Ny. Castlégar News december 20, 1967 New child law aims at protection OTTAWA (CP) — A law that makes it a crime punish. able by up to 10 years in prison to touch a child “for a sexual purpose” comes into effect Friday. But the law, aimed at protecting boys and girls under 14 from molestation by those who are older, may create problems for people who work with children because sexual touching is not defined, the Canadian Child Welfare Association told MPs last winter. The Quebec Bar Association warned that innocent adults may find themselves in jail unless sexual touching is better defined. ‘The Criniinal Code amendment, passed by Parliament in June, leaves definition to the courts. Also oor = effect in 1988 are amendments aimed at p ing from sexual One of the J changes will make it an offence punishable by up to five years in prison for anyone “in a position of trust or authority” to touch for a sexual purpose a person aged 14 to 17. TAKE ADVANTAGE The exploitation law is aimed at keeping teachers, employers and anyone else in authority from using their position to take sexual advantage of youths. ‘The age of consent for anal sex will drop to 18 from 21. The penalty for engaging in buggery with someone under 18 could be 10 years in prison. The consent age for all other sexual acts will continue to be 14. Justice Minister Ray Hnatyshyn, referring to the age of 18 for consent in anal sex acts, said youths must be protected against the deadly AIDS virus, which is linked to anal inter- course. ‘The prohibition against sexual touching of children extends to touching for a sexual purpose “directly or ip- directly, with a part of the body or with an object, any part of the body of a person under 14.” An additional prohibition against sexual interference makes it a crime to “invite, counsel or incite” a child to touch himself, herself, the person doing the inviting, or anyone else “for a sexual purpose.” This carries a maximum sentence of 10 years. CONSENT IS DEFENCE Consent in these cases is a defence where the alleged victim is 12 or 18 and the person who has been charged is under 16 and isn’t in a position of authority. Belief that the victim was above a certain age isn't a defence “unless the accused took all reasonable steps to ascertain the age of the complainant.” Those found guilty of molesting children can be forbidden from visiting parks, playgrounds or schools and can be arrested for loitering if they do so. Those found guilty of pimping for prostitutes under 18 face up to 14 years in prison. Customers who “obtain or attempt to obtain” the sexual experience of anyone under 18 can be imprisoned for five years. Accompanying the Criminal Code changes are evidence changes aimed at making it easier for children to testify and for prosecutors to get convictions. Murderer’s early release criticised VANCOUVER (CP) — Allan Foster should not have been paroled from a life sentence for the 1971 slaying of a woman in the British Columbia Okanagan, says the grandfather of a child Foster was charged with killing. Foster was found dead at the Forensic Psychiatric Institute in suburban Port Coquitlam on Sunday. Officials said he apparently committed suicide. He was there for a 30-day p convicted murderer back on the streets — especially after he was charged with indecent exposure in 1986. Inge Clausen, chairman of the parole-reform group Citizens United for Safety and Justice, agrees. “At least now he won't be out in 15 years to do the same thing all over again,” Clausen said. “That's a relief.” WAS SUSPENDED Fraser Simmons, a spokesman for the parole board, confirmed that Foster's parole was suspended in April 1986 after he was charged with indecent exposure. Foster was convicted of indecent exposure in June 1986 and sentenced to 21 days in jail. On July.9, 1986, after a hearing, the parole board granted Foster day parole. Released in August, he lived in a halfway house until Dec. 5, 1986, when he was granted full parole. after being charged Dee. 15 with first-degree murder in the slayings of Joan Pilling, her daughter Linda Brewer, and Megan Sue McCleary, both 12. Foster was paroled in 1979 after serving seven years of a life sentence for the slaying of Gwen Ann Lingor in 1971. Foster raped Lingor, beat her with a tire iron, then wrapped her body in chains and threw her into Okanagan Lake. Bob Nunn, Linda Brewer's grandfather, said Tuesday the National Parole Board should not have put a said Foster's performance was assessed by professionals while he was in prison. He said Parliament has told the parole board that the prison terms of murderers have to be reassessed, so the board uses the best information available to attempt to judge whether the person is likely to reoffend. ded that predicting a person's be- havior is “not an exact science.” But according to a parole board study, of the 457 murderers released on parole between 1975 and 1986, two parolees committed another murder, Neighbors say murder suspect was despised DOVER, Ark. (AP) - Gene Simmons was a sullen “slavedriver” who dominated his family and was despised by a teenaged daughter who called him a “drunken bum,” bors and the girl's cl said. The daughter was among 16 people Simmons is suspected of killing in # shooting rampage. Authorities said murder charges would be filed later this week, and a judge ordered Lacey held without bail Tuesday. 47, incest six years ago with ahcther of his daughters and fathered her child according to reports today in the Arkansas Gazette and the Times of El Paso, Tex. Both the daughter and child were slain in the mass killings. A New Mexico grand jury charged Simmons in 1981 with three counts of incest that were dropped a year later after he moved to Arkansas, the Gazette said. Simmons was described Tuesday as a quiet, stingy man who made his wife and children work hard. He is said to be a retired U.S. air force master sergeant. “I called him a slavedriver,” said karen Shaddon, » resident of the Pleasant Grove community where the family lived. She said he would have the children carrying “five: gallon jugs” of dirt to maintain a steep driveway leading to the property where 14 bodies have been discovered since Monday. Loretta Simmons, 17, disliked her father, said Summer Mooney, a classmate at Dover High School, “She said he was a drunken bum, She was real mean to him.” Loretta Simmons got $5 in spending money each month from her mother, who saved it from cash Gene Simmons gave her for groceries, Mooney said. She said that when she occasionally stayed overnight at her slain friend's home, Gene Simmons “had a beer in his hand all the time.” Mooney said Loretta Simmons ‘tried to commit Simmons ghildren living at home were bright, well-be- haved students who did not discuss their family life. Adeline Schower of Cloudcroft, N.M., where the Simmonses lived from 1977 to 1981, recalled that Becky Simmons, Simmons's slain wii was not allowed to mingle with neighbors. “She was a lovely woman. He was an abusive man.” “IN-HOME” Flooring And Window Covering Service ® Horizontal and Vertical Blinds * Complete Line of Constellation Harding-Imperial & Armstrong Flooring as Well as Man Popular Brand Names th '$tock © Roll End Specials 2313-H-6th Ave. Castlegar 365-2265 ther Call Bill or Brian. They'll come right to your home and give you o FREE ESTIMATE and bring sam- ples right to your home with their Mobile Carpet Van 365-2265 WINTER SCENE . . . Snow covers ancient wooden house in Ootischenia. AID WORKER Death investigated TORONTO (CP) — The body of Jennifer Green, a Canadian aid worker killed by a grenade in Nicaragua last week, arrived in Toronto early today while her father remained in the Central American country to search for answers to her death. Green, 26, of Hamilton, and Lt. Roger Mendez Zeron, 27, of the Nicaraguan army, were killed on Christmas Day when a grenade exploded in a room at the Plaza Hotel in Matagalpa, about 130 kilo- metres north of the capital of Managua. Green's body arrived in Toronto on an Eastern Air- lines flight from Miami. Her father, Weldon, of Toronto, stayed in Nicaragua to talk with police and aid workers who knew Jennifer. He flew there shortly after receiving word of his daughter's death. A Nicaraguan police report released Tuesday said Green was killed by a grenade an army lieutenant had Jeft in the hotel room. The room was rented by Lt. Cesa¥ Centeno, who was detained and questioned by police. The police report said the grenade, with its safety ring removed and wrapped in a rope, was on a small table in the room, said Joan Kirk- wood, an ABC radio corres- pondent. In a telephone in- terview from Managua, she said she had the report, in Spanish, dictated to her over the phone from Mata- galpa. Soldiers in war zones sometimes take the safety rings off grenades’ so they can throw them immediately in case of attack or ambush, the report said. BOTH KILLED The report said Zeron tried to toss the explosive device NDP drops to OTTAWA (CP) — The New Democratic Party may slide even further from its historic high in last summer's public opinion polls, an NDP MP dropping.” Gray said. “The Environics poll clearly shows that the air is going out of the NDP balloon.” The most recent survey d for the Globe and Tuesday. “Anything is possible, as we all know, in politics,” Michael Cassidy, a former leader of the party's Ontario wing and now MP for Ottawa Centre, said after a survey suggested the NDP had slip- ped to third place across the country. Cassidy put on a brave face for a news conference called in reaction to the poll taken late last month and early this month by Environics Re search Group Ltd. for the Toronto Globe and Mail. “We are now a threat,” Cassidy said, insisting his party remains on an equal footing with the Tories and Liberals as one of the three major parties which have a chance of forming the next government. Liberal MP Herb Gray, his party's House leader in the commons, said the poll puts the Liberals firmly in first place and shows the NDP peaked too soon with a high of 40-per-cent support earlier first place with the NDP Mail suggested John Turn- er’s Liberals had the support of 37 per cent of decided voters, the Tories had 82 per cent and the NDP had 30 per cent. The poll basically con- firmed trends first establish- ed earlier this month by, the Gallup polling organization, which showed the Tories inching past the NDP for the first time since last January. That month, after a series of government -candals and miscues and blunders by Prime Minister Brian Mul- roney, the Conservatives fell behind the NDP and contin- ued to di After Turner's indecision over the Meech Lake con- stitutional accord and party division, the Liberals fell behind the New Democrats. Gray said the Globe poll shows Canada is divided over Mulroney's free-trade agree- ment with the United States, but he acknowledged the Tories will get some comfort that voter support has in- creased singe details of the pact became widely known. However MP for Windsor, into the bathroom, but it went off in his hands, killing him and Green. during his visit to Nic- aragua, Green's father has been accompanied by Gerald Willms, a Canadian consular official from Costa Rica. Canada does not have an em- bassy in Nicaragua and Willms was sent to ensure that a th gh i contra rebels several months ago. Nomi Wall, co-ordinator of Canadian Action for, Nica- ragua, said Green's death was accidental, but under- lined the dangers of life in a war zone. “She didn't die because of an act of war but because of the fact of war,” she said. was conducted, said an Ex. ternal Affairs Department official. Green, a volunteer with Toronto-based Canadian Action for Nicaragua, was part of the group working on a coffee plantation. She, a friend and the two soldiers travelled to Matagalpa for Christmas. The city is a well-armed centre for the Sandinista army, with an air base near- by. A Canadian aid project in the area was attacked by “Tragic id like this will happen when a country is inundated with artillery and people are constantly under attack.” Wall said the death shocked air workers but the group will continue to send volunteers to the country. There are at least 35 groups in Canada that send thousands of volunteers to Nicaragua each year. On Monday, more than 100 Canadian aid workers held a memorial service for Green in Managua. third in polls who has always been con- cerned about the NDP threat in parts of southern Ontario, said voters will grow to dislike the agree- ment as they learn more about it. Gray, like Cassidy, argued that while the Tories may be gaining strength, Mulroney is still a handicap for the government. Maclean's magazine pub- lished a poll this week that indicated a slide in Mul- roney's popularity. Forty-nine per cent of Canadians are dissatisfied with the prime minister's overall performance, up from 42 per cent in 1986, the Mac- leans poll of 1,500 Canadians suggested. Twenty-five per cent were satisifed in the new poll by Decima Research, while another 26 per cent were neutral. OTTAWA (CP) — Can- adians have much to give thanks for from 1987 and much to look forward to in the coming year, Gov. Gen. Jeanne Sauve says. “I would like all my fellow citizens to stop for a moment and think about our situation and how — unlike so many other na- tions — we are spared the horror of war and the burdens of misery and hunger,” Sauve says in her annual New Year's mes. sage. “Canada is a priviledged land: Even if our country has its p we must Sauve’s New Year's message bright recognize that they are not as serious as those in other parts of the world. “Our land is rich; its future knows no bounds. Thanks to their sense of solidarity, the men and women of Canada can ex- pect continued develop- ment, free from the dis- putes that hinder the pro- gress of weakened, divided communities. Together, we strive to consolidate our forces; together, we press on toward our objective, that of the common good.” Sauve called 1987 a year Accused described as wife-abusing recluse RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. (AP) — A man linked to one of the worst mass killings in the United States was described by enraged relatives as a wife-abusing recluse who was once accused of incest. And his sister-in-law said “you knew he was capable” of the 16 slayings. Gene Simmons, 47, was ordered held without bail in connection with two of the killings. At about the same time Tuesday, authorities in Arkansas started to uncover the bodies of nine relatives in a shallow grave and in the truck of two cars near his rural home. Five other slain family members were found in the home Monday after a 45-minute shooting rampage in downtown Russellville in which two people were killed and four others wounded. Herb Johnston, the Russellville police chief, filed information Tuesday accusing Simmons of two counts of capital murder and four of attempted capital murder stemming from Monday's shootings. The actual charges probably will not be filed for at least two days, said Jim Bolin, the Pope County sheriff. Becky Simmons, the wife of the retired U.S. air force master sergeant, was among the dead found Tuesday, Bolin said. FEELS RAGE Her sister, Edith Nesby of Briggsdale, Colo., said the few surviving family members, who were to help authorities make formal identifications today, felt pain and rage. “You don't want to think he would do something like that, but you knew he was capable of doing it,” Nesby said in an interview published today in the Arkansas Gazette. Nesby said Gene Simmons moved to Arkansas from Cloudcroft, N.M., six years ago because he had been charged with sexually abusing his daughter, Sheila. Records in the 12th New Mexico Judicial District show he was charged Aug. 11, 1981, with three counts of incest, and that the charges were dismissed Aug. 10, 1982, the newspaper said. Steven Sanders, a former district attorney, said Gene Simmons fled New Mexico after being indicted, the El Paso Times reported today. Sanders confirmed that Sheila was the alleged incest victim, and said she was about 16 years old and pregnant when the charges were filed. Nesby said the family believes Gene Simmons fathered Sylvia McNulty, 6. Sheila McNulty, 24, was identified Tuesday as one of the five found dead MOnday in Gene Simmons's house. She was killed along with Sylvia; Sheila’s husband, Dennis McNulty; the suspect's 23-year-old son, William Simmons; and his wife, Renada Simmons. Besides Becky Simmons, the wife of the suspect, authorities said those found dead Tuesday included a son and three daughters who had been living at Gene Simmons’s home in the Pleasant Grove community about 20 kilometres north of Russellville. Those found dead were Loretta, 17; Eddie, 14; Marianne, 11; and Rebecca, 8. ‘Two children were found in garbage bags in car trunks. They were 21-month-old Michael McNulty and William Simmons Jr., 20 months, authorities said. Nesby said Gene Simmons physically abused his wife, but that she would not leave him. The couple's seven children tried to protect her during the beatings, her sister said. Wilma Simmons of New Mexico — who ex-husband Ronald Simmons and daughter Barbara, 3, were found dead Tuesday — told the El Paso newspaper her former father-in- law was a recluse. She said he often stayed in his bedroom alone to avoid contact with his family. Gene Si da silence under by police Tuesday, but spoke to court-appointed defence lawyers. The dead in Monday's shooting rampage were Kathy Kendrick, a legal secretary who is said to have spurned Gene Simmons’s advances, and J.D. Chaffin. Girl recovers from dog attack VANCOUVER (CP) — was dragged off a chair and Kathleen Arnott has had her mauled about her eyes, nose stitches removed and is al- ready playing with another dog. She's also taken a big step towards forgetting about the pit bull that at- tacked her. “She just wants to let it lie,” the Vancouver girl's mother, Kim Arnott, said Tuesday. “She doesn’t want anything more to do with it. She got her stitches out to day and she’s doing fine.” While visiting the Surrey home of family friends on Christmas Eve, Kathleen and mouth by one of the family’s two pit bulls. She required 42 stitches to close her wounds and spent Christmas in Surrey Mem- orial Hospital. The dog, a year-old male named Magnum, was des- troyed by the SPCA on Boxing Day. Arnott said doctors have told her any scarring to her daughter’s face would be minimal. She said she would not be laying charges against the dog’s owner. WEEKLY SEWING SPECIALS Dec. 28 to Jan. 2 ALL NOTIONS 20% OFF BEST WISHES FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON! 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