SAPAC, AAPD to pass out lights

In an effort to improve safety in off-campus neighborhoods, the Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center, in conjunction with the Ann Arbor Police Department, will distribute lighting devices to area houses tomorrow.

When connected to the socket of a porch light, the photo-sensitive cells cause the porch lights to turn on automatically after dark and turn off when it becomes light again. The lights, because they remain on only at night, also save energy.

SAPAC Training and Education Program Coordinator Sarah Heuser said she hopes the project will make students walking in off-campus neighborhoods feel safer.

"If it can help them feel more comfortable ... it will be a positive thing," she said.

Heuser said there is a crucial feature of the devices that must be taken into account by residents.

"One of the most important things about these photocells is that you have to keep their light switches on at all times," she said.

Getting neighborhood residents involved will also bring the issue of safety to people's attention, Heuser said.

"I hope it will increase awareness about personal and community safety," she said.

Ann Arbor Mayor Ingrid Sheldon said she is pleased the city and SAPAC have come together on the project.

"I'm really quite excited by the student initiative and that we are able to help out SAPAC in such a beneficial way," Sheldon said.

Deputy Police Chief Craig Roderick said when SAPAC approached him with concerns it had about improperly lit areas around campus, he thought the distribution of photo-sensitive cells could help.

The city was already in possession of several cells left over from a similar project of a few years ago.

The lights were originally purchased with grant money given to the city by Detroit Edison Co.

Tomorrow's project will target South Forest Avenue between Willard and Oakland streets. Volunteers will travel door to door to distribute the devices and explain to residents how to install them.

If time and the amount of volunteers permit, the project will be expanded to include East University and Church streets.

Heuser said the search for volunteers is ongoing. Anyone interested in helping with the distribution should meet the group on the corner of South and East University tomorrow at 2:15 p.m. The project is expected to last until 4:30.

Confessed murderer tried to buy bullets

Muskegon County Prosecutor Tony Tague released photographs he said show Seth Privacky attempting to buy 22-caliber bullets Saturday night at a grocery store.

Privacky is being held on $5 million bail on charges he allegedly shot his parents, brother, grandfather and brother's girlfriend early Sunday afternoon.

One of his classmates, Steven Wallace, is also being held on $5 million bail on the same charges. Authorities say Wallace helped Privacky get rid of the alleged murder weapon and clean up after the shootings.

Both Wallace and Privacky have made statements to police about their involvement. A preliminary examination for both is scheduled for Dec. 15.

Authorities say Privacky told them he shot five people to death because of problems he was having with his father, Stephen Privacky. He told police that his father threatened to kick him out of the house the morning of the shootings.

The victims were identified as Stephen Privacky, a fifth-grade teacher; his wife, Linda Privacky, a receptionist at a medical office in Muskegon; their older son, Jedediah Privacky; Jedediah's girlfriend, April Boss and Stephen Privacky's father, John Privacky.

Tague said the photos show Privacky at the store about midnight Saturday, when he initially tried to buy the bullets but was turned down by a clerk because he was not 21, the legal age to buy ammunition. Privacky returned a few hours later, Tague said, but the same clerk was still on duty and refused to make the sale.

"This shows clear premeditation on the part of Seth Privacky to commit the homicides," Tague said.

Tague said a box of ammunition was found in the Privacky home, but investigators have yet to determine where it came from.

Also yesterday, authorities released autopsy results. Tague said they show the victims died about 1:30 p.m. Sunday. All were shot in the head, except the grandfather, who was shot twice in the neck, Tague said.

Authorities were called to the Privacky home late Sunday night, when April Boss' family went to the home to find her. Instead, they found Stephen Privacky's body on the driveway and called police.

Wallace was caught running out of the woods almost immediately after authorities arrived at the home. Privacky was arrested Monday afternoon without a struggle after police received a tip he was hiding in a nearby pole barn.

The news continues to stun the small rural west Michigan community. Both suspects had no history of violence. Privacky had been arrested for shoplifting; Wallace had no criminal record.

Shane Allen, who attended school and frequently played guitar with both suspects, said he's accepted their guilt, but doesn't know what went wrong.

"As far as I knew, they were a Beaver Cleaver family," Allen said.

Allen said he recalls Privacky was disappointed earlier this fall when his father decided to delay giving him $2,000 to buy a used Ford Probe but didn't seem upset.

But Allen also remembers how Stephen Privacky insisted his son take responsibility for his actions. He made his son tell Allen about his shoplifting arrest.

"He said, 'Shane deserves to know, he's a friend of yours.'

"He said, 'Don't be ashamed. ... What you did, you've got to live up to it."'

12-03-98