To: Big 12 campus security directors
My name is Tom Karst, graduate of K-State and trade journalist living in the Kansas City region. As some of you may know, I have a blog about campus security. As a service to targeted readers - parents and students - I address issues of campus crime and security polices.
Please assist with me in periodic surveys about security polices. Your responses will be noted and published in my blog posts about campus security at Big 12 universities. If you are not authorized to speak on behalf of your university, please pass my email on to the appropriate communications people at your university and have them email me in a timely way. Thanks!
Survey: Please respond by June 6
1. How can students and parents find out about campus crime statistics at your school? (Please provide Web link)
2. Where can students and parents finds recent daily campus police logs at your school? (Please provide Web link)
3. Does your university have a stated policy on illegal alcohol and drug use? If so, what is your policy?
4.What the single most important factor in the ability of students to avoid being victimized by personal and property crimes at your school?
5. Do your security officers carry weapons? Does your university have a stated position on concealed carry by students or faculty?
6. What's the single most significant change to campus/residence hall security policies or procedures in the past five years? Please provide a link or email any helpful powerpoint presentations on student security,if possible.
Best regards
Tom Karst
Campus Security Blog
tckarst@gmail.com
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Crime kits at UW
From Seattle, a story about crime kits at the University of Washington:
SEATTLE - A rash of violent attacks around the University of Washington this year has prompted some students to take matters into their own hands.
As part of an entrepreneurship class, four UW students created and are now selling "W Defense" - a safety kit with police-grade pepper spray and a whistle. "Our name and our slogan that we have is that everyone deserves to have a safe night out," said Skye Potter. Some students will tell you several high-profile attacks in and around campus have rocked their sense of security. In January, a young female student was bludgeoned with a hammer when she went to move her car. The four UW students saw a business opportunity.
"We knew there was a need for it," said Jordan Reynolds. "We also knew we can make a positive impact on our community. So it's a win-win for us." As part of a project for a business class, four UW students are selling safety kits containing whistles and pepper spray.
"At the end of the quarter, depending on our profitability, we’re gonna kinda re-evaluate things to see how we can move forward," Reynolds said.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
If studying abroad....
From a blog about education, the risks of studying abroad..
Tip: the biggest safety risk for US students abroad is going out together with a group of other American students. Yesterday, while doing errands in my neighborhood, I saw a group of American college students sitting together at a cafe. There were about eight of them, and they had that just-landed look. They had to be students at the local university, here as part of a program (lots of those here). I was a few tables away, but couldn’t help noticing what was going on around the students. What they didn’t see were the two guys across the street eyeing them, the four friends sitting at the table next to them talking about the purses the girls were carrying, or the two businessmen next to me discussing the two iPhones two of the guys were playing with. You see, there’s nothing more conspicuous than a group of American students abroad, and if there are those looking for an easy target, well, the groups are the best bet–they’re distracted, they’re speaking English loudly, they are carrying way more than they need, and they aren’t being careful about their cameras or watches or whatever. (Even if someone has bothered to tell them how to behave here, they have a false sense of security because they are always surrounded by other Americans.) I’m not saying that any of my Argentine neighbors had any ill intentions–just that the students were oblivious to the fact that others around them were definitely noticing them and talking about them. And that’s usually not a good thing. At all.
I’ve interviewed nearly 200 students who have studied abroad, and groupers have a FAR higher rate of experiencing crime (theft) than the indies. Anyway. More on this in the book, but suffice it say that those who are paying top dollar for the packages because they think it’s safer need to wake up and see that being a conspicuous American student abroad–in a group of others–is far more dangerous than connecting with locals and learning how to blend in as an indie. So, yeah. Not really recommending the group plans for a number of reasons, but I’m happy to hear your comments.
Tip: the biggest safety risk for US students abroad is going out together with a group of other American students. Yesterday, while doing errands in my neighborhood, I saw a group of American college students sitting together at a cafe. There were about eight of them, and they had that just-landed look. They had to be students at the local university, here as part of a program (lots of those here). I was a few tables away, but couldn’t help noticing what was going on around the students. What they didn’t see were the two guys across the street eyeing them, the four friends sitting at the table next to them talking about the purses the girls were carrying, or the two businessmen next to me discussing the two iPhones two of the guys were playing with. You see, there’s nothing more conspicuous than a group of American students abroad, and if there are those looking for an easy target, well, the groups are the best bet–they’re distracted, they’re speaking English loudly, they are carrying way more than they need, and they aren’t being careful about their cameras or watches or whatever. (Even if someone has bothered to tell them how to behave here, they have a false sense of security because they are always surrounded by other Americans.) I’m not saying that any of my Argentine neighbors had any ill intentions–just that the students were oblivious to the fact that others around them were definitely noticing them and talking about them. And that’s usually not a good thing. At all.
I’ve interviewed nearly 200 students who have studied abroad, and groupers have a FAR higher rate of experiencing crime (theft) than the indies. Anyway. More on this in the book, but suffice it say that those who are paying top dollar for the packages because they think it’s safer need to wake up and see that being a conspicuous American student abroad–in a group of others–is far more dangerous than connecting with locals and learning how to blend in as an indie. So, yeah. Not really recommending the group plans for a number of reasons, but I’m happy to hear your comments.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
You can't fight Anderson Hall
But I did try to get clarification on the editing of police logs - why one can retrieve some complete electronic versions of the police log from more than a year ago by using the archive function of the file list, while police logs from 2006, for example, are not available in unedited versions. I asked this to Cheryl May at KSU.
Dear Mr. Karst,
I have investigated your recent inquiry related to two issues:
1) whether electronic versions of the police log for 2-15-06 to 2-30-06
are available;
and
2) why some information is blotted out on your copies.
After speaking with the university's attorneys, I have learned that the
electronic records you are seeking are not available to the public.
The police department's current e-mail versions of the police log are
edited, in the same way that the hard copy versions you received are
edited. These older files have not been edited and so have information
that would need to be deleted before they could be given to you.
Edited copies of the February 2006 logs are not available.
By providing hard copies, the university has complied with the Open
Records Act. The information which was redacted is not public
information.
I will make note in the file that you are displeased with the hard
copies and would prefer an electronic copy.
Cheryl May
Assistant Vice President for University Relations/
Director, Media Relations
Kansas State University
----------------------------------------------------------
I responded:
Cheryl,
Cheryl, can you tell me when this editing of the police log began? What types of information has been redacted from the police log, particularly?
I would like to appeal this interpretation. Who would be my contact for this appeal?
I question whether this editing is more than a convenient excuse to deny me access to the complete police log. For example, this listing is from (a recent police log), less than a month ago.
Cheryl, I ask you if any "editing" was done on that version of the police log, which was emailed to me and dozens of others. If I was Ms. (NAME OMITTED), I would not be happy in the least that this "edited" police log was released to the public. Please advise where I can appeal this interpretation.
Tom Karst
-----------------------
Finally...
Mr. Karst,
In response to your latest inquiries, we have provided you with all the
information we are permitted to give. There are no further steps within
the university for appeal.
Our policy regarding the Open Records Act is here:
http://www.k-state.edu/policies/ppm/3060.html
And fyi, K.S.A. 45-218(e) states: "The custodian may refuse to provide
access to a public record, or to permit inspection, if a request places
an unreasonable burden in producing public records or if the custodian
has reason to believe that repeated requests are intended to disrupt
other essential functions of the public agency."
Cheryl May
Assistant Vice President for University Relations/
Director, Media Relations
Kansas State University
---------------------------------------
TK: I hope the University has informed the individual listed in my example of the breach of privacy in the police log. Whether new editing rules are in place or not, it does not make sense to list the name of an assault victim in the police log. I find the University's rules on providing redacted police logs from the past self-serving and arbitrary - especially in view that current rules of editing police logs appears to be inconsistent.
Dear Mr. Karst,
I have investigated your recent inquiry related to two issues:
1) whether electronic versions of the police log for 2-15-06 to 2-30-06
are available;
and
2) why some information is blotted out on your copies.
After speaking with the university's attorneys, I have learned that the
electronic records you are seeking are not available to the public.
The police department's current e-mail versions of the police log are
edited, in the same way that the hard copy versions you received are
edited. These older files have not been edited and so have information
that would need to be deleted before they could be given to you.
Edited copies of the February 2006 logs are not available.
By providing hard copies, the university has complied with the Open
Records Act. The information which was redacted is not public
information.
I will make note in the file that you are displeased with the hard
copies and would prefer an electronic copy.
Cheryl May
Assistant Vice President for University Relations/
Director, Media Relations
Kansas State University
----------------------------------------------------------
I responded:
Cheryl,
Cheryl, can you tell me when this editing of the police log began? What types of information has been redacted from the police log, particularly?
I would like to appeal this interpretation. Who would be my contact for this appeal?
I question whether this editing is more than a convenient excuse to deny me access to the complete police log. For example, this listing is from (a recent police log), less than a month ago.
(ROOM NUMBER IS LISTED IN POLICE LOG) PUTNAM HALL
(NAME IS LISTED IN POLICE LOG) ADVISED SHE WAS AN ASSAULT VICTIM A FEW DAYS AGO. WHEN SHE ARRIVED AT HER DORM ROOM TONIGHT, SHE NOTICED A
DISTURBING NOTE ON HER DOOR. SHE TURNED IT INTO HER RESIDENT ADVISOR. DISPATCHED SGT. MILLINGTON TO SPEAK WITH HER.
04/17/08 21:31 21:33 21:33 21:33 OTHER ALARM P D08002589 031A
Cheryl, I ask you if any "editing" was done on that version of the police log, which was emailed to me and dozens of others. If I was Ms. (NAME OMITTED), I would not be happy in the least that this "edited" police log was released to the public. Please advise where I can appeal this interpretation.
Tom Karst
-----------------------
Finally...
Mr. Karst,
In response to your latest inquiries, we have provided you with all the
information we are permitted to give. There are no further steps within
the university for appeal.
Our policy regarding the Open Records Act is here:
http://www.k-state.edu/policie
And fyi, K.S.A. 45-218(e) states: "The custodian may refuse to provide
access to a public record, or to permit inspection, if a request places
an unreasonable burden in producing public records or if the custodian
has reason to believe that repeated requests are intended to disrupt
other essential functions of the public agency."
Cheryl May
Assistant Vice President for University Relations/
Director, Media Relations
Kansas State University
---------------------------------------
TK: I hope the University has informed the individual listed in my example of the breach of privacy in the police log. Whether new editing rules are in place or not, it does not make sense to list the name of an assault victim in the police log. I find the University's rules on providing redacted police logs from the past self-serving and arbitrary - especially in view that current rules of editing police logs appears to be inconsistent.
Guns on the Christian campus
From the AP:
Mich. Christian college to let some safety personnel carry guns
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — Calvin College this fall will allow safety personnel with a police background to carry handguns on campus over the protest of some students at the private Christian school.
College trustees approved the use-of-force policy after a lengthy question-and-answer session about the rules, said Bastian Knoppers, chairman of the 30-member board.
"The board was very satisfied at the homework the college had done in putting together this detailed policy," he said.
The policy was put in place partly in response to last year's mass shooting at Virginia Tech.
About 60 students shouting "community, not weaponry" protested on the Calvin College campus last month after the Faculty Senate approved the safety department recommendation to allow trained officers to carry guns. The protesters argued campus crime is low and more student comment was needed.
"We are a Christian college and Jesus gave us an example of nonviolence," Joseph Breems, a junior from Marino Valley, Calif., said at the time.
Only three of the department's 43 officers have the police background the policy requires, but one is virtually always on duty, college officials said. All other guns are banned from campus.
Calvin College is a private, four-year institution affiliated with the Christian Reformed Church.
Mich. Christian college to let some safety personnel carry guns
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — Calvin College this fall will allow safety personnel with a police background to carry handguns on campus over the protest of some students at the private Christian school.
College trustees approved the use-of-force policy after a lengthy question-and-answer session about the rules, said Bastian Knoppers, chairman of the 30-member board.
"The board was very satisfied at the homework the college had done in putting together this detailed policy," he said.
The policy was put in place partly in response to last year's mass shooting at Virginia Tech.
About 60 students shouting "community, not weaponry" protested on the Calvin College campus last month after the Faculty Senate approved the safety department recommendation to allow trained officers to carry guns. The protesters argued campus crime is low and more student comment was needed.
"We are a Christian college and Jesus gave us an example of nonviolence," Joseph Breems, a junior from Marino Valley, Calif., said at the time.
Only three of the department's 43 officers have the police background the policy requires, but one is virtually always on duty, college officials said. All other guns are banned from campus.
Calvin College is a private, four-year institution affiliated with the Christian Reformed Church.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Marquette: what the heck is going on?
From a blog post by GOP3.com, published by a group of Marquette students:
I don’t know if I ever did a “what the heck is going on with the chronology of the kidnappings” GOP3 post, but it really, really bothers me that the two individuals who were kidnapped earlier this semester were taken around midnight, the first discovered a couple hours after that and then the second a little after dawn, and no email was sent to students until 9am or 10am that morning, despite the fact that another student had been violently robbed and I would assume in contact with DPS/MPD beforehand and despite the fact that the freaking suspects were still at large!
We just got another email from DPS about another mid-afternoon robbery on campus:
An off-campus robbery within the 900 block of North 17th Street was reported to the Department of Public Safety at approximately 4 p.m. on Wednesday, May 21. During the incident, two male suspects approached the victim, a Marquette student. One suspect displayed a weapon and demanded personal property. The descriptions of the two male suspects were not specific. The victim was not physically injured.
The Department of Public Safety and Milwaukee Police Department officers were contacted and immediately responded to the scene. Victim services were offered to the student involved in this incident.
So, at 9:41pm tonight the Department of Public Safety thought it important to get out an email to students about a brazen daytime robbery basically in the middle of campus that includes armed suspects still at large. Wouldn’t it be prudent to inform students about at-large armed suspects sooner than six hours after a robbery, particularly one as bold as during the middle of the afternoon?
I ask this in all seriousness. We’re all aware that DPS has the capability of sending out text messages to students in the case of a “real” emergency (”Virginia Tech-style emergency” is the phrase that has been thrown about, I think). Obviously if someone is in Wehr Physics waving around a sidearm, a text message should be sent. But, I don’t understand why text messages are not being sent to students about crimes committed in the non-academic parts of campus.
Besides the near-rape of the Freshman girl by a homeless guy in the first-floor female bathroom of Raynor my Freshman year (Fall of 2003), there hasn’t been a major crime that I can remember happening on the academic portion of campus. Crime happens on Kilbourne, on Michigan, etc. If a crime is quickly resolved with suspects detained then yes, I think an email hours after suffices. But if two armed suspects rob students in the middle of the day, I think it makes sense to alert the student body sooner than six hours after it happens whether through email or texting.
The above email was seven sentences. Would it be that hard to get that out at 5pm or even 6pm? I’m concerned because if someone is able to get away with this during the middle of the day, it isn’t beyond the realm of possibility that they would return, and potentially soon thereafter. Look at what happened at Virginia Tech — two homicides, and then two hours later 30 more homicides. It is possible for one or more criminals to strike, wait and then strike later.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Hoaxes on the rise
From a Canadian Web site:
US campus crime hoaxes on the rise: Media attention and campus alert systems established in the wake of the Virginia Tech massacre may have a hand in a recent jump in false crime reports on US college campuses. In the last six months, there have been at least 9 false crime reports nationwide. For example, shortly after the highly-publicized testing of an emergency alert system at UNC Chapel Hill, a student made a false claim he was attacked by an armed man in a robbery attempt. "For some people, it's attention-seeking. For others, it's revenge. For still others, it's the feeling of power they get by watching a college campus react." North Carolina News & Observer
US campus crime hoaxes on the rise: Media attention and campus alert systems established in the wake of the Virginia Tech massacre may have a hand in a recent jump in false crime reports on US college campuses. In the last six months, there have been at least 9 false crime reports nationwide. For example, shortly after the highly-publicized testing of an emergency alert system at UNC Chapel Hill, a student made a false claim he was attacked by an armed man in a robbery attempt. "For some people, it's attention-seeking. For others, it's revenge. For still others, it's the feeling of power they get by watching a college campus react." North Carolina News & Observer
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Prom and graduation season
Here is a link to a sobering post about what happens to high school and college students during prom and graduation season. From the post by Markham's behavioral blog:
1/3 of the 1,700 kids, aged 18 - 14 killed each year from accidental injuries (including motor vehicle crashes), homicide and suicide occur during prom and graduation season.
Because of this heightened concern and awareness I have been asked to give some presentations at some of the local high schools. I have three scheduled this year, and the last two days I have given two, and next week I will do the third. These presentations are given to high school assemblies of seniors, and in some cases seniors and juniors, about DWI and making "good choices". This has been less than satisfying for me for a whole bunch of reasons. However I have been given an opportunity to review some of the data and I thought I would share some of it here because I think it is instructive in many ways of the kind of society we are living in.
1 in 3 12th graders report, on survey, that they have binge drank (5 or more drinks on a single occasion) in the last two weeks. This data is pretty consistent in Genesee County,NY, New York State as a whole, and across the country.
Goofing on the 150 or so juniors and seniors I talked with this morning, I asked them to raise their hands if they had binge drank in the last two weeks. Surprisingly about twenty hands went up and one kid shouted out laughing, "Yeah, I got wasted!!!", the kids around him laughed.
I asked them why they think so many kids binge drink and they shouted, "Because it's fun."
I guess it is to a point. BUT.............................................................
90% of the estimated college rapes per year (97,000) occur when the victim, perpetrator, or both are intoxicated. I live in a college town and I remember a few years ago seeing an article in the college newspaper reporting that 11 rapes had been reported to campus security that year. I was startled. Is that high, low, under reported? I thought rape was a serious felony crime and rapists, if convicted, go to prison. Are college student rapes on a college campus reported to campus security handled differently? Is this a different type of crime?
25% of sexually active college students , or about 400,000 college students between the ages of 18 - 24 per year, report having unprotected sex per year while under the influence. Studies have found that 20- 25% of young women are infected with a STD like chlamydia and/or gonorrhea without knowing it.
11% of college students report perpetrating property damage while intoxicated.
25% of college students report symptoms of academic failure ( missing classes, late papers, doing poorly on exams) because of alcohol.
Alcohol is readily accepted in our society and glamorized in commercials and advertisements constantly. Is it any wonder that "getting wasted" and "to party" have become synonymous?
After my two kids were killed in a drunk driving crash, perhaps I am over sensitive, but the tragedies and heartache caused by alcohol, it seems to me, far outweigh its benefits and pleasure especially when used to excess as the youth in our society seem to do in significant numbers.
Here is my daughter Brigid in her Irish dancing dress before a performance when she was 5 about a week before she was killed.
Brigid Kathleen Markham
04/11/87 – 03/10/93
Here is my son Ryan in his Irish dancing outfit before a performance about a week before he was killed .
Ryan John Patrick Markham
05/09/84 – 03/10/93
Here is the 18 Wheeler tractor trailer that smashed into the car driven by my wife and with four of my children in it. It was the driver's third DWI.
This is me, a tired old man, talking about it after 15 years. Had they not been killed at age 5 and 8, Brigid would be 21 today, and Ryan would be 24. I miss them terribly. They were great kids and would have been outstanding adults. Our world is poorer for not having them in it.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Purdue University Police found lacking
From The Purdue University Chronicle, an editorial from the issue of May 5:
The issue: PUC Police Department
Our opinion: Minimal compliance is unacceptable
An investigation that The Chronicle had conducted over the last three months has put the PUC University Police in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. They've violated laws such as the Clery Act, while hiding access to public information that shouldn't be "hush, hush."
What is the University Police hiding? The best way to do business is to be open and let everyone know what is going on. The police department, funded by the students and employees, should be given access to all.
The Clery Act requires campus police to issue warnings of threats on campus, an annual crime report and a continuously updated, daily crime available to the public.
PUC Chief Stephen Chaddock, along with admistrators, needs to change policies regarding communication and abide by the laws that are set in place.
If the problem is simply a "lack of communication," well then that change needs to take effect immediately. Excuses are not acceptable when students are turning their homework in late or are not acceptable when not being prepared for a exam, and the University Police's excuses are not acceptable as well.
The University Police directs all questions about criminal activity to Wes Lukoshus, vice chancellor for university relations, knowing full well he isn't aware of all things that happen inside the police station. The diversion is just passing someone's problems on to the next person.
The information given to The Chronicle about each criminal activity is so vague that it is humorous. One or two word explanations labeling each incident is not tolerable. Stolen property can mean a car was stolen or a person's deck of playing cards could be stolen. The more information we get on these criminal activities the better, and will only help the university community in the long run.
PUC University Police should be in accordance to the same rules and laws set in place that any city's police department have set in place, which requires police to release an arrested individual's name, address and age, the reason for the arrest, where the individual is jailed ant the officers involved in the arrest.
The PUC University Police are in violation of multiple laws and their entire philosophy of public access needs to be addressed and changed.
Our opinion: Minimal compliance is unacceptable
An investigation that The Chronicle had conducted over the last three months has put the PUC University Police in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. They've violated laws such as the Clery Act, while hiding access to public information that shouldn't be "hush, hush."
What is the University Police hiding? The best way to do business is to be open and let everyone know what is going on. The police department, funded by the students and employees, should be given access to all.
The Clery Act requires campus police to issue warnings of threats on campus, an annual crime report and a continuously updated, daily crime available to the public.
PUC Chief Stephen Chaddock, along with admistrators, needs to change policies regarding communication and abide by the laws that are set in place.
If the problem is simply a "lack of communication," well then that change needs to take effect immediately. Excuses are not acceptable when students are turning their homework in late or are not acceptable when not being prepared for a exam, and the University Police's excuses are not acceptable as well.
The University Police directs all questions about criminal activity to Wes Lukoshus, vice chancellor for university relations, knowing full well he isn't aware of all things that happen inside the police station. The diversion is just passing someone's problems on to the next person.
The information given to The Chronicle about each criminal activity is so vague that it is humorous. One or two word explanations labeling each incident is not tolerable. Stolen property can mean a car was stolen or a person's deck of playing cards could be stolen. The more information we get on these criminal activities the better, and will only help the university community in the long run.
PUC University Police should be in accordance to the same rules and laws set in place that any city's police department have set in place, which requires police to release an arrested individual's name, address and age, the reason for the arrest, where the individual is jailed ant the officers involved in the arrest.
The PUC University Police are in violation of multiple laws and their entire philosophy of public access needs to be addressed and changed.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Police log correction
From KSU Police:
The earlier media released reported an aggravated robbery at Kedzie Hall. The crime was an Aggravated Burglary and not an Aggravated Robbery as first reported in the media log. Additionally anonymous tips can be sent to. www.ksu.edu/police/silent
Captain Donald Stubbings
Support Services Commander
Kansas State University Police Department
108 Edwards Hall
Manhattan, KS 66506
785-532-6412
785-532-7408(fax)
The earlier media released reported an aggravated robbery at Kedzie Hall. The crime was an Aggravated Burglary and not an Aggravated Robbery as first reported in the media log. Additionally anonymous tips can be sent to. www.ksu.edu/police/silent
Captain Donald Stubbings
Support Services Commander
Kansas State University Police Department
108 Edwards Hall
Manhattan, KS 66506
785-532-6412
785-532-7408(fax)
Monday, May 12, 2008
Mexican drug cartels infiltrating college campuses?
That's the gist of this story from the Laguna Journal, which states the problem is especially prevalent in border states. From the story by Michael Webster:
In a recent drug bust at the San Diego State University Federal agents and SDSU police culminated a yearlong investigation into drug dealing around campus and found it to be more sophisticated, more pervasive and more dangerous and far reaching than they expected or have seen before. These arrests coincided with the first anniversary of a female student freshman's cocaine-related death.
Castaneda, 36, after his arrest he was arraigned in San Diego Superior Court on charges of possession of cocaine for sale. He is suspected of being a major link between drugs flowing into California from Tijuana and sales at SDSU and other California campuses
In a recent drug bust at the San Diego State University Federal agents and SDSU police culminated a yearlong investigation into drug dealing around campus and found it to be more sophisticated, more pervasive and more dangerous and far reaching than they expected or have seen before. These arrests coincided with the first anniversary of a female student freshman's cocaine-related death.
According to local newspaper reports ninety-six suspects, including 75 SDSU students, have been arrested on drug-related charges as a result of the undercover operation, launched after Jenny Poliakoff, 19, was found dead in her off-campus apartment after a night of celebration.
One of the main suspects in this international drug investigation is illegal alien Omar Castaneda, a gang member from Pomona with ties to the Mexican Tijuana drug cartels, officials said
| . |
The violent Tijuana drug cartel also known as the Arellano-Felix organization (AFO) has a firm and deadly hold on all drug trafficking activities in Baja and San Diego California. Their reach controls drug smuggling in Sinaloa, Jalisco, Michoacan, Chiapas and Baja, and has strong links to San Diego, California. The AFO dispenses an estimated $1 million weekly in bribes to Mexican officials, police and Mexican army officers and maintains its own-well armed, trained, paramilitary security force. The DEA considers the AFO the most violent and aggressive of the Mexican border cartels. Here is the DEA's background profile on the AFO and its leaders. Click on or google: Dangerous Mexican Cartel Gangs
The SDSU Police Department approached the DEA and county narcotics task-force officials for assistance in December of 07, when it became clear that the drug trafficking on campus was widespread and involved Mexican organized crime drug cartels and their gang members and they feared that it far out striped their ability to handle a potentially very complicated international drug trafficking investigation.
“We were coming in contact with more types of narcotics,” SDSU Police Chief John Browning said. “If you're serious about this, you have to go to someone who has the resources to take it to the next level.”
As the investigation was unfolding, the campus dealt with another drug-related death. An autopsy showed that Mesa College student Kurt Baker died Feb. 24 at an SDSU fraternity from oxycodone and alcohol poisoning.
“We know there's drug use in college . . . but when you have an organization that's actually based out of a college area, that's a whole different thing,” said Garrison Courtney of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. “You just don't see that.”
Research indicates that lucrative university and high school campuses are fertile markets for drug dealers. Mexican drug cartels have known this for years and are believed to have infiltrated many of America’s school campuses through cartel gang members. Federal authorities point to the Mexican drug cartels who are ultimately responsible for border violence by having cemented ties to street and prison gangs like Barrio Azteca on the U.S. side. Azteca and other U.S. gangs retail drugs that they get from Mexican cartels and Mexican gangs.
Mexican gangs run their own distribution networks in the United States, and they produce most of the methamphetamine used north of the border. They have even bypassed the Colombians several times to buy cocaine directly from producers in Bolivia, Peru and even Afghanistan. These same gangs often work as cartel surrogates or enforcers on the U.S. side of the border. Intelligence suggests Los Zetas . Click on or google: They're known as "Los Zetas have hired members of various gangs at different times including, El Paso gang Barrio Azteca, Mexican Mafia, Texas Syndicate, MS-13, and Hermanos Pistoleros Latinos to further their criminal endeavors.
Authorities on both sides of the border believe many of these gang members and other surrogates of the powerful Mexican drug cartels have infiltrated and operate openly on many American school campuses particularly in states bordering Mexico including Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.
One suspect, Phi Kappa Psi member Michael Montoya, worked as a community-service officer on campus and would have earned a master's degree in homeland security next month. Another student arrested on suspicion of possessing 500 grams of cocaine and two guns was a criminal-justice major.
Authorities identified 22 SDSU students as drug dealers who sold to undercover agents. At least 17 others allegedly supplied the drugs. The rest of the suspects apparently bought or possessed illegal drugs.
Authorities said students from seven fraternities were involved in the drug ring, which operated openly across campus.
Evidence showed that “most of the members were aware of organized drug dealing occurring from the fraternity houses,” officials said. Drug agents confirmed that “a hierarchy existed for the purposes of selling drugs for money.”
Authorities singled out the Theta Chi fraternity as a hub of cocaine dealing.
One alleged dealer, Theta Chi member Kenneth Ciaccio, sent text messages to his “faithful customers” announcing that cocaine sales would be suspended over an upcoming weekend because he and his “associates” planned to be in Las Vegas, authorities said.
The same message posted “sale” prices on cocaine if transactions were completed before the dealers left San Diego.
Until yesterday, Ciaccio was featured on SDSU's Web site promoting the Compact for Success program, which guarantees certain Sweetwater Union High School District students admission to the university if they maintain a B average.
SDSU President Stephen Weber said that even when campus police decided to ask for help from other authorities, “it wasn't clear that we were going to end up at the point where we were today.”
Ramon Mosler, chief of the narcotics division of the District Attorney's Office in San Diego California, said the investigation could have happened on any college campus in America. Mosler said his unit joined in because the university took the unusual step of asking for help.
“Oftentimes administrations don't want us to do this stuff, and that's unfortunate,” Mosler said. “I think it's important to do this every now and then to wake people up. It raises everyone's awareness to the dangers of drugs.”
According to the search-warrant affidavit, Thomas Watanapun sold $400 worth of cocaine to undercover agents from a Lexus sedan registered to his father in Los Angeles.
Authorities said some of the suspects made little effort to conceal their activities.
Dealers “weren't picky about who they sold to,” Mosler said.
Also arraigned was Patrick Hawley, 20, who was arrested on suspicion of armed robbery and selling cocaine near the campus, officials said.
According to a 2007 study by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, nearly half of the nation's 5.4 million full-time college students abuse drugs or alcohol at least once a month.
Law enforcement officials in San Diego say street gangs here continue to have strong ties to organized crime groups in Tijuana. A gunman killed recently in an attack in Tijuana is believed to belong to both a gang in Barrio Logan and the Arellano Felix Drug Cartel. KPBS Reporter Amy Isackson reported.
For years, Mexican drug trafficking groups have recruited U.S. gang members to do everything from smuggle drugs to murder. Tijuana's Arellano Felix Drug Cartel and a gang from San Diego's Barrio Logan neighborhood go back at least 15 years.
Many students enrolled in American schools are believed members of gangs many are now coming from the U.S. Military as they rotate out of the services. Many are veterans who where encouraged to join the U.S Military for combat training by Mexican cartels and gang leaders. The cartels are confronting police and the army on a regular bases in Mexico and hope that these same tactics will soon pay off and enable them to confront the U.S Police in a much more professional, effective and dangerous ways.
Richard Valdemar, a 30-year-veteran of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, travels the country lecturing and teaching police about military-trained gang members. Valdemar and other gang experts say gangs are encouraging members to join the military for training to learn urban warfare and learn the latest weaponry.
The military's current emphasis on urban warfare plays into the street-fighting mentality of gangs, experts say.
"When individuals go into the military, they are taught how to use weapons, defensive tactics, and the use of a lot of sophisticated techniques," said LaRae Quy, of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. "They take that back on the streets with them. This is a legitimate concern for law enforcement."
Valdemar cites former Camp Pendleton Marine Sgt. Jesse Quintanilla as just one high-profile example. A military court sentenced Quintanilla to death in 1996 for killing his executive officer and wounding his commanding officer.
When interrogators asked Quintanilla why he committed the crimes, Quintanilla said it was for "his brown brothers," according to Valdemar. Quintanilla showed them a tattoo on his chest with the word "Sureno," a reference to a California gang, according to court documents.
Army recruiting headquarters in Washington, D.C., dismiss the claims as urban myth. An Army spokesman said army background checks are extensive and weed out gang members.
The ARELLANO-Felix Organization (AFO), often referred to as the Tijuana Cartel, is one of the most powerful and aggressive drug trafficking organizations operating from Mexico; it is undeniably the most violent. More than any other major trafficking organization from Mexico, this organization extends its tentacles directly from high-echelon figures in the law enforcement and judicial systems in Mexico to street-level individuals in United States cities.
The AFO is responsible for the transportation, importation and distribution of multi-ton quantities of cocaine, marijuana, as well as large quantities of heroin and methamphetamine, into the United States from Mexico. The AFO operates primarily in the Mexican states of Sinaloa (their birth place), Jalisco, Michoacan, Chiapas, and Baja California South and North. From Baja, the drugs enter California, the primary point of embarkation into the United States distribution network.
The ARELLANO family, composed of seven brothers and four sisters, inherited the organization from Miguel Angel FELIX-Gallardo upon his incarceration in Mexico in 1989 for his complicity in the murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique Camarena. Alberto Benjamin ARELLANO-Felix assumed leadership of the family structured criminal enterprise and provides a businessman's approach to the management of drug trafficking operations.
The AFO also maintains complex communications centers in several major cities in Mexico and the U.S. to conduct electronic espionage and counter surveillance measures against law enforcement entities. The organization employs radio scanners and equipment capable of intercepting both hard line, radio and cellular phones to ensure the security of AFO operations. In addition to technical equipment, the AFO maintains caches of sophisticated automatic weaponry secured from a variety of international sources. Click on or google: Mexican drug cartels and terrorist are recruiting for more fighters to train as soldiers
A Joint Task Force composed of the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation has been established in San Diego, California to target the AFO; the Task Force is investigating AFO operations in southern California and related regional investigations which track drug transportation, distribution and money laundering activities of the AFO throughout the United States. Click on or google: Dangerous Mexican/U.S. Criminal Enterprises Operating Along the Mexican border
Staying safe on campus
This link provides a link to a article about how to stay safe on campus. From www.saycampuslife.com:
The college campus may seem to be one of the safest places around, but evidence suggests otherwise. Students have been accosted, raped, robbed, even killed in and around their campuses, unmasking a problem that often does not get enough attention. Crime on campus does happen, but you can do your part to avoid being victimized, particularly if you are a woman.
The college campus may seem to be one of the safest places around, but evidence suggests otherwise. Students have been accosted, raped, robbed, even killed in and around their campuses, unmasking a problem that often does not get enough attention. Crime on campus does happen, but you can do your part to avoid being victimized, particularly if you are a woman.
While traveling around your school’s campus, you need to remain vigilant at all times. Specifically:
- Stay on well lit paths, preferably those which are regularly patrolled.
- If possible, avoid walking alone.
- Stay alert and walk with confidence.
- Have your keys to your car or dorm at the ready — you may need them immediately.
In Dorm Safety
You may not be able to control who has access to your residence hall, but you can control who enters your dorm room. Nevertheless, if overall dorm security is not being enforced, then you must alert campus security to the problem. When in your room:
- Invite in only people you know. If your roommate brings in someone you aren’t comfortable with, express your concerns to her.
- Your deadbolt should be functional and in place at all times.
- Do not lend out your room key. Keep the room locked at all times.
Social Setting Safety
If you leave campus to attend a bar or other social gathering, be on the alert for the following:
- Someone offering to give you a drink unless supplied directly by the bartender. A date rape drug can easily be slipped into a drink rendering you unconscious and/or unable to make wise decisions.
- Avoid drinking too much.
- Stay with a group, never go with a stranger.
- When going out, tell someone that you trust the name of the person you will be with, where you are going, and when you plan to return.
- Carry a cell phone with you at all times — leave it on!
- Have enough money on hand to pay for a taxi ride home, if that becomes necessary.
If you are a victim of a crime, file a report with the local police. If the incident takes place on campus, notify college security too. Finally, consider carrying a personal alarm or pepper spray if your journeys around campus require that you be out at night.
Further Reading
Acquaintance Rape on College and University Campuses
Early a.m. robbery at Kedzie
From Captain Stubbings, a report about a weapon wielding robber at the offices of the Journalism school in the early morning hours of Sunday, May 11.
Aggravated Burglary reported at Kedzie Hall.
On May 11, 2008 at about 0231 hours a aggravated robbery and aggravated assault was reported at Kedzie Hall. According to witnesses the subject forced his way into offices. The person confronted the suspect who then fled the area after displaying a weapon. The subject was last seen fleeing from campus. He is described as a white male 6'0 tall and weighing about 240 pounds in his mid 20's. No one injuries were reported. If anyone has any information about this crime or other crimes, they should call the KSU Police department investigations at 532-6412. Anonymous tips can be left at www.ksu.edu/poice/silent
Captain Donald Stubbings
Support Services Commander
Kansas State University Police Department
108 Edwards Hall
Manhattan, KS 66506
785-532-6412
785-532-7408(fax)
Aggravated Burglary reported at Kedzie Hall.
On May 11, 2008 at about 0231 hours a aggravated robbery and aggravated assault was reported at Kedzie Hall. According to witnesses the subject forced his way into offices. The person confronted the suspect who then fled the area after displaying a weapon. The subject was last seen fleeing from campus. He is described as a white male 6'0 tall and weighing about 240 pounds in his mid 20's. No one injuries were reported. If anyone has any information about this crime or other crimes, they should call the KSU Police department investigations at 532-6412. Anonymous tips can be left at www.ksu.edu/poice/silent
Captain Donald Stubbings
Support Services Commander
Kansas State University Police Department
108 Edwards Hall
Manhattan, KS 66506
785-532-6412
785-532-7408(fax)
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Shrouded in secrecy
From The Chronicle at Purdue:
An investigation by The Chronicle over the last three months has concluded the PUC University Police is in violation of multiple laws related to public access and police records.
The laws being violated include the Clery Act, which requires campus police to maintain an updated crime log available to anyone, and Indiana Code 5-14-3-5, which requires all police agencies to release the names of arrested individuals, along with the reason for arrest and the arresting officer in the incident.
The Chronicle has received five reports from students that the University Police denied them access to the public crime log, a record of crimes reported and responded to by police on campus.
The Chronicle has also received two reports from faculty members that University Police staff informed them the crime log is only available to faculty, staff and those with the news media.
Both break access to public records laws that require state-funded agencies to be open with their operations.
The Clery Act
The PUC University Police is primarily bound by the Clery Act.
Applying only to campus police departments, the Clery Act became law in 1990 to make students and parents aware of threats on campus. The law passed in reaction to the death of Jeanne Clery, a 19-year-old Lehigh University student who was raped and murdered in her dorm room in 1986. The university had failed to provide notification of 36 other violent crimes on campus the previous three years.
The Clery Act requires campus police to issue warnings of threats on campus, an annual crime report and a continuously updated, daily crime log available to the public.
Currently, the University Police is in violation of the third section by not allowing students to view the log and by not updating the log on a daily basis, according to Adam Goldstein, attorney advocate for the Student Press Law Center.
"If that's happening then that's easy enough to correct," PUC Chief Stephen Chaddock said. "It's probably just a lack of communication."
But denied inquiries for the crime log occurred over a three-month period, and four of the five students who were denied said multiple staff and police officers informed them they were not allowed to see it. Both students and staff who were denied said they were offered the annual crime statistics, but were not allowed to see any evidence of daily criminal activity on campus.
Maribel Lopez, a secretary for the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, said she called the University Police last week to ask if she could see the crime log. She was told she could only view the annual crime statistics brochure and other general brochures.
"It's a little disheartening," Lopez said. "It's bad business practice for things like crime to be hush-hush."
Indiana Code 5-14-3-5
Another breach of open records laws by the University Police occurs under Indiana Code 5-14-3-5, which requires a police agency to release information about those arrested on campus.
Like municipal police departments, campus police must release an arrested individual's name, address and age, the reason for the arrest, where the individual is jailed and the officers involved in the arrest. The police department is also required to release the written information for inspection and copying.
The PUC University Police currently releases none of the information.
Both Chaddock and Wes Lukoshus, vice chancellor for university relations, said releasing this information often encroaches on students' rights under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act or FERPA.
But a 1992 amendment to FERPA made it clear that law enforcement records pertaining to arrests are not educational records.
"My bosses have decided, basically, we're going to provide what we currently provide," Chaddock said.
A difference in philosophies
While the Purdue University Police Department in West Lafayette handles all student, parent and media inquiries about crime directly, the PUC University Police divert all questions to Lukoshus.
"The university has taken a stand that it's going to coordinated and consistent with its communication," Lukoshus said.
In any situation on campus, Lukoshus said PUC administration has made the decision to handle all questions and requests through the Office of University Relations.
And that includes crime.
Captain Tim Potts of the PU Police Department said that philosophy differs greatly from the philosophy pertaining to open records at PU.
"For us giving out public information and working directly with the public and our news services has worked out very well," Potts said.
Potts said his department keeps the public crime log in the lobby of the police station and posts updates daily to its Web site.
"I'm not sure what it's like up there," Potts said. "But here we like to be as open as possible and sometimes it seems we're too open. But we've got nothing to hide," he said.
Minimum compliance
While the University Police is in violation of several sections of the Clery Act and Indiana Code 5-14-3-5, they post all necessary information in their crime log that is distributed weekly to The Chronicle.
But that information has shrunk in the last three years. A brief narrative of each incident often accompanied each crime entry in 2005 and 2006. Now the log exists at minimum compliance with one word explanations labeling each incident.
Chaddock said he is not sure why the University Police offered more extensive explanations in the past.
"I really don't know the answer," Chaddock said. "There was probably just a change in philosophy."
Lukoshus said his office often must find the balance between releasing too much information and not enough.
Tim Potts said at PU the balancing act exists, but the lines are known by most employees of the police department.
"There are quite a few regulations under FERPA," Potts said. "But we like to release as much information about each incident as possible."
While Lukoshus said PUC's philosophy on consistent communication is unlikely to change anytime soon, he said the administration would be willing to release more information for a compelling reason.
"I don't think the doors are closed on any of this," Lukoshus said.
An investigation by The Chronicle over the last three months has concluded the PUC University Police is in violation of multiple laws related to public access and police records.
The laws being violated include the Clery Act, which requires campus police to maintain an updated crime log available to anyone, and Indiana Code 5-14-3-5, which requires all police agencies to release the names of arrested individuals, along with the reason for arrest and the arresting officer in the incident.
The Chronicle has received five reports from students that the University Police denied them access to the public crime log, a record of crimes reported and responded to by police on campus.
The Chronicle has also received two reports from faculty members that University Police staff informed them the crime log is only available to faculty, staff and those with the news media.
Both break access to public records laws that require state-funded agencies to be open with their operations.
The Clery Act
The PUC University Police is primarily bound by the Clery Act.
Applying only to campus police departments, the Clery Act became law in 1990 to make students and parents aware of threats on campus. The law passed in reaction to the death of Jeanne Clery, a 19-year-old Lehigh University student who was raped and murdered in her dorm room in 1986. The university had failed to provide notification of 36 other violent crimes on campus the previous three years.
The Clery Act requires campus police to issue warnings of threats on campus, an annual crime report and a continuously updated, daily crime log available to the public.
Currently, the University Police is in violation of the third section by not allowing students to view the log and by not updating the log on a daily basis, according to Adam Goldstein, attorney advocate for the Student Press Law Center.
"If that's happening then that's easy enough to correct," PUC Chief Stephen Chaddock said. "It's probably just a lack of communication."
But denied inquiries for the crime log occurred over a three-month period, and four of the five students who were denied said multiple staff and police officers informed them they were not allowed to see it. Both students and staff who were denied said they were offered the annual crime statistics, but were not allowed to see any evidence of daily criminal activity on campus.
Maribel Lopez, a secretary for the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, said she called the University Police last week to ask if she could see the crime log. She was told she could only view the annual crime statistics brochure and other general brochures.
"It's a little disheartening," Lopez said. "It's bad business practice for things like crime to be hush-hush."
Indiana Code 5-14-3-5
Another breach of open records laws by the University Police occurs under Indiana Code 5-14-3-5, which requires a police agency to release information about those arrested on campus.
Like municipal police departments, campus police must release an arrested individual's name, address and age, the reason for the arrest, where the individual is jailed and the officers involved in the arrest. The police department is also required to release the written information for inspection and copying.
The PUC University Police currently releases none of the information.
Both Chaddock and Wes Lukoshus, vice chancellor for university relations, said releasing this information often encroaches on students' rights under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act or FERPA.
But a 1992 amendment to FERPA made it clear that law enforcement records pertaining to arrests are not educational records.
"My bosses have decided, basically, we're going to provide what we currently provide," Chaddock said.
A difference in philosophies
While the Purdue University Police Department in West Lafayette handles all student, parent and media inquiries about crime directly, the PUC University Police divert all questions to Lukoshus.
"The university has taken a stand that it's going to coordinated and consistent with its communication," Lukoshus said.
In any situation on campus, Lukoshus said PUC administration has made the decision to handle all questions and requests through the Office of University Relations.
And that includes crime.
Captain Tim Potts of the PU Police Department said that philosophy differs greatly from the philosophy pertaining to open records at PU.
"For us giving out public information and working directly with the public and our news services has worked out very well," Potts said.
Potts said his department keeps the public crime log in the lobby of the police station and posts updates daily to its Web site.
"I'm not sure what it's like up there," Potts said. "But here we like to be as open as possible and sometimes it seems we're too open. But we've got nothing to hide," he said.
Minimum compliance
While the University Police is in violation of several sections of the Clery Act and Indiana Code 5-14-3-5, they post all necessary information in their crime log that is distributed weekly to The Chronicle.
But that information has shrunk in the last three years. A brief narrative of each incident often accompanied each crime entry in 2005 and 2006. Now the log exists at minimum compliance with one word explanations labeling each incident.
Chaddock said he is not sure why the University Police offered more extensive explanations in the past.
"I really don't know the answer," Chaddock said. "There was probably just a change in philosophy."
Lukoshus said his office often must find the balance between releasing too much information and not enough.
Tim Potts said at PU the balancing act exists, but the lines are known by most employees of the police department.
"There are quite a few regulations under FERPA," Potts said. "But we like to release as much information about each incident as possible."
While Lukoshus said PUC's philosophy on consistent communication is unlikely to change anytime soon, he said the administration would be willing to release more information for a compelling reason.
"I don't think the doors are closed on any of this," Lukoshus said.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Blogging from Vegas
I'm here in Vegas blogging, as my job is taking me to a convention at Bally's Hotel. If you think that controlling crime in the Little Apple is tough, try being the UNLV security director. That job can't be easy.
Still waiting to see the KSU police log from April 18 to April 24. Don't ask me why.
Still waiting to see the KSU police log from April 18 to April 24. Don't ask me why.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Campus crime headlines
The beat goes on with campus crime..unfortunately. Some headlines this weeks
2 men sought in sex assault at University of Minnesota Dorm
From the story:
Will the recession make things worse?
A link between economic trouble and crime rates
More on cameras....
New cameras hoped to deter crime
New clues in Brittany Zimmerman's Murder
2 men sought in sex assault at University of Minnesota Dorm
From the story:
Like all of the university's residence halls, Pioneer Hall can only be entered by swiping an identification card through a card reader. Hestness said investigators were still trying to determine how the men got in.
"We have two main entrances that are under surveillance and staffed," he said. "Our sergeant overnight went through four hours of video and they were not seen in that four-hour period. That begs the question of where they did come in. There are a lot of doors in the building, all of which are locked."
Will the recession make things worse?
A link between economic trouble and crime rates
More on cameras....
New cameras hoped to deter crime
New clues in Brittany Zimmerman's Murder
Friday, May 2, 2008
Crime sweep
Manhattan - sleepy town that it is - surprises me with the number of arrests we see daily on the police blotter. From the Collegian today, this report:
A total of 10 people were arrested when Manhattan area police executed nine search warrants Wednesday evening.
The Riley County Police Department, the Pottawatomie County Sheriff's Office and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation carried out the searches in various locations around Manhattan between 7 and 11:30 p.m. RCPD Investigations Division Commander Tim Hegarty said the operation was part of one specific ongoing investigation into the distribution and sale of marijuana and crack cocaine in the Manhattan and Riley County area.
"This operation began in the early months with patrol officers and the public," Hegarty said. "We arrived at this number within the investigation and the timing was right yesterday."
Hegarty said it is unknown whether all individuals arrested Wednesday were working together in a criminal enterprise.
He also said none of the arrests were for manufacturing drugs.
"This should serve as a notice to the public that there is a lot of drug activity in Riley County," he said. "We expect there will be more arrests from this ongoing investigation."
City Manager Ron Fehr said he is pleased with the work the police department is doing.
"Anytime the police department is making arrests, the safer Manhattan is for everyone," Fehr said.
The Riley County Police Department, the Pottawatomie County Sheriff's Office and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation carried out the searches in various locations around Manhattan between 7 and 11:30 p.m. RCPD Investigations Division Commander Tim Hegarty said the operation was part of one specific ongoing investigation into the distribution and sale of marijuana and crack cocaine in the Manhattan and Riley County area.
"This operation began in the early months with patrol officers and the public," Hegarty said. "We arrived at this number within the investigation and the timing was right yesterday."
Hegarty said it is unknown whether all individuals arrested Wednesday were working together in a criminal enterprise.
He also said none of the arrests were for manufacturing drugs.
"This should serve as a notice to the public that there is a lot of drug activity in Riley County," he said. "We expect there will be more arrests from this ongoing investigation."
City Manager Ron Fehr said he is pleased with the work the police department is doing.
"Anytime the police department is making arrests, the safer Manhattan is for everyone," Fehr said.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Teachers gone wild on the Web
Facebook and MySpace aren't just used by students. Here's an article from The Washington Post about high school teachers gone wild on the Web. Surely no professors, though, right...? Bottom line lesson for all, inappropriate Facebook or MySpace material will come back to haunt you. From the story:
It's almost like Googling someone: Log on to Facebook. Join the Washington, D.C., network. Search the Web site for your favorite school system. And then watch the public profiles of 20-something teachers unfurl like gift wrap on the screen, revealing a sense of humor that can be overtly sarcastic or unintentionally unprofessional -- or both.
One Montgomery County special education teacher displayed a poster that depicts talking sperm and invokes a slang term for oral sex. One woman who identified herself as a Prince William County kindergarten teacher posted a satiric shampoo commercial with a half-naked man having an orgasm in the shower. A D.C. public schools educator offered this tip on her page: "Teaching in DCPS -- Lesson #1: Don't smoke crack while pregnant."
Just to be clear, these are not teenagers, the typical Internet scofflaws and sources of ceaseless discussion about cyber-bullying, sexual predators and so on. These are adults, many in their 20s, who are behaving, for the most part, like young adults.
But the crudeness of some Facebook or MySpace teacher profiles, which are far, far away from sanitized Web sites ending in ".edu," prompts questions emblematic of our times: Do the risque pages matter if teacher performance is not hindered and if students, parents and school officials don't see them? At what point are these young teachers judged by the standards for public officials?
In states including Florida, Colorado, Tennessee and Massachusetts, teachers have been removed or suspended for MySpace postings, and some teachers unions have begun warning members about racy personal Web sites. But as Facebook, with 70 million members, and other social networking sites continue to grow, scrutiny will no doubt spread locally.
The annals of teachers-gone-wild-on-the-Web include once-anonymous people who've done something outlandish with a blog or online video. Many people, especially in the Richmond area, remember high school art teacher Stephen Murmer, fired last year for painting canvasses with his buttocks in images on YouTube.
Of course, many of the tens of thousands of Washington area teachers put social networking sites or personal Web pages to constructive uses. Others push the limits.
Erin Jane Webster, 22, a long-term substitute teacher in Prince William, keeps a page similar to other teachers'. Portions are professional, but some parts suggest the author is in the throes of sorority rush.
Under a "Work Info" heading, the page reads, "Employer: Prince William County Schools. Location: Parkside Middle School Language Arts Teacher." The section lists where she attended college (Radford '07) and high school (Osbourn Park High '03).
But the page features multiple "bumper stickers," including one that uses a crude acronym for attractive mothers and another that says: "you're a retard, but i love you."
Teensy problem: Webster teaches students with emotional and learning disabilities. In an interview, she acknowledged her use of "retard" could be misconstrued. The word, generally considered offensive, circulates among some young people as acceptable derogatory slang.
"My best friend, she always calls me that because I say ditzy things," Webster said. "My best friend and I would never go around calling people that. All of my [students] have emotional disorders or learning disabilities. . . . I love them."
Click "View Photos of Erin," and you can see her lying on her back, eyes closed, with a bottle of Jose Cuervo tequila between her head and shoulder. Or click on her "summertime" photo album and see a close-up of two young men flashing serious-looking middle fingers.
"I know that employers will look at that page, and I need to be more careful," said Webster, adding that other Prince William teachers have warned her about her page. "At the same time, my work and social lives are completely separate. I just feel they shouldn't take it seriously. I am young. I just turned 22."
Like several other teachers interviewed, Webster said she thought her page could be seen only by people she accepted as "friends." But like those of many teachers on Facebook, Webster's profile was accessible by the more than 525,000 members of the Washington, D.C., network. Anyone can join any geographic network.
Local school officials say they have no policies concerning social networking pages or blogs kept by teachers. But they said that online improprieties would fall under general guidelines requiring proper behavior in and outside school and that sketchy Web sites would be handled case by case. "I hate to think of what's out there. . . . There's so much out there that it's hard to know what's there," said Ken Blackstone, a Prince William schools spokesman. "But as public employees, we all understand the importance of living a public life above reproach."
Officials in many of the region's school districts said they were not aware of any local teachers who faced punishment over content on personal Web sites.
In Prince William, Rich Davila, a real estate company director and the father of a 6-year-old first-grader, said that when he found a substitute teacher's risque MySpace page recently, he complained to school officials and the teacher was eventually removed. School officials said they cannot comment on the teacher's case, citing personnel rules.
The teacher's page includes a painting of a young woman lifting up her dress, exposing her lingerie, and another showing her bare chest. "I felt sick to my stomach when I saw the page," Davila said. "These Web sites are the bars and restaurants of our new era. It's like running into your teacher in a restaurant and seeing them not act appropriately. It's going to come back and haunt him."
Local school officials said they don't necessarily scrutinize Facebook when they conduct background checks on teachers. But in some parts of the country, they do.
"I know for a fact that when a superintendent in Missouri was interviewing potential teachers last year, he would ask, 'Do you have a Facebook or MySpace page?' " said Todd Fuller, a spokesman for the Missouri State Teachers Association, which is warning members to clean up their pages. "If the candidate said yes, then the superintendent would say, 'I've got my computer up right now. Let's take a look.' "
Bree Melton, 22, an eighth-grade teacher at Fairfax County's Robert Frost Middle School, which has students with hearing problems, describes her job on her Facebook page as "rocking out with some deaf kids. it. is. AWESOME."
In an interview, Melton said: "Is my Facebook profile open? I definitely thought I closed [the page] to people. . . . I am absolutely being sarcastic. I don't [use] sign [language] myself, and I am learning so much about it. I was being completely candid. It's awesome working with them." Access to her page was later restricted, effectively withdrawing it from public view.
Teachers caught with inappropriate Web sites could get a suspension for a first-time offense, said Michael Simpson, assistant general counsel for the National Education Association, a teachers union with more than 3 million members. If they can prove that no one at school complained about the page, then they might prevail in a personnel dispute "because there would be no evidence of any real or potential harm to the students or school," he said.
If teachers claim free speech protection under the First Amendment, Simpson said, the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that governments can fire employees if their speech harmed the workplace's mission and function.
In some cases, teachers apparently didn't mind that their Web sites were raunchy and public -- at least until a reporter called. Alina Espinosa, a teacher at Clopper Mill Elementary School in Montgomery, had written on her Facebook page in the "About Me" section: "I only have two feelings: hunger and lust. Also, I slept with a hooker. Be jealous. I like to go onto Jdate [an online dating service for Jewish people] and get straight guys to agree to sleep with me."
Asked about the page, Espinosa said: "I never thought about parents and kids [seeing it] before. That's all I'm going to say."
Minutes later, access to her site was restricted
It's almost like Googling someone: Log on to Facebook. Join the Washington, D.C., network. Search the Web site for your favorite school system. And then watch the public profiles of 20-something teachers unfurl like gift wrap on the screen, revealing a sense of humor that can be overtly sarcastic or unintentionally unprofessional -- or both.
One Montgomery County special education teacher displayed a poster that depicts talking sperm and invokes a slang term for oral sex. One woman who identified herself as a Prince William County kindergarten teacher posted a satiric shampoo commercial with a half-naked man having an orgasm in the shower. A D.C. public schools educator offered this tip on her page: "Teaching in DCPS -- Lesson #1: Don't smoke crack while pregnant."
Just to be clear, these are not teenagers, the typical Internet scofflaws and sources of ceaseless discussion about cyber-bullying, sexual predators and so on. These are adults, many in their 20s, who are behaving, for the most part, like young adults.
But the crudeness of some Facebook or MySpace teacher profiles, which are far, far away from sanitized Web sites ending in ".edu," prompts questions emblematic of our times: Do the risque pages matter if teacher performance is not hindered and if students, parents and school officials don't see them? At what point are these young teachers judged by the standards for public officials?
In states including Florida, Colorado, Tennessee and Massachusetts, teachers have been removed or suspended for MySpace postings, and some teachers unions have begun warning members about racy personal Web sites. But as Facebook, with 70 million members, and other social networking sites continue to grow, scrutiny will no doubt spread locally.
The annals of teachers-gone-wild-on-the-Web include once-anonymous people who've done something outlandish with a blog or online video. Many people, especially in the Richmond area, remember high school art teacher Stephen Murmer, fired last year for painting canvasses with his buttocks in images on YouTube.
Of course, many of the tens of thousands of Washington area teachers put social networking sites or personal Web pages to constructive uses. Others push the limits.
Erin Jane Webster, 22, a long-term substitute teacher in Prince William, keeps a page similar to other teachers'. Portions are professional, but some parts suggest the author is in the throes of sorority rush.
Under a "Work Info" heading, the page reads, "Employer: Prince William County Schools. Location: Parkside Middle School Language Arts Teacher." The section lists where she attended college (Radford '07) and high school (Osbourn Park High '03).
But the page features multiple "bumper stickers," including one that uses a crude acronym for attractive mothers and another that says: "you're a retard, but i love you."
Teensy problem: Webster teaches students with emotional and learning disabilities. In an interview, she acknowledged her use of "retard" could be misconstrued. The word, generally considered offensive, circulates among some young people as acceptable derogatory slang.
"My best friend, she always calls me that because I say ditzy things," Webster said. "My best friend and I would never go around calling people that. All of my [students] have emotional disorders or learning disabilities. . . . I love them."
Click "View Photos of Erin," and you can see her lying on her back, eyes closed, with a bottle of Jose Cuervo tequila between her head and shoulder. Or click on her "summertime" photo album and see a close-up of two young men flashing serious-looking middle fingers.
"I know that employers will look at that page, and I need to be more careful," said Webster, adding that other Prince William teachers have warned her about her page. "At the same time, my work and social lives are completely separate. I just feel they shouldn't take it seriously. I am young. I just turned 22."
Like several other teachers interviewed, Webster said she thought her page could be seen only by people she accepted as "friends." But like those of many teachers on Facebook, Webster's profile was accessible by the more than 525,000 members of the Washington, D.C., network. Anyone can join any geographic network.
Local school officials say they have no policies concerning social networking pages or blogs kept by teachers. But they said that online improprieties would fall under general guidelines requiring proper behavior in and outside school and that sketchy Web sites would be handled case by case. "I hate to think of what's out there. . . . There's so much out there that it's hard to know what's there," said Ken Blackstone, a Prince William schools spokesman. "But as public employees, we all understand the importance of living a public life above reproach."
Officials in many of the region's school districts said they were not aware of any local teachers who faced punishment over content on personal Web sites.
In Prince William, Rich Davila, a real estate company director and the father of a 6-year-old first-grader, said that when he found a substitute teacher's risque MySpace page recently, he complained to school officials and the teacher was eventually removed. School officials said they cannot comment on the teacher's case, citing personnel rules.
The teacher's page includes a painting of a young woman lifting up her dress, exposing her lingerie, and another showing her bare chest. "I felt sick to my stomach when I saw the page," Davila said. "These Web sites are the bars and restaurants of our new era. It's like running into your teacher in a restaurant and seeing them not act appropriately. It's going to come back and haunt him."
Local school officials said they don't necessarily scrutinize Facebook when they conduct background checks on teachers. But in some parts of the country, they do.
"I know for a fact that when a superintendent in Missouri was interviewing potential teachers last year, he would ask, 'Do you have a Facebook or MySpace page?' " said Todd Fuller, a spokesman for the Missouri State Teachers Association, which is warning members to clean up their pages. "If the candidate said yes, then the superintendent would say, 'I've got my computer up right now. Let's take a look.' "
Bree Melton, 22, an eighth-grade teacher at Fairfax County's Robert Frost Middle School, which has students with hearing problems, describes her job on her Facebook page as "rocking out with some deaf kids. it. is. AWESOME."
In an interview, Melton said: "Is my Facebook profile open? I definitely thought I closed [the page] to people. . . . I am absolutely being sarcastic. I don't [use] sign [language] myself, and I am learning so much about it. I was being completely candid. It's awesome working with them." Access to her page was later restricted, effectively withdrawing it from public view.
Teachers caught with inappropriate Web sites could get a suspension for a first-time offense, said Michael Simpson, assistant general counsel for the National Education Association, a teachers union with more than 3 million members. If they can prove that no one at school complained about the page, then they might prevail in a personnel dispute "because there would be no evidence of any real or potential harm to the students or school," he said.
If teachers claim free speech protection under the First Amendment, Simpson said, the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that governments can fire employees if their speech harmed the workplace's mission and function.
In some cases, teachers apparently didn't mind that their Web sites were raunchy and public -- at least until a reporter called. Alina Espinosa, a teacher at Clopper Mill Elementary School in Montgomery, had written on her Facebook page in the "About Me" section: "I only have two feelings: hunger and lust. Also, I slept with a hooker. Be jealous. I like to go onto Jdate [an online dating service for Jewish people] and get straight guys to agree to sleep with me."
Asked about the page, Espinosa said: "I never thought about parents and kids [seeing it] before. That's all I'm going to say."
Minutes later, access to her site was restricted
Personal Safety Newsletter
Some reminders about personal safety from KSU:
To All K-State Students, Faculty and Staff:
Spring has arrived and with it our second K-State Personal Safety Newsletter. We want to mention some key safety information and remindeveryone of the topics discussed in our first newsletter, February2008.As we near the end of the semester, this is an important time to remind everyone about making good decisions regarding safety. A student deathand a number of student injuries and incidences remind us that the choices we make can have lethal and long-term effects. K-State is implementing a new program called K-State HD,http://www.k-state.edu/hd/. K-State HD is campus-wide program designed to support healthy decision-making and enhance the safety and healthy climate of our campus.Towards the end of the semester it is common to see an increase in the number of computers, books, backpacks and other electronic devices that are stolen. Please be sure to lock your room, house or apartment and take precautions to keep your belongings safe. Never leave your possessions unattended at anytime.In our past newsletter we reminded the campus community about the"serial rapist" who, according to the Riley County Police, committed several home invasion rapes between 1999 and 2007. The individual is described as a medium build, white male. For information on how you can lower your risk for this type of crime, go to:http://www.k-state.edu/womenscenter and click on the rape information button.The second topic was about the increase in reports of drug-facilitated sexual assaults. The Riley County Attorney's office has indicated that this is a growing problem and is causing grave concern among law enforcement and medical professionals across the state and country.K-State students should be aware that 80-90% of sexual assaults are committed by someone known to the victim. Information on drugs and acquaintance rape is also available athttp://www.k-state.edu/womenscenter/.NO FORM OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE WILL BE TOLERATED OR CONDONED AT KANSAS STATE UNIVERSITY. K-State has a Policy Prohibiting Sexual Violence and it will be enforced to the fullest extent.Below are K-State resources available to all students.K-STATE RESOURCES The K-State Women's Center, http://www.k-state.edu/womenscenter/, in 206Holton Hall, 785-532-6444, provides individuals and groups with information and materials about reducing the risk of rape and other violence. The Women's Center has a victim's advocate to support those who have been impacted by sexual assault.Lafene Health Center, http://www.k-state.edu/lafene/, offers K-State students comprehensive, high quality, easily accessible, affordable outpatient health care. Contact them at 785-532-6544.The K-State Police Department, http://www.k-state.edu/police/, is located in Edwards Hall. Phone them at 785-532-6412, or dial 911 in case of emergency. The Silent Witness program,https://www.ksu.edu/police/silent/, allows students, faculty and staffto report crimes or suspicious activity to the police without identifying themselves.The Wildcat Walk program,http://www.k-state.edu/studentlife/wildcatwalk/, provides security escorts for students 24 hours a day. Call 785-395-SAFE (395-7233) to request assistance.The K-State Safe Zone program,http://www.k-state.edu/womenscenter/SafeZone.htm, provides campus-wideassistance in dealing with threats to safety, harassment or personal distress situations.SafeRide, http://www.k-state.edu/osas/saferide.htm, provides a safe ride home for K-State students and guests who live within the designated city limits of Manhattan on Thursday through Saturday night, from 11p.m. to 3 a.m. Call 539-0480 for a ride.The Office of Student Life, http://www.k-state.edu/studentlife/, offers services to students in times of crisis and assists students with personal, academic or other concerns. Contact them at 785-532-6432 orstop by 102 Holton Hall.The K-State Counseling Services, http://www.k-state.edu/counseling/,provides brief intervention to students that need assistance indecision-making, skill building, or mental health support. You can contact them at 232 English/Counseling Building, 785-532-6927. K-State Family Center, http://www.humec.k-state.edu/familycenter/, is available for individual or couples counseling at the Campus Creek Complex,785-532-6984.May you use good judgment, good decision-making and good resources to make these final few weeks safe and successful.
Produced by: K-State Women's Center and the Office of Student Life Mary Todd Heather Reed Director Assistant Dean Women's Center Office of Student Life 206 Holton Hall 102 Holton Hall 785-532-6444 785-532-6432
mtodd@k-state.edu
hreed@k-state.edu
To All K-State Students, Faculty and Staff:
Spring has arrived and with it our second K-State Personal Safety Newsletter. We want to mention some key safety information and remindeveryone of the topics discussed in our first newsletter, February2008.As we near the end of the semester, this is an important time to remind everyone about making good decisions regarding safety. A student deathand a number of student injuries and incidences remind us that the choices we make can have lethal and long-term effects. K-State is implementing a new program called K-State HD,http://www.k-state.edu/hd/. K-State HD is campus-wide program designed to support healthy decision-making and enhance the safety and healthy climate of our campus.Towards the end of the semester it is common to see an increase in the number of computers, books, backpacks and other electronic devices that are stolen. Please be sure to lock your room, house or apartment and take precautions to keep your belongings safe. Never leave your possessions unattended at anytime.In our past newsletter we reminded the campus community about the"serial rapist" who, according to the Riley County Police, committed several home invasion rapes between 1999 and 2007. The individual is described as a medium build, white male. For information on how you can lower your risk for this type of crime, go to:http://www.k-state.edu/womenscenter and click on the rape information button.The second topic was about the increase in reports of drug-facilitated sexual assaults. The Riley County Attorney's office has indicated that this is a growing problem and is causing grave concern among law enforcement and medical professionals across the state and country.K-State students should be aware that 80-90% of sexual assaults are committed by someone known to the victim. Information on drugs and acquaintance rape is also available athttp://www.k-state.edu/womenscenter/.NO FORM OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE WILL BE TOLERATED OR CONDONED AT KANSAS STATE UNIVERSITY. K-State has a Policy Prohibiting Sexual Violence and it will be enforced to the fullest extent.Below are K-State resources available to all students.K-STATE RESOURCES The K-State Women's Center, http://www.k-state.edu/womenscenter/, in 206Holton Hall, 785-532-6444, provides individuals and groups with information and materials about reducing the risk of rape and other violence. The Women's Center has a victim's advocate to support those who have been impacted by sexual assault.Lafene Health Center, http://www.k-state.edu/lafene/, offers K-State students comprehensive, high quality, easily accessible, affordable outpatient health care. Contact them at 785-532-6544.The K-State Police Department, http://www.k-state.edu/police/, is located in Edwards Hall. Phone them at 785-532-6412, or dial 911 in case of emergency. The Silent Witness program,https://www.ksu.edu/police/silent/, allows students, faculty and staffto report crimes or suspicious activity to the police without identifying themselves.The Wildcat Walk program,http://www.k-state.edu/studentlife/wildcatwalk/, provides security escorts for students 24 hours a day. Call 785-395-SAFE (395-7233) to request assistance.The K-State Safe Zone program,http://www.k-state.edu/womenscenter/SafeZone.htm, provides campus-wideassistance in dealing with threats to safety, harassment or personal distress situations.SafeRide, http://www.k-state.edu/osas/saferide.htm, provides a safe ride home for K-State students and guests who live within the designated city limits of Manhattan on Thursday through Saturday night, from 11p.m. to 3 a.m. Call 539-0480 for a ride.The Office of Student Life, http://www.k-state.edu/studentlife/, offers services to students in times of crisis and assists students with personal, academic or other concerns. Contact them at 785-532-6432 orstop by 102 Holton Hall.The K-State Counseling Services, http://www.k-state.edu/counseling/,provides brief intervention to students that need assistance indecision-making, skill building, or mental health support. You can contact them at 232 English/Counseling Building, 785-532-6927. K-State Family Center, http://www.humec.k-state.edu/familycenter/, is available for individual or couples counseling at the Campus Creek Complex,785-532-6984.May you use good judgment, good decision-making and good resources to make these final few weeks safe and successful.
Produced by: K-State Women's Center and the Office of Student Life Mary Todd Heather Reed Director Assistant Dean Women's Center Office of Student Life 206 Holton Hall 102 Holton Hall 785-532-6444 785-532-6432
mtodd@k-state.edu
hreed@k-state.edu
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