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December 6, 2002
Berkeley mayor admits to Daily Cal theft after police investigate
The 1,000 copies stolen carried endorsement for his Election Day
opponent
© 2002 Student Press Law Center
CALIFORNIA - A month after 1,000 copies of the University of
California at Berkeley's student newspaper were stolen, university
police investigators have recommended the city mayor be charged
with petty theft.
Berkeley mayor Tom Bates admitted Thursday to being involved
in stealing and trashing copies of the Nov. 4 edition of The Daily
Californian. The edition, which carried an editorial endorsement
of his mayoral opponent, incumbent Shirley Dean, was stolen one
day before the election.
Several students witnessed Bates throwing the copies into the
trash and immediately informed police officials, said Rong-Gong
Lin, editor in chief of the Daily Cal. Throughout the past month,
Bates had denied any involvement with the theft.
"This is the mayor of Berkeley who has admitted to being responsible
for stealing newspapers a few feet away from the birthplace of
the free-speech movement," Lin said. "And he actually lied [about]
it to the Daily Californian."
Bates released a statement on Thursday apologizing for his actions
in the theft.
"There is no question that tossing newspapers is absolutely inappropriate
and unacceptable," Bates said in a statement. "I apologize on
behalf of myself and my supporters for our involvement in this
activity.
After a month-long investigation, U.C. police officials recommended
to the Alameda County District Attorney that Bates be charged
with petty theft.
District attorney officials said the case is still being investigated.
According to Mark Goodman, executive director of The Student
Press Law Center, a group that assists student journalists and
tracks student newspaper thefts across the country, The Daily
Cal has experienced numerous thefts in the past, though police
officials have taken no action.
"This is both a serious First Amendment violation and also a
crime," Goodman said. "I hope that appropriate measures are taken
to see that justice is done here."
In his statement, Bates attempted to show his support for free
speech.
"I think we all agree that campaigns must be about furthering
the free exchange of ideas. Any effort to impede this free exchange
is a great disservice to The Daily Californian and the people
of Berkeley," Bates stated.
The Daily Cal staff called for the mayor's resignation in an
editorial today.
"Bates has let down his political colleagues, his supporters
and, most of all, the city's residents who trusted him to be Berkeley's
mayor," the editorial stated. "The only honorable action Bates
can now do for Berkeley is to resign immediately."
Bates refused to comment on whether he will resign.
The theft at U.C. Berkeley is part of an ongoing problem for
America's college student media. Over the past month, at least
six thefts of college newspapers have been reported to the Student
Press Law Center.
For More Information: For more information, visit The Student
Press Law Center's Newspaper Theft Forum
Mike Hiestand
Student Press Law Center
1815 N. Fort Myer Drive, Suite 900
Arlington, VA 22209-1817
Phone: 703/807-1904
E-mail: splc@splc.org
Web site: www.splc.org
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