INDEPENDENT SINCE 1880
The Corne¬ Daily Sun Vol. 132, No. 34
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2015
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ITHACA, NEW YORK
12 Pages – Free
Sunset
Arts
Sports
Weather
Due to Cornell’s Fall Break, The Sun will not appear on Monday or Tuesday. Publication will resume with the Wednesday, Oct. 14 issue.
Say Goodnight
Turning the Page
Thunderstorms HIGH: 64º LOW: 44º
Bruno Costelini ’17 says horror flick Goodnight Mommy offers food for thought. | Page 6
The football team looks to avoid a 0-4 start to the season as Harvard comes to Schoellkopf on Saturday. | Page 12
Endowment Returns Plummet for F.Y. 2015 3.4 percent return rate down from15.8 percent in prior year By ANNIE BUI Sun Managing Editor
ANNIE BUI / SUN MANAGING EDITOR
Trailing behind | The graph above shows endowment return rates for Cornell and Ivy League peers in F.Y.’15. Columbia University not included.
Cornell announced Thursday that its endowment climbed to a record high of $6.3 billion during the 2015 fiscal year, up from $6.2 billion at the end of the last fiscal year. Despite the record-breaking endowment figure, the University earned a return rate of 3.4 percent on its endowment this fiscal year — a sharp decrease of 12.4 percent from fiscal year 2014, when Cornell earned a return of 15.8 percent. Cornell came in with the lowest return rate for the 2015 fiscal year compared to its Ivy League peers,
excluding Columbia University, which has yet to report its returns. Peer institutions that hit return rates in the double digits include Princeton University and Yale University, with 12.7 percent and 11.5 percent, respectively. Dartmouth College and the University of Pennsylvania trail behind with reported returns of 8.3 percent and 7.4 percent, respectively. The Ivy League institution with the second-lowest return thus far is Brown University, which came in at 5.7 percent. Harvard University barely edged out Brown, posting a return rate of 5.8 percent. See ENDOWMENT page 4
Hung Jury inTan’17 Murder Trial; Case to Be Retried By REBECCA BLAIR Sun Assistant News Editor
After eight days of jury deliberations, Judge James Piampiano declared a mistrial in the murder trial of Charles Tan ’17 Thursday, finding that the deadlocked jury was unlikely to reach consensus. Following Piampiano’s ruling, many jurors expressed discontent, telling reporters they thought they might have been able to arrive at a verdict that afternoon if they had been allowed to continue deliberations. “We were shocked,” juror Jennifer McGoff told The Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. “We wanted more time. We were working very hard.”
Reports from the jury room indicate that the group began deliberations split nine-tothree in favor of conviction, and ended with a vote of eight-to-four for conviction, although some jurors refused to reveal their votes, citing concerns that Tan receives a “fair trial.” Some jurors added that, through deliberations, vote totals fluctuated significantly, with some minds changing “every day,” according to The Democrat and Chronicle. Tan will remain free on bail until Nov. 5, when all parties will return to court for a hearing to determine whether a retrial is necessary. The prosecution can now choose whether to have a retrial or drop the charges, though they said earlier in the week that
Two Students Report Trespass At Jewish Living Center Cornell Police issued a crime alert following a report of trespassing early Thursday morning. Two Cornell students, who live at the The Center for Jewish Living Residence at 106 West Ave., reported that at 5:15 a.m., a white male entered the room of two female victims and waited at the bottom of their beds until they woke up. When one of the victims sat up and confronted the trespasser, he said “sorry,” then fled. The two victims reported that the trespasser was about 5 feet 7 inches tall and 150 pounds, with short light colored hair and a clean shaven appearance, according to police. They also described him as possibly in his early twenties, and that he was wearing a gray sweatshirt with the letters “CORNELL” written on the front. Police said no property was missing from the victims’ rooms. — Compiled by Madeline Cohen
they plan to continue vying for a conviction in the event of a hung jury. “If I get a hung jury I will try it again and I will try it better,” said Assistant District Attorney William Gargan Tuesday. Tan was a student in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences until Feb. 9, when his father was found shot dead inside their Pittsford, New York home, likely already dead for days. After Tan was charged with second degree murder, allegations that his father had been abusive towards him and his mother came to light. Throughout the trial, Tan’s attorneys insisted that the home environment was unstable and contended that the prosecution had not presented enough evidence to
prove that Tan had even held the murder weapon. After he was indicted, Tan received an outpouring of support from both Cornellians and his local community members. Throughout his trial, the courtroom gallery was filled with his supporters. Following the mistrial, defense attorneys admitted that they began preparing for a second trial earlier this week, when the prospect of a hung jury began to seem likely. “Anyone who is satisfied by a hung jury is crazy,” said defense lawyer Brian DeCarolis. “So, we’re disappointed.” Rebecca Blair can be reached at rblair@cornellsun.com.
Cornell Cinema Fails to Gain Funding Increase By JOSEPHINE CHU Sun Staff Writer
After a heated discussion at the Student Assembly meeting Thursday, Cornell Cinema advocates failed to garner the requisite 14 votes necessary to increase cinema funding next year. The S.A. will address the issue again at next week’s meeting. Earlier this week, the Appropriations Committee voted to recommend that the S.A. deny Cornell Cinema’s request for a $1.40 per student funding increase, raising the allocations from the student activity fee from $10.60 to $12 per student. About 40 people from the community came with posters and passionately spoke in support of Cornell Cinema. Supporters called the program a “beacon in the dark” and a unique cultural experience that enriches life at Cornell. Cornell Cinema argued that the funding they receive now only covers 30 percent of their operating budget, while most other groups get funding to cover 70 to 100 percent of their budgets.
CAMERON POLLACK / SUN SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER
Screen goes black | Fourteen out of 17 possible votes were required to grant Cornell Cinema additional funding at the S.A. meeting Thursday, but the final vote was 11 to 6.
Mary Fessenden, director of Cornell Cinema, said she was frustrated with the S.A.’s refusal to recognize the high operating costs the cinema must shoulder. “I felt like I wasn’t quite able to get through to them the idea that it simply does cost more for a cinema program,”
she said. Representatives from Cornell Cinema said that since outside funding sources have decreased, they need the increase in funding to sustain the proSee CINEMA page 4