The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 145, No. 35, Ed. 1 Saturday, June 27, 1998 Page: 4 of 12
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Issues & Opinions !
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Mother of Rodney Reed questions
prosecutors* techniques, motives
Public urged to
support mandatory
labeling of foods
Dear Editor:
With little public debate, inadequate safety
testing and no labeling, genetically engineered
crops are now being unleashed into the envi-
ronment and the food supply. Genetically engi-
neered soybeans and com were widely harvested
for the first time last year.
Since these crops are not segregated on the
commodity market, they have found their way
into virtually every product containing soya or
com in restaurants, on supermarket shelves and
in livestock feed. Unless you eat 100 percent or-
ganically, you are eating these foods without
your knowledge or consent.
Soybeans, com and a number of other plants
have been altered to withstand higher doses of
herbicide (herbicide use will increase as a result)
and some produce their own insect toxins (a va-
riety of corn is now listed as a pesticide by the
EPA). The source for these and other alterations
is often bacteria or virus but may include other
unrelated donor organisms, even animal or in-
sect.
Antibiotic resistant genes are often used as
genetic markers to identify the altered plants.
Little is known about how this technology will
impact ecosystems or human health.
Before long, the genetic code of virtually the
entire food supply will be altered. Unlike other
scientific miscalculations (DDT, PCBs, nuclear
energy, etc.), the consequences of genetic ma-
nipulation cannot be contained or cleaned up.
We need to act before the genetic genie is irre-
versibly out of the bottle.
Opposition is growing worldwide and some
countries arc refusing to import unlabeled GE
products. In this county on May 27, the Inter-
national Center for Technology Assessment
filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Food and prug
Administration to force mandatory labeling and
safety testing of all GE food and crops. Yet most
Americans are unaware of this issue because
media coverage of opposition to biotechnology
is noticeably absent.
But a grassnxtts movement is growing to ed-
ucate the public and collect signatures on a peti-
tion demanding mandatory labeling of all GE
foods. The goal is to collect one million signa-
tures by Thanksgiving.
This will send a clear message to the govern-
ment and biotech industry that consumers do not
want to be drafted into this experiment without
knowledge or consent.
In Bastrop, petitions and information are
available at Common Ground Coffee House,
Bastrop Gardens, Optimum Health Institute and
BCEN. Some Audubon Society members and
other individuals are also circulating petitions.
For more information or to become involved
in the effort, log onto the internet at
http://www.purekxxl.org. or call 321-0438.
Consumers have the right to know and the right
to chtxise. Demand it.
Candace Boheme
Cedar Creek
Dear Editor:
1 am writing this in behalf of my son Rodney
R. Reed. I am sick and tired of the way Lisa
Tanner and Charles Penick have trashed my
son's name. They do not know Rodney.
Those who know Rodney would laugh in
their faces and call them bald faced liars. For
those of you who don't know him, God bless
you. You have been lied to and deceived by Lisa
Tanner and Charles Penick.
At the trial they put me under a ''gag” order
so the public could and would not hear the other
side of the story.
They placed Rodney under a $500,000 bond.
We had at least six pretrials and the judge did
not reduce the bond one penny. Why?
We moved to have the trial moved due to
Bastrop being such a small place. Judge
Townslee denied it. Why?
When it came time for trial, prosecutors said
that I would be a potential witness for them so I
could not be in the courtroom with my son, but
God blessed him with his father, brothers, fam-
ily and friends being there.
Rodney Reed had witnesses in his behalf that
had written and notarized statements that were
never called. Why? We also had witnesses who
wanted to testify, but were denied. Why?
They brought a young lady named Connie
York who claimed Rodney raped her in 1987.
Lisa Tanner and Charles Penick failed to tell the
public that incident happened in 1987 and it took
four years to come to trial. Why?
I can answer that—because it didn't have any
reason to go to court. It was a lie, and when
Rodney did go to trial he was acquitted.
There was a racist in the mix as well as this
time.
Lisa Tanner and Charles Penick lied about
Rodney raping a 12-year old girl in 1989. We
were living in Wichita Falls awaiting the trial.
Lisa Tanner and Charles Penick said Rodney
raped a lady on the railroad tracks, when under
oath during trial, she said it was someone else.
Lisa Tanner and Charles Penick said Rodney
was a dope dealer.
They said they had him on film making a
drug transaction. When they did show the film it
was clearly not Rodney, but the agent said it was
Rodney.
They called one of Rodney's school teachers
to the stand to acknowledge if it was Rodney.
She stated: no shape, no form, no fashion was
that Rodney Reed.
Lisa Tanner and Charles Penick brought my
two grandson's mother from Wichita Falls to
testify against their father, to say that he had
raped her too.
They went as far as to hurt those two kids and
the mother in the end.
Two weeks before trial they took blood from
my other sons and their father. Why?
They declared they had all evidence leading
to Rodney Reed. How could they say this when
hair found on her pubic area belonged to a guy
she used to date. Fingerprints belonged to some-
one else, shoeprints belong to someone else, hair
found on her back they do not know who it be-
longs to.
This is for the public to know my son Rodney
Rodell Reed was seeing Stacey Stites. She had
been to my home a number of times. Because a
person is engaged doesn't mean a thing. You
must remember she had 28 suspects.
I guess the old saying is true, “you cant beat
politics.” One thing is for sure, God has his
hands in this. No power is as powerful as God's,
and only evil can have such a cold heart to tear a
person down and prosecute the wrong person for
something they did not do. What is a man if he
gains the world but loses his soul.
We, the Reed family, along with the black
community feel and know Lisa Tanner, Charles
Penick and Forest Sanderson railroaded Rodney
Reed.
We feel justice has not been served to the
Reed family nor the Stites family.
DNA does not mean murder.
SandraS. Reed
Bastrop
The Bastrop Advertiser welcomes letters to
(he editor.
Letters must be signed, and a daytime phone
number should be included.
The Advertiser may edit the letter for length
or clarity. No more than one letter per writer Will
be printed per week.
Deadline for submitting letters to the editor is
3 p.m. Thursday for the Saturday paper. Letters
will be printed on a space-available basis.
Letters may be sent one of four ways:
■ In person — Our office is located at 908
Water St., next to the police station and just
south of Chestnut Street (Loop 150) in Bastrop.
Our hours arc 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through
Friday.
■ By mail — Letters can be mailed to:
To the editor
The Bastrop Advertiser
P.O. Box 459
Bastrop. Texas 78602-0459
■ By fax — Letters may be sent by fax to
321-1680.
■ By e-mail — Our e-mail address is
basadv@onr.com
For more information, call the Bastrop Ad-
vertiser at 321-2557 or (800) 303-2557.
Crossroads Animal Hospital thanked
Dear Editor:
The Board of Directors of The Bastrop
County Humane Society would like to publicly
thank Crossroads Animal Hospital for their do-
nation of dog and cat spays during the month of
May. Because of their generosity we were able
to spay 11 dogs and four cats at a minimal cost
to their owners.
According to The American Humane
Association there are 70,000 dogs and cats bom
each day and 10 million euthanized each year.
The only solution to this tragedy is Trying and
neutering and with each dog and cat that is
spayed or neutered these numbers will decrease.
Thank you ^ain Crossroads Animal Hospital
for your past and present support of The Bastrop
County Humane Society.
Croft family researcher needs dates
Dear Editor:
I wrote some months ago about my research
of the Croft family of Bastrop. (William Samuel
came and brought his large family about 1833.) I
still need information about them, namely verifi-
cation of their birthdates. (The son, John
Samuel, is my family line).
Bill Moore s book referenced “the Croft fam-
ily Bible” so 1 know it exists. It would be the
proof I need. I just would like to xerox the page
of dates or does anyone have Bin Moore's ad-
dress?
The Crofts were active in the origin of the
Bastrop area. I will furnish the museum and li-
brary a copy of my research when completed.
Thank You.
Charlotte Myrich
RLLB«467
Wt Bin gt no, Texas
806)447-5648
Local teenager
grateful for
support of family
and community
ft makes me feel good to know that I have
supporters like you behind me. With your sup-
port I will be travelling to Brisbane, Australia to
represent the USA in fbotbaiL I leave June 29 at
9 ajn. from Austin and go to Phoenix where I
win stay for five days. After that, I wfll be in
Australia for about 14 days. I win be home July
16 following a few days in Hawaii.
Most of aU I would like to thank God for '
Diessing me witn uiis opportunity ana tor sup-
porters like an of you.
Organizer of BBQ
invites public to
join in food, fun
Dear Editor:
The Paige Community Center's annual barbe-
cue fund raiser win be July 4. Come out and join
us for some good brisket, pork and sausage
plates with potato salad, noodles, beans and aU
the other trimmings
Serving will begin at 11 aun. with plates to go
or stay and eat at the community center while
visiting with friends. Thanks very much.
®fje Bastrop Sttertteer
Texas’ Oldest Weekly Newspaper
Since March 1,1883
Semi-Weekly Since Sept. 5,1977
Devoted to the welfare of the people of Bastrop
County. Published 104 times a year, Thursday and
Saturday by Westward Communications, LX.C.
at:
The Bastrop Advertiser Phone:
908 Water St. (512)321-2557
P.O. Box 459 or (800) 303-2557
Bastrop, Texas 78602 Fax:(512)321-1680
e-mail: bssadv^onrxom
Subscription rates: $36 per year or $20 per six
months delivered in county, $40 per year deliv-
ered out of county, $55 per year delivered out of
state (all are payable in advance). Periodic postage
paid at Bastrop, Texas 78602. POSTMASTER:
Send address changes to:
The Bastrop Advertiser, P.O. Box 459,
Bastrop, Texas 78602-0459
an - t nt iia
jWreHbte.* Janice Butler
fitter.* Davis McAniey
jjparik^ snterhrimnenr adbkw/
pniteHoa utaaager: Keith Magee
Staff miters: Jason Snchouasl (news),
Elen Moore (features, uvunta)
Csnftiftatiag writer*.* John Stoiarsk,
Ernest Shnasoas, DonaM WManm
(ootrihrdiag photographers .* Charles Bell,
Michael Amador, Christen Carbon
Ovafatioa.* Brenda Sharirl
Cfass^fed^ sniuerqufens.* Carolyn Weight
CtfSc* manure: Chaly PHhri
ftattfea.- Pans Richardson, Yolanda GBbort
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McAuley, Davis. The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 145, No. 35, Ed. 1 Saturday, June 27, 1998, newspaper, June 27, 1998; Bastrop, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1177661/m1/4/: accessed May 21, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Bastrop Public Library.