http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPcap/1999-06/19/032r-061999-idx.html Appeals Court Backs Gore Dissenter's Suit Associated Press Saturday, June 19, 1999; Page A07 A federal appeals court ruled yesterday that a woman who dissented from the findings of a White House panel chaired by Vice President Gore has the right to the same information as other commissioners. M. Victoria Cummock, appointed by President Clinton to a special commission on aviation safety after the TWA Flight 800 disaster, sued Gore and others on the panel, saying she had been denied access to a "classified annex" despite her security clearance. Cummock also said she was denied almost all of an inch-thick briefing paper that she saw Gore and commissioner and ex-CIA director John Deutch reviewing. Cummock's husband was killed in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, and she is an advocate for improved air safety and security measures. A federal judge dismissed her lawsuit, in which the government argued that Cummock's access was limited to those rights enjoyed by members of the general public. "Cummock possesses an even greater right than a member of the public, because, as a commission member, she is entitled to fully participate in its deliberations," appeals Judge Judith Rogers wrote. � Copyright 1999 The Associated Press ========= http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/us/DailyNews/navyhouses_990618.html Bedrooms for the Brass Navy Admits Funneling Money for Bigwigs� Quarters The United States Naval Academy's Buchanan House, 1906, has hosted U.S. presidents, foreign heads of state and royalty. By David Ruppe ABCNEWS.com June 18 � The Navy has admitted to improperly using $5.5 million to renovate houses for three top military officers, as Pentagon planners worry about funding frontline U.S. troops to fight wars overseas. Service officials voluntarily told a congressional committee the money was taken from a Navy operation and maintenance budget not intended for housing repairs and upgrades. The money was used over seven years, 1992 to 1999 � without Congress� knowledge � for work on a house to be occupied by the chief of naval operations, the Navy�s senior military officer, and also for the houses belonging to the Naval Academy�s superintendent in Annapolis and the Navy�s commander-in-chief of the Pacific in Hawaii. Two of the buildings, the Tingey House in Washington, D.C., built in 1804, and the Buchanan House in Annapolis, built in 1906, are historic landmarks. The third, the Nimitz House, was built in 1941. The Navy owns all three. Money Returned The Navy put the money back in the O&M account last month, according to spokesman Lt. Dora Staggs. She said the Navy believed it could use that pot of money for some the renovations since the dwellings are used for official purposes, such as hosting dignitaries. The Senate Appropriations Committee called the expenditures �totally inappropriate� in its June 10 report on next year�s military construction appropriations bill. The Navy appeared to attempt �to circumvent the congressional controls regarding limits on expenditures on flag and general officers� quarters,� the committee wrote. It added a provision to the bill asking that Congress be told about expenditures of more than $25,000 on housing repair and maintenance. There has been strong consensus on Capitol Hill and in the Pentagon that U.S. troops don�t have the necessary resources � such as spare parts and training � to be ready to fight. Some on the Hill cite the case as an example of how funding for operations and maintenance, or �force readiness,� is sometimes diverted for other, unauthorized priorities. �The committee did some excellent work, for uncovering it and being offended by it,� said one Senate staffer. �Both are rare for Congress.� A Little Punishment? The committee also rejected a Navy request for next year�s budget to fund $10.3 million worth of housing construction for 41 senior officers at bases in California, Japan and Hawaii. Those funds, instead, are to be used to improve junior enlisted housing at those bases, the committee directed. Staggs said the Navy does not dispute the decision. �Certainly using the funds towards the junior enlisted housing will be money well spent. �The Navy is definitely committed to ensuring the quality of life of our junior enlisted sailors and by using the money towards their quarters we hope that will improve their quality of life and hopefully impact positively on retention and readiness.� ========== http://www.freep.com/news/airtravel/qnwa19.htm NWA lawsuits are combined Wayne County is cut from snow case June 19, 1999 BY JOHN GALLAGHER FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER In a significant loss for Northwest Airlines, a judge ruled Friday that lawsuits stemming from January's snowstorm that stranded thousands of passengers can be heard as a class-action suit. Consolidating the multiple lawsuits into a class-action suit makes it significantly more likely that Northwest will have to pay damages in the case. The case grew out of the Jan. 2-3 blizzard that dumped a foot of snow on the Detroit area. More than 4,000 passengers were stuck on Northwest planes on the runways at Metro Airport for up to 11 hours. In some cases, they went without food, water or working toilets until enough gates were cleared for disembarkment. The lawsuits claim Northwest imprisoned the passengers and inflicted emotional pain. Legal experts say class-action status helps plaintiffs because it allows passengers who would not have bothered to sue Northwest to take part with little or no cost to themselves. "Even a small risk of losing the whole thing -- 'bet your company' is the phrase people use -- creates enormous pressure to settle," said Edward Cooper, professor of law at the University of Michigan. Cooper said class-action status also makes it easier for plaintiffs to win sympathy. "It's harder for a court to look at 4,000 people and say, 'Sorry, none of you is going to get anything.' What happens is that the whole class picks up strength from the most sympathetic clients." In her ruling, Wayne County Circuit Judge Daphne Means Curtis said hearing the case as a class action is more efficient than hearing cases individually. "The fairest, most convenient way to dispose of the claims is by way of class action," she said. Dismissing claims by Northwest's attorney, Leonard Nagi, that the experiences of individual passengers were too different to be grouped together, Curtis said that even though "there may be differences in terms of injuries or allegations of some class members in this case, there are common questions that predominate." Well-known attorneys Geoffrey Fieger and Larry Charfoos will lead the plaintiffs' case. But in a victory for the defense, Curtis dismissed Wayne County, which owns and operates the airport, as a defendant in the suit. Curtis said passengers had no legal standing to sue the county because they were not party to a snow-removal contract between the county and Northwest. Northwest has said it did everything possible to get the passengers off the planes as quickly as possible. The airline says that safety considerations made it more prudent to leave the passengers on the planes rather then let them off in the middle of the field in severe weather. It could be several months before that view is tested at trial. JOHN GALLAGHER can be reached at 313-222-5173 or [EMAIL PROTECTED] .
