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Multiple incidents over Halloween weekend
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Serving James Madison University Since 1922
Vol. 87, No. 20 Thursday, November 4, 2010
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This decision was one ... made by me, not for me
Charges still fewer than last year’s numbers
Two men allegedly involved in separate incidents over Halloween weekend are both scheduled to appear in Rockingham/Harrisonburg General District Court on Nov. . Mario Dominic Wright, , was charged with a felony count of firearm larceny, a felony count of grand larceny, a misdemeanor count of brandishing a gun and a misdemeanor count of unlawful possession of alcohol, according to court records. Police responded to a call at about : a.m. Sunday in Fox Hills Townhomes, according to Harrisonburg police spokeswoman Mary-Hope Vass. Wright, who is not a JMU student, had alcohol with him and was waving a gun around, according to witness reports Vass said. Nearby individuals pointed him out to police and he was then arrested, Vass said. Gary Lee, , was arrested Monday for a misdemeanor simple assault that occurred early Sunday morning, Vass said. Lee, a senior at JMU and a resident of Midlothian, was involved in a verbal altercation with another man in the Fox Hills area, Vass said. Lee then allegedly struck the man, who did not report the situation until Monday afternoon. Lee is scheduled to appear in court on Nov. . The incidents were two of the thefts, four assaults and five property damages reported over Halloween weekend. Vass said HPD saw about more incidents citywide last year during the Halloween weekend. The amount of crime was also average compared to the rest of October, Vass said. Another simple assault occurred near Pheasant Run Townhomes early Sunday morning. According to HPD’s daily noteworthy e-mails, an unidentified male said he was assaulted by a group of unknown males. He was taken to Rockingham Memorial Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Vass could not give any further information regarding this assault.
RYAN FREELAND / THE BREEZE
Brock Wallace, senior and former vice president of Student Affairs, stepped down instead of facing impeachment at Tuesday’s SGA meeting.
SGA executive resigns, committee to investigate Purple Out T-shirt distribution By KATIE THISDELL and AMANDA CASKEY The Breeze
As the Student Government Association prepares for a special election to fill a nowempty executive seat, a committee will also form to investigate possible mishandling of during the Purple Out Homecoming T-shirt distribution. Brock Wallace, two-term vice president of Student Affairs, stepped down at Tuesday’s senate meeting in a move that few expected as senators prepared to motion for impeachment. “I need to focus on myself right now, so effective immediately, I resign,” Wallace said before exiting the Highlands Room in Festival. “This isn’t a goodbye, it’s a ‘See you later.’ ” Wallace said he had maintained his duties since being charged with an underaged possession of alcohol and an open container charge on Oct. . He is on supervised probation for one year after pleading guilty in September for indecent exposure charge stemming from an incident in a Belk restroom in Valley Mall. Wallace apologized while telling the senate that he was hurt by how the organization had divided since learning about these incidents. The vice president of Student Affairs is head of class councils, as well as Homecoming activities such as the Purple Out
T-shirt distribution and the Mr. and Ms. Madison competition. SGA president Andrew Reese said he was “pleasantly surprised,” as he had asked Wallace to resign upon learning of his charges about two weeks ago. Wallace had declined and instead pleaded to senators and the student body to let him keep his position. SGA had expected to hear a motion for impeachment at Tuesday’s meeting. “I wanted to make sure that this decision was one that was made by me, not for me,” Wallace said Wednesday about why he waited to make an announcement. During a period of suspended House Rules, junior Patrick Elwell, chair of the Academic Affairs committee, introduced a resolution to investigate mishandling of Purple Out. On Oct. during Homecoming Week, SGA members distributed more than , T-shirts on the Quad in minutes, according to their Facebook page. Both Reese and Wallace said there were no explicit rules in regard to the T-shirt distribution. Calling the handling of the event “unprofessional, dishonest and otherwise contrary to the standards and mission of the Student Government Association,” Elwell proposed the formation of a committee to scrutinize any allegations. Speaker of the Senate Caitlin Natale will form the panel.
Elwell said that some senators had heard rumors about early distribution of T-shirts, which has traditionally been a highly anticipated event. “I’ve heard several things, other people have heard several things,” Elwell said. “I don’t know what happened, and I don’t know if anyone knows what happened.” Wallace said Wednesday that advisers and the executive council knew he gave shirts to certain groups to help advertise the event, including the Homecoming Student Spirit Committee, Student Ambassadors executives, University Program Board executives, SafeRides executives and JMU Cheerleading. He said shirts were also given to the Office of Student Activities and Involvement student staff, University Unions staff and the JMU Alumni Staff. Wallace also gave The Breeze staff T-shirts for senior editors the day before the event. Senior senator Adam Hall supported the resolution while calling for an immediate end to debate. “I had a person who graduated four years ago text me asking if I could procure a T-shirt for him,” Hall. “This is one of the biggest events we as an organization support.” Junior class vice president Rheanna Martino said the Purple Out distribution has inherent problems, citing rumors of T-shirts being handed out early in past years. see SGA, page 4
— staff reports
C.J. Sapong recognized nationally
Anthropology and animals inspire current artWorks Gallery display, page 9 11/4 INSIDE
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JMU men’s soccer’s senior forward C.J. Sapong was named the College Soccer News national Player of the Week on Monday. The Dukes came into last week with a -- record in the Colonial Athletic Association, a mark that placed them toward the bottom of the conference rankings. With only the top four squads advancing to the CAA Championship later this month, the Dukes needed to win each of their four remaining games to stay in the hunt. Thanks to Sapong, they are halfway there. Sapong scored the game-winning goal in both of JMU’s games last week, tallying winners against Old Dominion University and Drexel University. On Oct. against ODU he scored two goals within a -second span, with just four minutes remaining in the game. The goals broke a scoreless tie and gave the Dukes a much needed road victory over an in-state rival. Three nights later the Dukes hosted Drexel, and Sapong didn’t wait until the end of the game to clinch the victory for JMU. His goal in the th minute gave the Dukes all they
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would need en route to a - victory. The Dukes are now just one point behind ODU, the University of Delaware and George Mason University (all -- in the CAA) for fourth place in the conference. JMU’s -- overall record is the third best in the conference, and could serve as a tiebreaker if the Dukes are to find themselves in a gridlock in the standings. JMU will host its final two games of the season against Virginia Commonwealth University on Wednesday night and against Hofstra University on Saturday night. The game against VCU was too late to be included in today’s edition of The Breeze. The conference tournament will take place Nov. and and will be hosted by top-seeded the College of William & Mary. Sapong has established himself as the front-runner for the CAA Player of the Year. He has not disappointed since being named the conference’s Preseason Player of the Year. After last week’s heroics, he leads the conference in goals (), assists () and points (). — staff reports
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Dangerous pot substitute proves a case for legalizing marijuana.
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EVAN McGREW / FILE PHOTO
Senior forward C.J. Sapong is fifth in the nation with 12 goals this season.
LIFE Returning to roots
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SPORTS Too much Pride
Hofstra is JMU’s biggest obstacle for a CAA women’s soccer championship.