B4 transition from B1


minute contracts or moved politi- cal appointees into civil-service jobs.


But former Ward 6 council member Sharon Ambrose said she expects the next three months will be a period of stabil- ity and cooperation. “It’s an older and wiser group.


Everybody understands that there is a lot of work to be done,” said Ambrose, who was on the council in 2006 in the months be- fore Fenty was elevated from council member to mayor. “I don’t look for any sniping or bit- terness to spill over” from the election.


‘Potential for conflict’ Only twice before under Home


Rule has a sitting mayor been de- feated in an election, the last of whom was Sharon Pratt 16 years ago. Gray would be the first sit- ting council chairman ever elect- ed mayor. Council member Kwame R. Brown (D-At Large) won the Democratic nomination to replace him.


Both men must face voters in


the Nov. 2 general election, but their election is all but a certainty in a city where three out of four voters are Democrats. Gray and Brown live in Hill- crest in Ward 7, marking the first time that both the mayor and council chairman have lived east of the Anacostia River. Their ascendance represents a historic shift in influence, cross- ing the river’s cultural and eco- nomic divide. Unemployment east of the river is at least three times higher than in other parts of the city. Brown’s elevation will set off


jockeying over who will replace him as chairman of the influ- ential economic development committee. Gray’s departure also promises to realign the balance of power on the 13-member council in a re- shuffling of political alliances. Members Michael A. Brown (I-


At Large), Harry Thomas Jr. (D- Ward 5), Marion Barry (D-Ward 8) and Yvette M. Alexander (D- Ward 7) all endorsed Gray and could see their influence grow. Moderate members who often aligned with Fenty — Jack Evans (D-Ward 2), Jim Graham (D- Ward 1) and Muriel Bowser (D- Ward 4) — could see their clout wane. “We had an election, and


[Gray] won fair and square, and we are going to support him,” Bowser said. “There is a potential for conflict, but I think we are all tired of it.” Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6),


Mary M. Cheh (D-Ward 3) and Catania, all of whom have sup- port among whites, are emerging as potential power brokers. Cheh, who faces a Republican opponent in November, endorsed Gray 10 days before the primary, and the two consider themselves good friends. Wells and Catania were neutral in the mayor’s race,


KATHERINE FREY/THE WASHINGTON POST


Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray, who won the Democratic mayoral primary, said his Cabinet would look “like the city.”


denying Fenty two potential en- dorsements that could have helped him rally support in the white community. Fenty dominated in majority-


“We need to focus on the eco- nomic disparities between wards 8 and 7 and areas west of [Rock Creek Park], and we need to re- distribute the assets,” Barry said


“This will require a great deal of


patience and goodwill on all sides.” — D.C. Council member David A. Catania


white neighborhoods, racking up about 80 percent of the vote in Wards 2 and 3. As Gray seeks to try to make in- roads with voters who didn’t sup- port him, he’s likely to turn to Wells, Cheh and Catania for ad- vice and support. Tensions will probably persist


as differing wings of the council and local Democratic party vie for Gray’s attention in the coming weeks.


At the Democratic State Com-


mittee unity breakfast, Barry said the election is ushering in an era in which there will be a “redistri- bution” of city services to com- munities east of the Anacostia.


in an interview. Cheh, who represents some of


the city’s wealthiest neighbor- hoods in Upper Northwest, dis- missed Barry’s remarks as “rheto- ric.”


Decisions ahead Almost immediately, Fenty and


Gray will be forced to come to- gether to close a significant budg- et gap. The fiscal year ends Sept. 30, and officials could be faced with finding as much as $100 million in savings to cover shortfalls this year and next. “There’s really only one issue, and that’s money,” said Evans, chairman of the council’s finance


BILL O’LEARY/THE WASHINGTON POST


D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, speaking at a news conference last week after his defeat, will remain in office until Jan. 2.


S


KLMNO Fenty, Gray pledge smooth transition in D.C. committee.


Already identified is $35 mil- lion in expected fiscal 2011 Med- icaid funding that was not ap- proved by Congress. An addition- al $20 million needs to be found to cover lower-than-anticipated Medicaid reimbursements for the school system in the current year. Next week, the city’s financial of- fice is expected to release its quarterly revenue estimates for 2011. Evans said Friday that he ex- pects the figure to approach $50 million. “I’m not sure if I’m the mayor,


I’d make any tough decisions at this point,” Evans said Friday. “I’d just kick it to the council.” The location and magnitude of


cuts could preview the coming year’s budget negotiations. Gray’s first budget is due in March, and barring a significant and unex- pected economic rebound, the choices will be difficult. One key unresolved transition- al issue is the city’s acquisition in July of United Medical Center, the only hospital east of the Ana- costia. The city’s takeover of the facil-


ity is a rare instance of inter- branch cooperation in recent years, led by Attorney General Pe- ter Nickles and Catania, chair- man of the health panel. Catania, running against token opposition, is expected to be re- elected in November, but Nickles announced that he would leave his post by December. Nickles has convened weekly


meetings of 20 key players in the hospital’s operations in his Wil- son Building office, in addition to daily conference calls.


“One of the problems you have with the government running something that is essentially a private enterprise is that the gov- ernment can’t act decisively,” Nickles said. Evans expressed concern about who might fill that role under Gray. “Peter is at the head of the table. He’s the one running the meetings, directing people, and he’s quite good at it,” Evans said. To compound the challenges, the coming months are certain to see the departures of top exec- utives who do not think they will play a role in a Gray administra- tion. The exodus began Friday, when State Superintendent of Education Kerri L. Briggs an- nounced her resignation, effec- tive immediately. Gray will be faced with as- sembling a team that meets the expectations of the coalition that elected him. On WAMU (88.5 FM) Friday, he said he would assemble a Cabinet that “looks like the city” — a seeming reference to criticism of Fenty that he did not appoint enough African Amer- icans to lead agencies in a city that is majority black. craigt@washpost.com debonism@washpost.com


Staff writer Ann E. Marimow contributed to this report.


MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2010 OBITUARIES JOHN C. FREEBORN, 90


Royal Air Force pilot during World War II


“I think about him nearly every by T. Rees Shapiro


Early on the morning of Sept. 6, 1939, Royal Air Force fighter pi- lot John C. Freeborn received word from his commanding offi- cer: Get to your Spitfire, on the double. A German air raid is in- bound. Through


John C. Freeborn


what he later called “heavy, heavy mist,” Mr. Freeborn took off from Hornchurch, near London, and pressed the throttle to intercept en- emy planes


heading for the British coast. It was the first week of World


War II, and Mr. Freeborn, a 19- year-old grammar school drop- out, was eager to get to the fight. Soon after taking off, he and another squadron mate, Paddy Byrne, came up behind two en- emy planes. Under direct orders, the Brit- ish pilots fired off their machine guns and watched as both air- craft in front of them spiraled to the ground. When Mr. Freeborn returned to base he expected to be swarmed with congratulations — he was the first British pilot to re- cord a “kill” in the war. Instead, he and Byrne were placed under arrest. The sup- posed German fighters they had downed were actually two British Hurricanes dispatched from a base not far from Hornchurch. No German planes were attack- ing that day.


One of the downed pilots, dropped by Byrne’s guns, sur- vived the attack. The other, Pilot Officer Montague Hulton-Har- rop, was killed by Mr. Freeborn, becoming the first RAF casualty of the war. Mr. Freeborn, who died


Aug. 28 at the age of 90 in South- port, England, went on to become one of the most highly decorated British airmen of World War II. He flew more combat hours in


the Battle of Britain during the summer of 1940 than any other RAF pilot.


Recording at least a dozen con-


firmed kills, Mr. Freeborn twice received Britain’s Distinguished Flying Cross. For all of his accomplishments,


he never shook the remorse he felt about killing a countryman that morning in 1939. In recent years, he had visited Hulton-Har- rop’s grave.


day, I always have done,” Mr. Freeborn told the BBC last year. “I’ve had a good life, and he should have had a good life, too.” Mr. Freeborn and Byrne were


court-martialed for the incident, accused by their flight leader, Adolph “Sailor” Malan, of dis- obeying a last-minute order to hold their fire. Both were acquit- ted, and Hulton-Harrop’s friend- ly-fire death was attributed to a breakdown of communication. Mr. Freeborn later said the friendly-fire death toll would have been higher if not for an- other squadron pilot who inter- vened. “He got in the way, and I was shouting at him to get out of the bloody way, to either shoot or let me shoot,” Mr. Freeborn said in a 2004 interview with Gavin Morti- mer that appeared last week in the Smithsonian’s Air and Space magazine. “But then he said, ‘It’s one of ours.’ When the adrenaline is running, you don’t realize these things at the time.” John Connell Freeborn was born Dec. 1, 1919, in Middleton, a small suburb of Leeds, England. He left grammar school at 16 and joined the RAF in 1938, where he made 14 shillings a week and shot pheasant in his spare time. He later visited his classmates after flight school by landing his plane on a nearby cricket pitch. After his success in the Battle of Britain, Mr. Freeborn was sent to the United States to train American pilots and test proto- type aircraft. During that time, he reportedly befriended Hollywood starlet Betty Grable and had a brief romance with her. He finished the war in Europe as one of the youngest wing com- manders in the RAF and separat- ed from the service in 1946. As a civilian, Mr. Freeborn


worked as the regional director for a soft-drink distributorship. He retired early to care for his wife, Rita, who died in 1980. His second wife, Peta, died in


2001. Survivors include a daugh- ter from his first marriage. In the 2004 interview with


Mortimer, Mr. Freeborn recalled his first enemy kill, a German Messerschmitt 109.


“I rolled, went through some cloud, and came out behind him,” Mr. Freeborn said. “I gave him a squirt or two, and down he went straight into the cottage of an old farmer who was out plowing his fields. And I can see to this day the farmer standing there shak- ing his fist at me.” shapirot@washpost.com


New prosecutor, sheriff face challenges in Pr. George’s crime from B1


challenges taking on crime in the Washington region’s third-largest jurisdiction. Though crime has fallen to re- cord low levels in Maryland, Prince George’s still suffers the state’s second-highest violent crime rate, and it exceeds every other jurisdiction in rapes, stolen vehicles and burglaries. While several candidates in the


five-way race for state’s attorney spoke about the need to hire more prosecutors, the county also faces daunting economic problems. Prince George’s County has the highest number of foreclosures in the state and a tax base that is only about 44 percent of neigh- boring Montgomery County’s. “They need more person pow-


er, because the caseload is over- whelming,” said Dorothy “Caro- lyn” Lowe, president of the Wil- liamsburg Estates Citizens Association. “Now the office has to find the funds to hire these state’s attor- neys,” Lowe said. Having all but locked up the position through her victory in Tuesday’s Democratic primary, Alsobrooks said she hopes to de- velop a program to reduce crimi-


nal recidivism by turning to tac- tics that San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris has used. Harris, a Democrat who is the


first African American woman to serve as San Francisco’s DA and is now running for California attor- ney general, has achieved nation- al prominence for innovative ap- proaches to crime fighting, in- cluding the Back on Track program for nonviolent first of- fenders. The program offers offenders


ages 18 to 24 the opportunity to channel their energy into learn- ing new skills, according to Cali- fornia media reports. After pleading guilty, the of- fenders attend an 18-month, in- tensive apprenticeship program with a city college. They can grad- uate only by steering clear of crime and staying in school or maintaining a job. In a telephone interview


Wednesday, Alsobrooks said one of her first steps will be meeting with assistant county prosecutors and State’s Attorney Glenn Ivey to assess the status and needs of the office, where she has previ- ously served.


She said she also intends to meet with the county’s chief


judge, other members of the judi- ciary and the defense bar. In ad- dition to setting up a program like Back on Track, she plans to take an aggressive stand against elder abuse, she said.


She also plans to recruit the best legal talent. “I expect professionalism,” Alsobrooks said. “I expect prepa- ration.”


Alsobrooks, 39, a single mother who heads the county’s Revenue Authority, won Tuesday’s primary with 42.3 percent of the vote. She had received endorsements from Ivey and the county’s police union, among others. Alsobrook’s closest competitor was former County Council Chairman Thomas E. Dernoga, who picked up 21.1 percent of the vote.


Circuit Court Clerk Peggy Ma-


gee finished third with 18 per- cent, followed by Assistant State’s Attorney Joseph L. Wright with 9.3 percent and Mark Spencer, in- spector general of the county po- lice, with 9.2 percent. No Republicans are running, and because the county is over- whelmingly Democratic, victory in the primary basically amounts to victory, period. High, 66, served as Norfolk’s police chief and worked as an as- sistant chief in the District’s Met- ropolitan Police Department be- fore being hired as Prince George’s chief of police by out- going County Executive Jack B. Johnson in 2003. High took over a department


that was battling high crime rates and saddled with a reputation for excessive force and other notable abuses.


During his tenure, the depart- ment was criticized for its role in a poorly planned and executed 2009 drug raid — led by the coun-


ty sheriff ’s office — that wrongly targeted the mayor of Berwyn Heights and resulted in the shooting of two dogs. “We are making progress,”


High said Friday. “Clearly, we’re not where we want to be with crime and our relations with the community, but we’re making progress.” He retired as police chief in Au- gust 2009. High has a lead of 2,788 votes,


or 3.24 percent of the tally, over Rafael Hylton, a sergeant in the county sheriff ’s office and former county police lieutenant. Hylton said that if he were


sheriff, he would focus on clear- ing up a backlog of thousands of unserved warrants. “The reason property taxes are high in Prince George’s County is that we’re not attracting inves- tors,” Hylton said. “The reason we don’t attract investors is because we’re perceived to be a lawless so- ciety.” Hylton said he is holding out hope that uncounted ballots will bring him victory. “We’re waiting to see what the


final total’s going to be,” Hylton, 57, said Saturday, adding that he had heard that as many as 15,000 provisional votes remained to be counted — an assertion that could not be immediately con- firmed.


Speaking earlier, Alisha L. Al-


exander, elections administrator for the Prince George’s County Board of Elections, said at least about 1,150 absentee ballots and about 2,200 provisional ballots remained to be counted. Alexan- der said Friday that the ballots will be tallied Wednesday. Hylton would have to pick up 82 percent of those remaining ballots to overcome the deficit. kunklef@washpost.com


JAMES BACON, 96


Chronicler of Hollywood stars often befriended his subjects


After a St. Patrick’s Day lunch by Christopher Weber


James Bacon, who began his career at the Associated Press in the 1940s and spent six decades chronicling Hollywood’s biggest stars as a reporter, author and syndicated columnist, died Sept. 18 of congestive heart fail- ure at his home in Northridge, Calif. He was 96.


James Bacon


As a report- er for the AP for 23 years and later as a columnist for the now-de- funct Los An- geles Herald Examiner, Mr. Bacon had a knack for be- friending A- list celebri-


ties. He palled around with John Wayne, shared whiskey with Frank Sinatra, was a confidant of Marilyn Monroe and met eight U.S. presidents. Mr. Bacon accompanied Eliza-


beth Taylor’s physician to her home to break the news of the death of her third husband, Mike Todd, in a plane crash. After filing his story with the AP, Mr. Bacon, the only reporter in the house, briefed the reporters outside. Once posing as a coroner, Mr. Bacon made his way past a police barricade to get Lana Turner’s firsthand account of the fatal stabbing of her lover Johnny Stompanato by her daughter Cheryl Crane. Operating in an era when me-


dia agents posed few restrictions, Mr. Bacon often found himself drinking with his subjects.


with Wayne went into the night, the pair hired a taxi to take them from Los Angeles to Mission San Juan Capistrano, where they hoped see the swallows that re- turn each year from their winter- ing grounds. After arriving at the Southern California mission in the morning, a priest told them they were a week early. They took the taxi back to Los Angeles. Years later, Mr. Bacon broke


the story of Wayne’s cancer. Mr. Bacon spent 18 years at the


Herald Examiner and went on to write books. Most recently, he wrote a weekly column about Hollywood’s golden years for the magazine Beverly Hills 213, which carried his last piece in June.


Born James Richard Hughes Bacon on May 12, 1914, in Buffalo, he was inspired to become a jour- nalist by his father, Thomas Ba- con, who worked for William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pul- itzer. Mr. Bacon joined the AP in Al-


bany, N.Y., as a general assign- ment reporter in 1942 before serving in the Navy in World War II. He rejoined the AP in Chicago in 1946 and moved to the Los An- geles bureau two years later. Survivors include his wife of 44 years, the former Doris Klein; their three children, James B. Ba- con of Granada Hills, Calif., Thomas C. Bacon of Manhattan Beach, Calif., and Margaret Ba- con Smith of Los Angeles; two children from his first marriage, Roger Bacon and Kathleen Brooks, both of Ventura, Calif.; a sister; 15 grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren. — Associated Press


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