Doctor investigated H| ort'es are sea'Cf.r.g iackscw's evidence of **sl caused tr-e >^ge r '. :ear. ■; NATIONAL Page 2. The Daily Colie Allen case By Kevin Cirilli COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER | kncso63@psu.edu The prosecution and defense in the case of the death of a Penn State Altoona student will begin the pre-trial process, discussing the latest develop ments surrounding the case today in Blair County court. Today’s meeting comes just two and-a-half weeks before the Aug. 11 formal arraignment of Sean L. Allen, 20, the man charged in connection with the death of Margo “Maggie” Davis, a 20-year-old elementary educa tion major. Dances with Lions Nathan A. Smith/Collegian The Penn State Swing Dancing Club practices outside the Palmer Museum of Art Wednesday evening after they were displaced from their normal meeting place inside the White Building. Remaining charge dismissed By Kevin Cirilli COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER | kncso63@psu.edu A judge dismissed Wednesday the remaining charge against a Daily Collegian photographer who was arrested while on assignment photo graphing the Oct. 25 riot Mowing a Penn State football team victory over Ohio State. Citing “unclear” evidence, Centre County Judge David E. Grine dis missed the failure to disperse charge against the photographer, Michael R. Eelletter, according to Grine’s ruling. “The justice system did its part,” Felletter (senior-visual journalism) said. “Hopefully, journalists will feel freer to go out and gather the hews 'Finger 7 shoes run off shelves By Ashley Gold COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER | argsll6@psu.edu A new kind of shoe is keeping the staff of a local store on their toes. Vibram Five Fingers shoes, which are athletic footwear with toe slots, are available at Appala chian Outdoors, 123 S. Allen St. The webbed shoes have been selling fast, requiring frequent restocking. Dipak Sahoo, sales associate at Appalachian Outdoors, said that in about three months, the store has sold more than 200 pairs of the shoes. Jen-Watts Matisse, buyer for the store, said that for most shoes, 10 to 20 pairs are ordered when restocking, but for Five Fingers, they have had to order 50 for each restock. “We couldn’t have predicted the volume of shoes we’d need for the season,” Matisse said. Matisse said the store was skepti cal about investing in the shoes at first, which range in price from about $75 to $B5, and waited to buy “The point is to have the judge track the case, track discovery, put some discovery deadlines and have the court get a feel for when this case will be ready for trial," said Allen’s Attorney Steven Passarello. Blair County District Attorney Richard ConsigUo. the prosecutor, was unavailable for comment, and his office did not return calls seeking comment. without fearing they'll be charged for breaking the law.” Now Centre County officials are reviewing Grine’s ruling to determine whether to appeal or re-file the charges against Felletter, Felletter Centre County District Attorney Michael Madeira wrote in an e-mail. Felletter photographed the riot, dur ing which thousands of Penn State stu dents flooded Beaver Canyon. Police initially arrested 14 people in connec tion with the incident. its first shipment. She added that customers were skeptical too, but curiosity about the shoes brought customers in, asking if they had them yet. A customer from Lebanon even took a picture of his foot in the shoe, e-mailed it to his family back in Lebanon and proceeded to pur chase eight pairs for them the next day, he said. “I think they’re fantastic,” Sahoo said. “When we first got them, I’d never be able to tell you that we’d sell that much. Bottom line, they’re not like any other shoe,” Sahoo added that they restock the item weekly. Matisse said that after attending Grassroots Early Show, an expo for privately-owned outdoor-product retailers, it was apparent that Five Fingers was selling well across the country. What started out as two styles of shoes has become 14 different col ors and styles, Sahoo said. “That shows how much of a demand we have, through both the begins pre-trial process The discovery deadlines involve the DNA test results of items found in two trash bags at the foot of Allen’s bed March 4, the same day Davis' body was found in the trunk of her car, according to court docu ments. Davis was attempting to purchase a small amount of marijuana from Allen before she went missing, according to court documents. Authorities are testing to see whether there is a DNA link between Davis and Allen on the items found, according to court documents. Passarello said he was unsure Police said Felletter’s photograph ing caused the crowd to become “more exuberant, excited and destruc tive,” according to the criminal com plaint. It is unclear whether Felletter was following police orders to disperse when they arrested him, according to the ruling. Grine ruled it is uncertain whether Felletter’s compliance with police orders to “move along” was adequate when he moved from the street to side walk. For past coverage: UE/ psucollegian.com Web and in the store,” Sahoo said. The shoes are available in four builds— Classic, Sprint, KSO (Keep Stuff Out) and Plow all weighing less than six ounces. Each one lends itself to different outdoor activities. Sahoo said that the shoes are used for a wide array of activities, including kayaking, canoeing, run ning, yoga, fishing, backpacking, surfing and more. While many people consider the Five Fingers watershoes, they are actually multi-purpose, Sahoo said, adding that a lot of people have bought them for barefoot run ning. “People run barefoot to improve muscle mass and improve stride, but the con is having no support. Your feet get beat up,” he said. “Five Fingers make you feel barefoot, so when you race with a regular shoe, you’ll have an advan tage.” . . Steven Balucha (junior-kinesiolo gy), said he is considering buying See SHOES, Page 2. io n .XL. XL. Published independently by students at Penn State See CHARGE, Page 2. a Spikes X WWW. whether the results will be released today, but said he doesn’t expect it. Items found inside Allen’s 102 A Flairway Lower Brush Mountain Road residence included two used condoms, bloody towels and a phone with Davis’ name on it, according to court docu ments. The defense and the prosecution will also discuss any pretrial motion issues, Passarello said. Passarello said he already filed motions asking for the judge to dismiss the first- and second-degree murder charges. “There’s not enough evidence to Hmeliiie October 25,2008: Michael Felletter, while photographing a not for the Daily Collegian, has his driver’s license taken by a State College Police officer. November 6,2008: Felletter is charged with five counts of fail ure to disperse and one count of disorderly conduct in connection with the Oct. 25 riot March 5,2009: The charges against Felletter are re-filed, with only one count of failure to dis perse. July 22,2009: Centre County judge David Grine dismisses the remaining charge against Felletter. Meagan Kanagy/Collegian Alexis Drobka (sophomore-business), left, an employee at Appalachian Outdoors, 123 S. Allen St, helps Claire Gray (sophomore finance) try on a pair of Vibram Five Finger shoes Wednesday afternoon. Thursday, July 23, 2009 o •>' sustain either of those two charges,” he said. He’s asking the judge for an individ ual order of jurors, which would allow the defense to question all possible jurors before a potential trial, he said. Finally, he filed for a change in venue, which would require a jury to be selected from another county “because of the publicity,” he said. Passarello said he doesn’t expect the trial to begin until 2010. For past coverage: Y>!/ psucollegian.com Local views on law differ By Peter Paneplnto COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER | pppsol7@psu.edu Some students think a proposed ordinance, which could fine party hosts whose events lead to after party disturbances, could help while others say the idea would be a nuisance, itself. Patrick Doyle (senior-econom- ics) said if a stu dent leaves his party and decides to join a riot by pulling down a street lamp, he should- accountable Goreham because some- times people just “walk into par ties.” “You can’t expect a bunch of 21- year-olds to be held responsible for another group of 21-year-olds,” Doyle said. “A lot of people are going to be taken advantage of and held responsible for things they can’t control.” Lateff Caffie (senior-finance) agreed the ordinance wouldn’t be fair because the host of a party can’t always control who is going to show UP- The Nuisance Gathering Ordinance, which was introduced See LAW, Page 2.
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