The Modesto Bee from Modesto, California • 3

FIRST EDITION INSIDE State: New speaker gives in B-3 SECTION Friday June 23 1995 San JoaquinMother Lode Edition Trucker is in town Sleek train debuts already late but earns raves Police smoke Escalon adopts no-tobacco rule By Rebecca Taylor Bee staff writer ESCALON Smokers fit to fight crime in this city So ruled the City Council this week voting 3-2 to add a no-tobacco policy to the existing job description for police officer think most of us thought we could recruit a little healthier officer that Mayor Lynn Gentry said Thursday Police Chief Walt Murken had urged the council to adopt the policy suggesting that smoking can impair physical performance Moreover he said a tobacco ban would keep a of spit out of the office and reduce indoor pollution Councilmen Chuck Van Gorkum David Ennis and Gentry supported the measure Councilmen Ed Alves and Leonard Beeman opposed the plan The split decision comes as the city awaits word on a possible $75000 federal grant that would help fund the services of an additional peace officer for the next three years According to the new guidelines the new officer must pledge to remain tobacco free on- and off-duty seven-member police force is now tobacco-free City Attorney Jim Fonda explained that the city has a legal right to regulate officers on and off the clock because of the rigorous physical requirements of the job of the well documented relationship of smoking to health and the impact it can have on being able to perform aerobic tasks such as running you can make the nexus necessary to impose a condition of employment that would apply both on and off the he said Nevertheless he said the city has no strategic plans to enforce the new measure is certainly not the intention of the city of Escalon to conduct witch hunts on its he said have an established enforcement control where going to be sneaking around on newly hired policemen to see if smoking on their off-duty The new anti-tobacco regulation was designed along the lines of a similar policy in Manteca which implemented a no-tobacco policy for new hires in 1984 Truong Phuoc KhanhTurlock Bureau Maggie Gouiart blasts horn to let all of Turlock know that trucker Shan Wilcox with her in the cab is in town By Michael Cabanatuan Bee staff writer MERCED sleek and sporty new passenger trains start speeding up and down the San Joaquin Valley today And like many Amtrak trains behind schedule The shiny new trains double-decked stainless-steel pulled by slantnosed diesel engines were supposed to be riding the rails by 1993 But production problems and delays at the plant producing the cars kept the first trains off track until April Since then the first two trains have been running the Capitol route between Sacramento and Emeryville Today they start serving the San Joaquin route between Bakersfield and Emeryville But so far there are only enough new cars to make one southbound and one northbound trip each day That means the only passengers who get to ride the shiny new trains will be those aboard the first daily train to Bakersfield and the last bound for Emeryville The southbound train leaves Riverbank at 9:32 am The northbound train departs at 6:59 pm "So far only received 20 of the 66 cars Amtrak spokesman Art Lloyd said we receive cars be adding them But we have to send the next set to LA been getting pushed out of It probably will be fall before the California Department of Transportation has enough cars to put new trains on all of the San four northbound and four southbound trips each day And until next year when new California dining cars are ready trains will include diners from twin-level Superliner transcontinental fleet Despite the limitations Merced and Stockton residents raved about the new Amtrak California trains Tuesday and Wednesday after viewing them on a promotional tour up and down the valley About 200 people showed up at each station to tour the train See Page B-2 Train Pupils polish image mother and grandmother enjoyed your A desire to change the image of truckers is what made him join the national Trucker Buddy program Wilcox said The program matches truckers with groups of schoolchildren in the hope of fostering a warmer relationship between the public and the trucking industry seen for years where the image of a truck driver has been portrayed as some street-alley thug real bad Wilcox said just ordinary people who drive for a The teachers on the other hand had a more selfish interest when they pursued interstate friendship last year They wanted to inspire their second-graders to write more And write the youngsters did Since the project started McCullough estimated each of her pupils has written at least 10 letters to Wilcox sharing what they are doing in school See Page B-2 Trucker By Truong Phuoc Khanh Bee staff writer TURLOCK It the Batmobile but 26 second-graders at Wakefield School still thrilled at the chance to climb into their Trucker Buddy Shan seat and yank the cord to produce an ear-deafening blare Maggie Gouiart said hurt my Twenty-six pupils 26 blasts and giggles all the way For seven months the classes of teachers Diana McCullough and Carol Daugherty monitored the transcontinental route of their Trucker Buddy sticking pins on a map to represent every place Wilcox stopped Thursday Wilcox made a special detour in Turlock to meet the 26 pen pals whose hundreds of letters since December kept him company as he hauled cargo across the country enjoyed you all Wilcox of Oklahoma told his young friends my The image of a truck driver has been portrayed as some street-alley thug real bad people But just ordinary people who drive for a living Trucker Buddy Shan Wilcox San Joaquin hopes it has dodged state inmate bullet state prisoners he said would force the county to let more criminals go free Amid such protests Lockyer D-Hayward recently altered the bill so that it would allow counties the option of participating in the program The Senate has approved the bill and it is pending before the Assembly Public Safety Committee San Joaquin County officials met with Lockyer on er county officials are fearful that bill could surface as an option during state budget negotiations could be a midnight deal a last-minute deal where on the Marenco said last-minute negotiations can be fairly callous to our he said noting that the county has suffered some $92 million in losses since 1990 because of state budget-balancing tactics not going to let up on this a emphasized to him (Lockyer) in no uncertain terms it is a terrible idea for our Marenco said that reason I think the meeting was Lockyer concurred that he felt the meeting was productive hope I conveyed that I support local government that I view us as Lockyer said Thursday hope I alleviated some of their Still Marenco said he and oth By Rebecca Taylor Bee staff writer STOCKTON San Joaquin County officials are optimistic that they have successfully dodged a proposal to house state prisoners in county jails at least for now do think now the chances of us putting it off for another year are pretty county Supervisor Dario Marenco said Thursday give an he said a day after he and other up county beds According to bill the state would reimburse counties for housing state inmates But local officials noted that the plan would not pay in San Joaquin County where daily inmate costs are up to $68 compared with the state average of $57 not a partnership for us a Marenco said Sheriff Baxter Dunn noted that the county already is releasing some pretrial felons early because of overcrowding Housing area officials met face-to-face with the author of the legislation State Senate President Pro Tern Bill Senate Bill 760 would ship some nonviolent offenders to county jails Parole violators and inmates of the California Youth Authority also could be placed in county facilities The program would be phased in over four years as counties developed community-based punishment alternatives to free Dress code tried on for size Handful of Mark Twain pupils check out threads at school uniform sale Mark Twain Junior High pupils Pakou Yang left and Gail Ly check out some of the school uniform coordinates on display and for sale Thursday at the school In August Mark Twain becomes the first school in Stanislaus County with a standard uniform though it is not required where the sale was held (pupils) have been guardedly optimistic" Principal Fred Rich said will miss Our concern is that we want them to look stylish and sharp We want to make sure that the message is clear an academic While most pupils browsed some made purchases and others tried on some of the red gray and khaki clothing items said Soula Moua See Page B-2 Uniforms Stanislaus County to implement a dress code Pupils are not required only strongly encouraged to wear the uniforms Although only a handful of young men and women attended the clothes sale Thursday morning school officials were encouraged by the turnout is the first one so we expect said Terry Shireman assistant principal glad people are coming still just the beginning of Throughout the morning pupils filtered in and out of the cafeteria By Adrianne Go Bee staff writer School clothes shopping in June? Sure for 20 to 25 Mark Twain Junior High School pupils who checked out their clothing options for the upcoming year during a uniform sale on campus Thursday When school starts Aug 28 Mark 850 pupils will be trading in their baggies for fitted pants skirts and blouses the result of the Modesto City Schools board of approval of a standard appearance uniform dress code Mark Twain is the first school in I 4 Adrian Mendoza The Bee.