ite vowing he plans to win TDC laws uiV By LARRY BOWEN ITEM Staff Writer HUNTSVILLE ITEM MAR 2 g .81 Texas Attorney General Mark White vowed Friday to win the lawsuit in- itiated by former Texas Department of Corrections inmate David Ruiz against the TDC, despite the unfavorable opi- nion issued in December by Federal Judge William Wayne Justice. White delivered a "state of the criminal justice system" message to the American Criminal Justice Association, Lambda Alpha Epsilon, national conference at the Criniinal Justice Center on the Sam Houston State University campus. "I am Jim Estelle's (Director of TDC) lawyer, and I can promise you that we are going to win that lawsuit," White said. The lawsuit accused the TDC of violating inmates' civil rights through overcrowding and prison conditions. Justice, whose December opinion sid- ed with the inmates, is expected to issue an order in April. "We are working to improve the situations in our prisons, but that is not good enough for the Justice Depart- ment," White said. "Sometimes I wonder what side the Justice Depart- ment is on." The long-range answer to the prison problems is not more construction, ac- cording to White. "We have to put some money and ef- fort into other programs, like educa- tion and prevention," he said. "It nas reached the point where we can't build prisons and put criminals in them as fast as the law is being broken." White said his concern was with the victims of crimes, instead of with the inmates. "I am worried about in- dividual rights, and I have a far greater sympathy for the victims than the criminals," he said. "We have a lot of lazy people in the penitentiary. They don't like it because they have to work. No one wants to go to the prison during planting or harvest time." White added, "The reason the in- mates filed the suit is because they are lazy. They wanted to get to a federal prison so they could just lay around or play tennis. "They are in prison because they would rather steal than work," he said. "There are plenty of jobs out there, but they don't want them. Nearly 70 percent of the inmates are in prison because of forgery, larceny, burglary or arrned robbery," he added. White encouraged members of the criminal justice association to talk to the average citizen and do something about the alienation of Law enforce- ment officials. "You should gain the support of the community in law enforcement. . ." White said. "You are in an elevated position of leadership and authority in law enforcement, and people should look to you for help and respect." State fund falls short for water development DALLAS TIMES HERALD APR 1 '81 AUSTIN (AP) — A Dallas member of the Texas Water Development Board said Tuesday the .state fund to help communities develop water fa- cilities only has $11 million to spread among requests for $60 million in pro- jects this year. Louis .Beecherl, a "serni.;rkired" petroleum engineer, said no bonds have been sold to support the fund in three years because the interest rate cannot exceed 6 per cent, and there is no market for the bonds. -moo, n from ground water to surface water, and that is a big problem," Beecher] said. Subcommittee chairman Peyton McKnight, D-Tyler, said East Texans "have been so blessed with ample wa- ter that we ,have not been as water- . eOnscidaflj We 'should have been. But we're beginning to wake up. We're guarding our water within wa- tersheds more than we did several years ago." "There will be a lot of problems Gun curb bid said doome SAN ANTONtO LIGHT By CLAY ROBISON Light's Austin Bureau Chief AP!? 1 AUSTIN — Not even the shoot- ing of President Reagan will per- suade the Legislature to enact tight controls over the purchase of hand- guns in Texas, a key House commit- tee chairman said. "I think anything relating to gun registration is doomed to failure be- fore it even gets out of the chute," state Rep. Tom Uher, a conservative, Democrat from Bay City, said Tues- day. In this case, the "chute" is the state affairs panel which Uher chairs and to which the only hand- gun regulation bill pending before the Legislature has been referred. Even though John Warnock Hinckley Jr., the man accused of shooting Reagan and three others Monday, allegedly purchased his pis- tol from a Dallas pawnshop, Uher contended the legislation proposed by state Rep. Paul Ragsdale, D- Dallas, wouldn't have prevented the assassination attempt. "He would have gone out and stolen a gun," Uher declared. But Ragsdale's chances of getting a committee hearing on his bill may have been enhanced Tuesday when Speaker Bill Clayton suggested the measure "might prove to be benefi- cial." Clayton noted Ragsdale's propos- al wouldn't ban the purchase of handguns but would only provide for a "cooling-off period" (of more than 48 hours) between the time the weapon was purchased and the time the buyer was allowed to take pos- session. The bill, the fourth Ragsdale has introduced on the same subject in as many legislative sessions, also would require the purchaser and the dealer to fill out prescribed forms that would be retained by the seller for two years. Individuals prohibited from pur- chasing handguns under the legisla- tion would include those with crimi- nal records and those who had been judged mentally incompetent. "In light of the recent tragedy in Washington, I am about ready to re- quest a hearing," Ragsdale said Tuesday, noting this version was "watered-down" from similar bills • . . • • " ,•-