4 TheDallasPost Dallas, PA Wednesday, April 4, 1990 Tie SDALLASC0ST Arson case was a travesty of justice The District Attorney wasn’t the only loser in the acquittal of John Tibus on arson charges last week - we all were victims of a colossal waste of taxpayers’ time and money. The case was an example of the criminal justice system at its worst. Tibus had been charged with setting a neighbor's barn on fire in 1988, based solely on his “confession.” That admission proved to be at best a myth and at worst the result of an un- ethical police interrogation that took advantage of an easily influenced young man. No other evidence was presented. According to testimony by a state police investigator, the confession the state presented was obtained only after Tibus ~ wastold that the spirits of Jesus Christ and his deceased father ~ were in the room, and would want him to “do the right thing” by confessing. This was supported by a worthless observation of Tibus at his preliminary hearing by a county detective, in which Tibus supposedly nodded when someone asked him if he had started the fire. While on a lesser scale, this trial had echoes of one that took place in Connecticut in the early 1970's in which an impres- sionable young man was cajoled into confessing the murder of his mother after 48 straight hours of interrogation without representation. The Peter Reilly case made national news as more and more people heard of the injustices committed. Reilly was eventually found not guilty after evidence that supported his innocence was discovered in the prosecutor's files. In both instances, sloppy police work coupled with a desire to “solve” the crime quickly led to arrest of the wrong person - one who seemed an easy target. Perhaps even worse, once the police made the arrest, pursuit of the real criminals came to a halt, leaving a cold trail for future investigators to pick up. John Tibus and his mother, Emma, who stood by his side throughout the investigation and trial, deserve more than an acquittal from the courts. They deserve an apology from the police and the District Attorney's office for pressing charges on the basis of such flimsy evidence. The general public deserves an explanation, too, and assur- ance that the police will never again bow to pressure to make an arrest prematurely, especially when their target is so obviously ill-equipped to defend himself. Trip to USSR 1s a sign of new openness Glasnost, the new openness that has occurred in the Soviet Union, is being felt right here in the Back Mountain, as a group of 30 Lake-Lehman High School students and 11 adults make plans to visit the great cities of Moscow and Leningrad. According the the trip's organizer, John Comitz, arranging such a trip is no longer difficult. The United States and Soviet Union have fostered exchanges of cultural groups for years, as ballet companies and sympho- nies have toured each country. While that has helped relations between our two nations, nothing will bring us closer together than visits by ordinary citizens who are interested in knowing more about each other. We envy the Lake-Lehman group their trip, and look forward to reporting on their impressions when they return. Ready to roll? (Photo by Charlotte Bartizek) Only yesterday Letters invited The Dallas Post encourages readers to share their opinions with the community by writing a letter to the editor. All letters for publication must be signed and include a telephone number so that we may verify their authenticity. We will not publish anonymous letters. Send letters to: The Dallas Post, P.O. Box 366, Dallas, PA 18612. Letters received by Noon on Monday may be included in that week's issue. Tie SDALLASCP0ST Published Weekly by Bartsen Media, Inc. P.O. Box 366, Dallas PA 18612 Telephone: 717-675-5211 Ronald A. Bartizek Charlotte E. Bartizek Editor and Publisher Associate Publisher Peggy Young Charlot M. Denmon Advertising Acct. Exec. Reporter Olga Kostrobala ~ Classified/typesetting Paul Rismiller Jean Hillard Composition Office Manager MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION AND THE PENNSYLVANIA NEWSPAPER PUBLISHER'S ASSOCIATION 60 Years Ago - April 4, 1930 ROTARY PREPARES FOR EASTER EGG HUNT Earl Monk, chairman of the Rotary Club's annual Easter Egg Hunt promises this year's will be bigger event than ever. Local fishermen are looking forward to fine trout season at lakes and brooks this April. Professor Bowen, supervising principal of Dallas Borough School, reported that the athletic associa- tion raised more than $250. Dallas Borough Council granted A.C. Devens request to extend the siding along his property on Ceme- tery Street from the old lumber sheds of the Dallas Lumber Com- pany to alongside his mill. Engaged - Anna Adams and James Barid. 50 Years Ago - April 5, 1940 FLOOD VICTIMS BEGIN CLEANUP WORK Flood victims along the Susquehanna River began the work of rehabilitation while keeping a watchful eye on the rain-filled skies. Dallas and its neighboring communities have been playing hosts-to hundreds of temporarily homeless flood victims. Nine horses from the Mercury Stables in Kingston joined the flood exodus to the Dallas area. Bids for the construction of 5.6 miles of two-lane concrete high- way from a point near Kunkle to Lutes Corners on Route 92 will be opened by the state highway de- partment at Harrisburg this Fri- day. Wed - Lois Gregory and Samuel Agley. 40 Years Ago - April 7, 1950 WATER TANK FLOODS LAKE TWP. SCHOOL A 2,000 gallon pressure water tank exploded in the Lake Town- ship School Wednesday flooding a part of the gymnasium and inun- dating the boys retiring room on the lower floor. Students were dismissed upon arrival but the school will be ready to resume after the Easter vacation. Dallas Borough senior Priscilla Cooper has been awarded a $600 scholarship to Albright College, Reading. Glenn Watkins, Harveys Lake, will open his new Wayside Market in the Insulaco Building on Memo- rial Highway opposite Forty Fort Dairy, Fernbrook. Auctioneer Howard Sands auc- tions off almost $100,000 worth of new farm items at Charles H. Long's annual auction sale Saturday. Engaged - June Lee Williams and Carl Blessing. Wed - Emma Lewis and Willard Woolbert. Bowman's Restaurant basket- ball team topped Tunkhannock 57- 47 Tuesday night. 30 Years Ago - April 7, 1960 GENERAL MOTORS HOLDS SCIENCE SHOW General Motors science show thrills the high school students in local schools. Edwin Roth and Jack Stanley, co-chairmen for the 2nd Annual PTA Amateur Contest met with committee members to plan for the event. “Uncle Ted” Raub of WDAU, Channel 22, will emcee the show. Every Saturday morning boys from fourth, fifth and sixth grade take part in basketball at Westmoreland and Dallas Junior High School with Clint Brobst and Robert Dolbear as instructors. Chief Edgar Hughes of Harveys Lake says he thinks the lake will be John Fluck, Jr. clear of ice before the opening of trout season, April 15. Engaged - Jean Thomas and 20 Years Ago - April 19, 1970 DELAYS GOING ON WITH EXPRESSWAY Clifford Bigelow, chairman of AAA, in an interview Friday, said it was his opinion that delaying tac- tics were holding up the Cross- Valley Expressway. . Several members of Dallas Bor- ough Council asked that a study of J. ) the ordinances be made and amended if necessary. Dallas Junior High students were evacuated following a bomb #- scare. A peace festival, rock music will be held at the Penn State Campus at Lehman Sunday, April 26. Dr. Murray Dolphin predicted Northeast Pennsylvania pouuuon is critical. Engaged - Deborah Lee Kleiner and Frank E. Wojcik, Jr.; Marion Stredny and Burton Thayer Reese; Jeannie M. Lyons and Christopher Chaffee Fallon, Jr. Wed - Eunice Oney and Claude A. Sorber. Library news By NANCY KOZEMCHAK The display case at the Back Mountain Memorial Library is exhibiting some fascinating Shoe Box Scenes with Story Books. The first grade classes at Gate of Heaven School were given the assignment during National Children's Book Week to construct a scene from one of their favorite books. The scenes were constructed in shoe boxes and characters and scenery was drawn, cut out, colored and added to the scenes. They were also adorned with objects found around the home and outdoors. The children saved their Shoe Box Scenes and brought them to the library with the story books and we have set them up in the display. The story boxes on display are scenes from “Dragon's Hiding Place” constructed by Rae Ellen Zekas using construction paper grass, crepe paper bushes and logs made by rolling construction pa- per around a pencil and also a large twig with leaves glued on as the tree; “Charlotte's Web” by Jaclyn Reisser using hand draw figures, popsicle sticks and hay from her back yard with a cotton spider web; “Misty” by Kimberly Urban. All the horses were hand- crafted, using modeling clay and hand-painted by Kimberly. The scenery was also painted by Kim- berly. “The Little Rabbit Who Wanted Red Wings” is by Mitchell Onzik; construction paper and hand- crafted sceneryand figures; “Sleep- ing Beauty” by Laura Charnick with art work painted inside shoe box; “The Mouse and the Motor- cycle” by Beth Charnick, hand drawn mouse on motorcycle, felt and paper scenery. “Cinderella” is by Jackie Staj- ewski with cutouts of Cinderella and horses and footmen, and the fairy godmother. First grade teach- ers are Mrs. Kaye Gilbert and Mrs. Diane Stilp. The display is a real tie-in with the library, school chil- dren and Children's Book Week and will be at the library until April 28. The library is having a special sale in the Bargain Basement Room through April 7. The $1.00 a bag sale has been upgraded to “Buy one, get one free.” If you buy one bag for $1.00, the second bag is free. There is a nice selection of books available for sale. We were very happy to hear that Kristin Cashore of Tunkhannock, who joined the library in 1982 and has been an avid user since that time, has won her second spelling bee and will be going on to further competition. She is an 8th grade student at Gate Of Heaven School. The library is housing the col- lection of wheelchairs, walkers, crutches and canes in the base- ment room for use by community members. This collection is main- tained by Rotary and Kiwanis members with the paper work being done by library staff. The Valley Tennis and Swim Club donated a potty chairlast week to be added to the collection. The Post Asks: "What do you Milton Stevens Massachusetts “I think it can help because it will give us a lot of information. I haven't made up my mind about the homeless situation, though. But it is worth the time filling out the form.” Pat Hoffman Sweet Valley “I believe any question except for name, age, race, and how many people live in the home is an inva- sion of privacy.” Joe Harrington Dallas “If everybody would take the time to do it right it would help. We need it to get money for the area.” Andrew Legosh Dallas “I guess its o.k. We need to know the population in areas.” think about filling out the census forms?" Reva Eck Sweet Valley “I just filled out my form, didn’t mind it at all. In fact, I filled it out the same day.” ES
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers