The Item from Sumter, South Carolina • 1

mu j- iii hi iii i 4NP Classified Comics County Fare Editorials Weather Guard Works At Site The South Carolina Army Nationol Guard is doing soma of tha work on tha naw Sumter High School and soma contractors question whether the move is a cost-saving one or an expensive mistake Page 6A "Special -Nn- Clemson University offiriots ore using specially designed empty cereal boxes to promote Sumter native Terry Kinord as on All-America choice Kinard is being called the university's "Special Page 10 Mostly cloudy and warm tonight and Friday with a 50 percent chance of showers Details 2A The Sumter Item Vol 87 No 303 founded Oct 151894 Sumter SC Thursday Afternoon Oct 7 1982 25 Cents 48 Pages 5 Sections Mass Killer Linked To Murders Here But Never Tried 7 i robbery was charged along with three fellow inmates and two other men earlier this week in the bombing death of a "death row" inmate at Central Correctional Institute in Columbia Richland County authorities say they will seek the death penalty against Gaskins as the "trigger man" in the death of Rudolph Tyner who had been sentenced to death for two murders in Murrells Inlet GASKINS has never faced the death penalty before despite his homicidal ways His trial and guilty pleas came after the death penalty law in South Carolina was declared unconstitutional and before legislators drew up another law that would pass constitutional muster Bom in Florence County in 1935 Gaskins lived in Sumter at least during the late 1980s and early 1970s He worked for a roofing company during some of that period and lived for a while on Manning Avenue and for a while in the Concord area in southeastern Sumter County He was probably easily recognized as he drove through the streets of Sumter in a large black hearse-like vehicle with a shovel pitchfork and (See GASKINS on page 2A) By MIKE SMITH Assistant City Editor As far as Sumter County residents are concerned convicted multiple murderer Donald Wee" Gaskins may be best known for his connection to murders for which he has never stood trial Gaskins a former Sumter resident has been linked to several murders here He even assisted law enforcement officials In finding two bodies in southeastern Sumter County both of them decomposed beyond recognition BUT GASKINS has never been tried for a murder that occurred in Sumter County despite his open-court confessions to four murders here the death in 1970 of Margaret Cut-tino Patti Ann Alsbrook and Janice Kirby and the death probably in 1972 of a black teen-ager he identified only as He pleaded guilty in 1978 in Florence to the murders of two women and a baby who had lived In Sumter Their bodies were among eight found in a massive shallow grave Gaskins led authorities to in the Prospect community of Florence County in 1978 Gaskins who is serving consecutive life sentences for nine murders and a Poison Lead Fizzles By The Associated Press Authorities now believe there "is not any between the cyanide death last April of a man in Philadelphia and seven deaths from cyanide-contaminated Tylenol in the Chicago area Chicago's police superintendent said today Superintendent Richard Brzeczek said authorities made that conclusion on the basis of the latest report regarding the death of a University of Pennsylvania graduate student TO the latest reports we got this morning there is not any connection between the two" he said in a telephone interview Philadelphia police had again interviewed an associate of William Pascual whose April death had bean ruled a suicide Brzeczek said He said authorities there concluded "there was no tie to the continuing investigation into the seven deaths in the Chlcago-area of people who had taken contaiminated Extra-Strength Tylenol Earlier Brzeczek said authorities investigating the deaths in the Chicago area wanted to question a man who "popped up" in connection with the death of William Pascual and Illinois Attorney General Tyrone Fahner said the case offered "promise" (or possible leads the deaths In the Chicago area last week PASCUAL'S DEATH originally was ruled a suicide but Philadelphia police reopened the case after the Chicago poisonings and discovered that a bottle of Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules found In his apartment had cyanide not detected in the initial investigation The Chicago Sun-Times today quoted unidentified police sources as saying a search was being made in the Chicago area for an associate of Pascual hut authorities said the investigation is still "raw" The associate described in news reports as a dental student at the University of Pennyslvanla drew attention after Philadelphia police received an anonymous call saying the dental student something about It (the death)" the Chicago Tribune reported In an interview on the "Today" show Brzeczek said "there is a gentleman that popped up" In the Philadelphia investigation last April "that Interested in talking ASKED IF there were any links between the Chicago and Philadelphia deaths he replied "The one link that could possibly be talked about is the fact that there's some indication that the person we want to talk to somewhere in the Philadelphia area may have some association with the city of Fahner heading an investigation Into the Chlcago-area deaths from cyanide-tainted Extra-Strength Tylenol said Wednesday the Philadelphia development "offers promise in terms of a Chicago angle" but warned "caution is in in trying to link the two sets of events Brzeczek said authorities did not have a suspect "we can tie some evidence in the cyanide deaths Philadelphia police said Wednesday that preliminary tests at the time of death from cyanide poisoning ruled a suicide when a note to his mother was found near the body showed nothing unusual in the Tylenol capsules found in a shoe at his apartment But tests this week found some of the capsules to contain cyanide said police Chief Inspector Frank Scafidi (See TYLENOL on page 2A) DONALD "PEE WEE" GASKINS wearing a T-shirt it shown in this June 1977 photograph Gaskins was brought to Sumter then to testify before a Sumter County Grand Jury probing the investigation carried out in several murders here The grand jury concluded that law enforcement officials hod acted properly and that Gaskins despite his confession was not involved in the murder of Margaret "Peg" Cuttino Sheriff Says He Doubts Pierce Killed Cuttino Girl Gaskins Denies Involvement In Death Row Bombing COLUMBIA (AP) A letter by confessed murderer Donald "Pee Wee" Gaskins has surfaced in which he claims he had nothing to do with the bomb explosion that killed death row inmate Rudolph Tyner Gaskins who is serving 10 life sentences for multiple murders in South Carolina seven years ago waa indicted Monday with five other men in what authorities allege was a vengence slaying arranged by the son of victims ctjms roc Gaskins said he was on the opposite side of the Central Correctional Building 2 when the explosion occurred "These officials are all shook up over this as well as a lot of the men" Gaskins wrote AS AN ASIDE Gaskins wrote that prison officials had given a lie detector test to an inmate across the hall Gaskins alleged the Inmate failed the test "when they asked him if he gave Rudolph Tyner an explosive devise He told me they said he did Later in the letter Gaskins said over two years now I have been complaining to these officials about all the dangerous contraband in here I have seen pistols knives nitro and plenty of dynamite I have had some men offer to sell me a pistol Meanwhile prison spokesman Sam McCuen said Wednesday that the 22 prisoners on Cellblock 2 which is set aside for those with court-delayed appointments with the electric chair are (See DENIES on page 2A) By MIKE SMITH Assistant City Editor Sheriff Hazel Reeves says he seriously doubts that William Pierce killed Margaret Cuttino and that he is not sure whether Donald "Pee Wee" Gaskins committed the murder "I doubt whether Junior killed the Cuttino girl but not sure whether Pee Wee did it or not" the sheriff said in an interview yesterday PIERCE WAS CONVICTED of murdering the 13-year-old girl in 1973 but Gaskins confessed to the slaying during a trial in 1977 on another murder charge Miss Cuttino disappeared Dec 18 1970 and was found dead two weeks later in Manchester State Forest near Pinewood Pierce allegedly gave Sumter County authorities an oral confession to the crime while he was being held prisoner in a Georgia jail in 1971 but Pierce maintains he was coerced into making a statement after being tortured He is seeking a new trial on the murder charge Reeves said he has been conducting a review of the Cuttino case since he took office last year that has Included conversations with Gaskins who is serving 10 life sentences at Central Correctional Institute BUT HE SAID he has not yet discovered any information that could lead to a formal reopening of the case He said he plans to interview Pierce a Georgia inmate when he is brought to South Carolina for the court proceedings that will determine whether he gets a new trial No hearing date has been set Reeves said he does not know what to make of conflicting statements about the Cuttino case that Gaskins has given authorities During a murder trial in 1977 Gaskins confessed to the Cuttino killing saying he was paid to kill the girl the daughter of a former state legislator by a "law enforcement (See DOUBTS on page 2A) tOSECUTORS accused Gaskins Tuesday of being the "trigger In the bombing and say he is the only one of the six they will seek the death penalty against But in a letter dated Sept 26 to a Charleston Post-Courier reporter Gaskins denied involvement In the slaying At the time state prison officials were publicly calling Tyner's death an accident "I well know I had nothing to do with what ever did happen" Gaskins said in the letter which the newspaper published Wednesday Defendant Found Guilty Of Voluntary Manslaughter By CYLINDA SCRUGGS ITEM SUM Writer A six-woman and six-man jury in Clarendon County General Sessions Court today found Jerry McKenzie guilty of voluntary manslaughter pointing a firearm and carrying a pistol illegally The jury deliberated 28 minutes Sentencing was expected this afternoon In court yesterday McKenzie said he did not remember pulling the trigger for the shot that killed Luther Lowery at a Santee motel in September 1981 McKenzie 36 was on trial for murder Lowery was a doorman at the lounge at the Sheraton Lake Marion Inn McKENZIE TOLD the court yesterday that he went to the motel that night to get his live-in girlfriend Sandra Perkin who is now i his wife because she was mad with him The two argued he slapped her and she asked Lowery for help Lowery and another man advanced on him and Lowery reached back under a desk McKenzie said "I know what happened then 1 remember pulling no he testified Closing arguments were presented this morning and the case went to go to the jury at 11:15 The case began yesterday morning with 3rd Circuit Solicitor Kirk McLeod presenting witnesses who were at the lounge that night and a law enforcement agent McKenzie broke down yesterday afternoon when he related the sequence of events on the night of the shooting He said he gone to the lounge that night with the intent of using the pistol (See TRIAL on page 2A) Trap Sub manned underwater vessel that could evade their fleet of cruisers and helicopters indefinitely THE SUB was discovered a week ago lurking near Musko base top-secret Swedish naval facility on Hon bay near the southern Stockholm archipelago Repeated efforts to force it to the surface by dropping conventional depth charges and blocking escape outlets to the sea havs failed Swedes Try To BERGA NAVAL BASE Sweden (AP) -Warships are dumping magnetic homing devices and mini-torpedoes into Bora Bay to flush up a suspected Soviet-bloc submarine that has defied their dragnet for a week Swedish newspapers reported today At the same time the SwwBah News Agency quoted National Defense Stiff officials as saying it was increasingly possible they were dealing with a new type of un- him they weren't prepared for the windstorm his helicopter would create on its way down (AP photo) These Voldese NC elementary student! may have looked a little less than hospitable to Gov Jim Hunt as he arrived for a visit Tuesday Although they were there to welcome.