!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! ! ! ! Catt's Claws ... A Feminist Newsletter #60 ... August 28, 1995 ! ! ! !.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! THE TAMMY HAAS MYSTERY Excerpted from the *Argus Leader,* Sioux Falls and sent to Catt's Claws by M. Smith. (Others have also sent CC information.) 09/24/92 (yes, 1992) The body of a missing Yankton, South Dakota, woman was found Wednesday morning near a Nebraska golf course. Tammy Ann Haas, 19, had been missing since 12:30 a.m. Friday, when she walked home from a friend's residence in Yankton. Her partially unclothed body was found about 8 a.m. by a man who was searching for golf balls in a ravine along Highway 121 next to the golf course. Trauma type injuries were found on the head and extremities of the body, said Capt. Dave Winkler of the Nebraska State Patrol. "We've got some information that tells us it's a homicide," said Jeff Hanson of the Nebraska State Patrol, "I can't get right in to all the reasons." An autopsy was scheduled... 09/25/92 Nebraska authorities are conducting a second autopsy on a slain Yankton woman whose beaten body was found near a Crofton, Nebraska, golf course. Dr. Brad Randall of Sioux Falls said Thursday that he and a Nebraska State Patrol official completed an autopsy on 19-year-old Tammy Ann Haas on Wednesday night. But Nebraska officials decided a second autopsy must be done, and this time without him. Randall said it isn't uncommon to do a second autopsy, but the first coroner usually isn't excluded...He refused to talk about his results... 09/26/92 Autopsy reports show that a Yankton woman whose body was found near a Nebraska golf course died of a broken neck, authorities said Friday...Although authorities are still trying to piece together how Haas died, they are treating her death as a homicide..."Right now, from what we know, homicide is probably the best bet" said Winkler....Authorities refused to comment whether evidence indicates Haas' disappearance and death were caused by a stranger or someone she knew......Officials refused to comment on whether bruises found on her body indicated that she was trying to fight off an attacker... 09/29/92 Car seized in Yankton case...officers have taken a car into custody, but refused to say what evidence, if any, they had taken from the vehicle ... wouldn't specify who owned the car or where it was found, saying only that leads developed in the case led them to the vehicle...among the leads authorities have investigated are several rumors, including a report that Haas argued with her boyfriend before leaving the party. 10/22/92 Theory emerges in Yankton death. Authorities say they believe they know the story behind a Yankton woman's death, but no arrests have been made...law enforcement officers have a theory about the death...but they aren't sharing it...authorities have received test results that could determine whether Haas was sexually assaulted, but...refused to discuss them...about 10 of the original 27 officers are still working on the case...Cantin believes authorities can close the case eventually. 01/12/93 A Yankton woman who died last fall was stuck in the trunk of a vehicle before her body was found in a gully near a gold course, authorities said Monday. The information was the first released in the Haas case since late September...authorities refused to elaborate on the information or draw connections between existing evidence and Haas' death. "What we're saying was her body was in the trunk." "It is possible that Tammy Haas' death may have been unintentional; however, homicide continues to be a necessary focus of the investigation," a law enforcement release states. "Further, authorities have learned that the death of Tammy Haas did not occur at the location where her body was discovered." 04/2/93 Teen's death still under investigation. Leads continue to come in and many of them are from sources outside of Yankton. Police chief Cantin will not elaborate. 07/27/93 Girl's family seeking information on death-- TODAY - 08/95 - TWO YEARS AND ELEVEN MONTHS AFTER TAMMY HAAS DIED AFTER BEING BEATEN AND HER NECK BROKEN The police have refused to share any information in the investigation with even the family of Tammy Haas. The family and friends have formed the Tammy Haas' task force "PULSE" - Public Understanding Let the Silence End. No arrests have been made. No further information has been released. There is an official story. > - < Catt's Claws has been doing some checking on this story since it was brought to our attention a few weeks ago. Our number one question is WHY WASN'T/HASN'T THE FBI BEEN BROUGHT IN ????? Tammy Haas was last seen in South Dakota, her body was found, obviously having been moved, in Nebraska. Hey, that's over state lines. WHAT'S WITH THE NEBRASKA STATE CRIME LAB ??? AND WHY ARE THE NEWSPAPERS OF TWO STATES SITTING ON THE STORY AND NOT AGGRESSIVELY CHASING IT? Rumors persist that a young man, the son of a prominent Yankton, S.D. businessman with strong political ties, is involved. Rumor has it that he owned the car that was seized for evidence. Rumor states that the car was tested without a proper search warrant so no evidence can be used in the prosecution and the car has been allowed to "disappear." CC's second question is why the Nebraska and Yankton police and political structure are allowed to keep this matter secret. As a former police reporter who covered such pretty gruesome murders, this whole thing stinks. Certain things about a case may be held in secret if the police believe such evidence may determine the identity of the killer, but to this extent? NEVER ! Tammy Haas, 19, was robbed of her entire life when she was beaten, her neck broken, her body violated - and even in death her body was obviously moved and hidden so that she would be prevented from receiving a proper burial. Her murderer should face a jury and public scrutiny, not have discussions with a few good 'ole boys who run police departments. Help Tammy's family and justice for all young women who are robbed of their lives ... send more information and let's get some justice for Tammy and her family. ....................... * ........................ In Egypt, women activists are trying to amend the standard marriage contract to give women more of a voice in the make-up and break-up of their marriages according to the *Voice of America.* A proposed new contract would give men and women equal rights to request a divorce AND HAVE IT GRANTED, the right to continue her education and to travel without her husband's consent. Although the feminist scholars say the new contract is true to the rules of the Prophet, some conservatives maintain Islamic law does not permit women to travel unescorted or seek a divorce from their husbands on grounds that women are too emotional to make such a drastic decision. Egyptian feminists are also seeking enforcement of the minimum marriage law (16 for a girl) to be enforced. It is estimated that nearly 80% of Egyptian women are illiterate. ....................... * ........................ Reginald McFadden, a convicted murderer freed by Pennsylvania's former governor, was found guilty of battering, raping, and robbing a New York woman only months after his release. The 55-year-old victim, Jeremy Brown, had been subjected to a lengthy, vicious cross-examination in court by McFadden, who acted as his own attorney. Following the verdict, Brown called a press conference to protest her treatment in court. "I was tortured by him for five hours; then I had to let him ask me ridiculous questions" in court, she said. "I'd like to see him tortured, as I was." McFadden had served only 24 years of a life sentence for murder in Pennsylvania when he was released. He faces another murder charge in New York. ....................... * ........................ EL (Women's Electoral Lobby) Australia, a national lobby group for all Australian women since 1972, now has a home page on the World Wide Web at: http://www.pcug.org.au/other/wel/ ....................... * ........................ Although Calvin Klein said he believes in the "positive message of these ads," he has withdrawn those showing very young models in shorts that reveal their underwear - or even wearing no shorts at all. For several years Klein's TV ads have come under fire because they could be interpreted as soft-porn and this particular series as kiddie-porn. ....................... * ........................ Ignoring the fact that Republican then-President George Bush approved the 1995 Women's Conference site for China, a lot of religious supremacists and their trained political seals in Congress are criticizing First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton because she will attend the conference. While the seals bark about Rodham Clinton's attending a world conference for women, not a single bark from them to suggest pulling out all the Amerikan bu$$ine$$ interests from China that range from McDonalds to human transplant organs - all of which help keep China's economy afloat ... in other words, business profits above human rights. (P.S. How come the Clinton administration didn't get any credit for getting Wu out of China?) ....................... * ........................ "Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia." -- Charles Schultz ....................... * ........................ To receive Catt's Claws by email, write and in the body of the note No name, nothing else. ....................... * ........................ Women's rights are young and tender and we must protect them from the plagues of holy hypocrisy and newts. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- >>> Send your ideas, comments, and news to irenestuber@delphi.com for inclusion in the Catt's Claws feminist newsletter which will be emailed approximately three times a week. It is NOT an interactive discussion net but an exchange of information and is NOT sponsored by any organization. We are accepting *limited* donations (only what can be spared) to help offset the online costs of posting Catt's Claws. Irene Stuber. PO Box 6185, Hot Springs, AR 71902.<<<<