivera was arrested Thursday in a South Carolina motel room. Chrisilee Barton of Augusta, who said Rivera raped her and stabbed her in the neck with a steak knife before she escaped, helped lead police to Rivera. There is a lot of relief that he is not going to hurt anyone else, said Joshua Wilson, who moved back to his native Church Point with his infant daughter after the crime. My daughter was 13 months on Friday the 13th. It is going to be hard to explain to her what happened to her mother.

Daughter saved The Wilsons were living in the Augusta area on Dec. 4, when Tiffaney Wilson took daughter Kaitlyn, then 2 months old, to a North Augusta, S.C., Winn-Dixie. Wilson said his wife wanted to have the babys picture taken. Instead, they were abducted from the Winn-Dixies parking lot. Tiffaney Wilson was raped, her hands were tied behind her back and she was stabbed in the back, the husband said.

This all happened with my daughter inside the vehicle, Wilson said. PC PiazzaThe Advertiser Joshua Wilson holds his 13-month-old daughter Kaitlyn in his par- ents home in Church Point. We didnt know how long she lived, he said. We did find out that she was dead before the baby was dropped off. His daughter, Kaitlyn, was found by strangers at the Georgia Welcome Center near Interstate 20 on Dec.

4. She had not Please see BEHIND on Page 6A ON THE NET www acadiananow comlinks Arafat, Barak meet amid tension, mistrust The president extended his stay into today, rather than departing late Monday. Things have been intense, Clintons spokesman said. The main hangup was Arafats insistence for an international fact-finding commission to assess the causes of the violence, an Israeli official said. Israel says it will only accept a panel led by the United States, its closest ally Barak, meanwhile, insisted on a Fighting flared anew less than an hour after the summit opened.

Israeli soldiers opened fire at Palestinian gunmen and rock-throwers. A Palestinian police officer was killed and dozens of civilians were wounded by Israeli fire. Surrounded by tight security, the leaders met at a two-story golf clubhouse at this Red Sea resort, famous for its coral reefs and scuba diving. They gathered around a horseshoe-shaped table, Arafat and Barak sitting away from other leaders and far apart from each other. Please see MEET on Page 6A SHARM EL-SHEIK, Egypt (AP) In an atmosphere of high tension and mistrust, Israeli Prihie Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat met warily at an emergency summit Monday aimed at halting bloody clashes in the Mideast.

We cannot afford to fail, President Clinton warned. After 14 hours of talks, there was no cease-fire agreement or claims of progress. The leaders met over a late dinner, followed by postmidnight talks among Clinton, Arafat and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Afterward, Clinton was to see Barak. halt to Palestinian attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians and the re-arrest of extremists from the Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements who were released this past week.

He has called for the Palestinian media to stop its calls for further attacks against Israel. Clinton implored both sides to move beyond blame after more than two weeks of armed clashes on the West Bank and Gaza that have left about 100 people dead, most of them Palestinians. It has been the worst Israeli-Palestinian violence since 1993, when the Oslo peace accords launched the now-shattered peace process. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, second from right, flanked by security and advisers, leaves the Mideast Summit early today in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El Sheik. Easton says hes committed to integrating schools Index Accent IB Business ID Classified 5C Comicscrossword 5B Horoscopes 4B Landers, Ann 2B Lotteries 4A Movies 4B Obituaries 6A One Moment in Time 6A TV schedule 5B Weather forecast 2A withdrew his name during the weekend.

Public receptions are being held at 5 p.m. today through Thursday in the School Board office next to the Lafayette Regional Airport to meet the finalists. One finalist will be in Lafayette on each day. Easton, superintendent of schools in Moss Point, visited Lafayette schools Monday morning and met privately with community leaders for lunch. Among the leaders were Dr.

Raphael Baranco representing the NAACP, Cindy Chance representing the UL Lafayette College of Education and Joey Durel representing the Greater Lafayette Chamber of Commerce. Please see SCHOOLS on Page 6A Todd Billiot Staff Writer LAFAYETTE School superintendent candidate James Easton said he wants to be the next leader of Lafayette schools because of personal ties to the area, and this is where he wants to end his career in education. I like the food. My wife is a native of Louisiana. My inlaws live down the road in Franklin, Easton said at a public reception Monday at the School Board office.

I hope the board would want me to stay forever, he said. In the mind of his wife, Easton said, I could become a hero if I end up here back in Louisiana. I want to end my career with Lafayette schools. Reception information: A public reception is being held each day this week at 5 p.m. in the School Board office next to the Lafayette Regional Airport to meet the superintendent finalists.

One finalist will be in Lafayette on each day. Today, candidate Joan Probst Kowal, former supenntendent of schools in Palm Beach County, is interviewing for the job. Four finalists for superintendent will be in Lafayette this week to be interviewed by community leaders and the School Board. The board selected five finalists, but one, Harold Dodge, superintendent of Mobile County Public Schools in Mobile, II II 80550" 80985 Brad KempThe Advertiser Lafayette Parish school superintendent candidate James Easton answers questions Monday during a public hearing at the School Board office. A Gannett Newspaper Copyright 2000 r- -Mill- AsMlSoh.

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