Jury Indicts Grad Student In New York

An Erie County, N.Y., grand jury originally convened to investigate the causes of student disorder at the State University of New York's Buffalo campus yesterday indicted a graduate student on14 counts of larceny.

The grand jury, which has been in session since last March, was given the task of investigating a series of disruptions which occurred in late February at the campus.

The disruptions at the university originally centered around the use of a black student association's funds for athletic equipment, and escalated during the months of March and April when a 400-man police force was stationed on the campus.

The student, John Case, was formally charged with three counts of second degree grand larceny, ten counts of third degree grand larceny, and one count of petty larceny.

If convicted, Case could receive a maximum of 63 years in prison. Bail was set at $5000.

The charges against Case stem from an alleged "misuse of funds" in his position as Treasurer of the Graduate Students Association.

The Association has contributed funds in the past year to a number of projects in the Buffalo area, allegedly without the consent of the group's Executive Council which was in charge of such decisions.

According to the new Treasurer of the Association, Samuel Lawn, Case was responsible for an allotment of "over $15,000 in authorized funds."

Investments made by the association in the past year have included a bookstore with a large selection of radical literature, a people's food exchange, a day care center, and a speaker's fund which sponsored a visit by Abbie Hoffman last year.

While grand juries have previously indicted students for inciting riots, this is the first instance of a student being indicted for "misuse of funds" in connection with campus disorders.