News stories from Thursday March 13, 1980
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- All 50 American hostages are alive and are still held in the United States Embassy in Teheran, according to a State Department official who said that Washington had firm evidence for his announcement. The Islamic militants who have held the captives since Nov. 4 have not made available a list of them. [New York Times]
- Washington's censure of Israel for deciding to expropriate Arab-owned land outside Jerusalem prompted a rebuke from its Mayor, Teddy Kollek. He criticized President Carter for allowing his administration to issue statements that "make Jerusalem's life as one city more difficult." [New York Times]
- Imposition of a fee on imported oil intended to raise gasoline prices by up to 10 cents a gallon will be proposed tomorrow by President Carter in his anti-inflation package, according to congressional and White House sources. Mr. Carter will announce his anti-inflation plan in a televised talk at 4:30 P.M. and will hold a news conference at 9 P.M. Administration aides said that an oil import fee was essential because White House and congressional conferees were still several billion dollars short of the $21 billion in savings needed to balance the next budget. [New York Times]
- The Ford Pinto trial ended in acquittal as the auto manufacturer was exonerated of charges of reckless homicide in the deaths of three young women in a Pinto that burst into flames when it was hit from behind by another vehicle. The verdict came after 25 hours of deliberation by an Indiana jury. The charges were believed to be the most serious of this kind ever filed against an American automaker. [New York Times]
- An anti-Gerald Ford drive by John Connally was reported by associates of former President Ford. They said that the former Governor of Texas had helped persuade two key governors in Texas and Ohio against backing Mr. Ford's entry into the Republican presidential contest and that their shift could prove to be a decisive deterrent to his candidacy. [New York Times]
- The $1 political fund checkoffs on income tax returns will apparently produce enough funds for the 1980 presidential election with considerable money to spare. The fund had more than $135 million on Jan. 1 and is expected to collect at least $30 million more in the first half of 1980. [New York Times]
- A death sentence for John Wayne Gacy in the murders of 33 boys and young men was decided by a Chicago jury after deliberating for two hours and 15 minutes. The panel found the 37-year-old building contractor guilty of the murders Wednesday after less than two hours of deliberation. An execution date of June 2 was set, pending a legally required appeal. [New York Times]
- Reactor damage may be less extensive than was suspected, according to the first humans to peek into the room housing the disabled reactor at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant, which was shut down a year ago. A senior plant official said that entry into the damaged reactor building may be possible in several weeks. [New York Times]
- A school prayer law was overturned by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. It ruled that the state's six-week-old statute was an unconstitutional sponsorship of religion despite its provisions for voluntary participation. [New York Times]
- A hearing for Jean Harris was put off as the prosecution indicated uncertainty over the circumstances of the slaying of Dr. Herman Tarnower, her longtime friend. Mrs. Harris is accused of fatally shooting the noted cardiologist and author Monday night at his home in Purchase, N.Y. A one-day adjournment was granted by a justice, who rejected a prosecution request for a postponement of three weeks so that a grand jury could determine the specific charge. [New York Times]
- Britain's boycott of the Olympics this summer was pressed by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The government annnounced that civil servants and military personnel would not be granted special leave to compete in Moscow and it ended its diplomatic liaison between British competitors and Soviet sports authorities. [New York Times]
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Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 809.56 (-9.98, -1.22%)
Arms Index is the ratio of volume per declining issue to volume per advancing issue; a figure below 1.0 is bullish. | |||||||||||||||
| Market Index Trends | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | DJIA | S&P | Volume* |
| March 12, 1980 | 819.54 | 106.92 | 37.99 |
| March 11, 1980 | 826.45 | 107.76 | 41.42 |
| March 10, 1980 | 818.94 | 106.51 | 43.54 |
| March 7, 1980 | 820.56 | 106.90 | 50.95 |
| March 6, 1980 | 828.07 | 108.65 | 49.61 |
| March 5, 1980 | 844.88 | 111.13 | 49.25 |
| March 4, 1980 | 856.48 | 112.78 | 44.31 |
| March 3, 1980 | 854.35 | 112.50 | 38.68 |
| February 29, 1980 | 863.14 | 113.66 | 38.80 |
| February 28, 1980 | 854.44 | 112.35 | 40.31 |