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The Maroon Tiger Work

SECURITY CONCERNS SURFACE AFTER STUDENT SHOOTINGS

By SAEED AHMED

On February 13, 1996, Jason Rayford, a Sophomore Marketing major at Morehouse, was robbed in front of Stegall's restaurant.

Two weeks later, another Morehouse student, Junior Finance major Byron Kirkland, was attacked in a similar fashion on Beckwith Street. He suffered bullet wounds to the abdomen.

Fifteen minutes later, Michael Lopez, a Senior at Clark Atlanta University, was shot in the arm as he tried to fend off his attacker in yet another attempted robbery.

The incidents, which tool place near Woodruff Library between 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. on Monday nights, have provoked outrage among students, many of whom are calling into question the aptitude of the AUC campus security officials.

"The police officer's job is to protect, not ride around to Krispy Kreme," said Shaka Scott, a Senior Political Science major. "Compare the number of police officers the AUC has, to the area they patrol, and you get a very inefficient system."

According to James Davis, Chief of Campus Security, the "inefficient system" is a result of non-cooperation among the AUC police forces.

Davis claims that although all the AUC schools are supposed to provide personnel to a combined AUC task force, "only Morehouse and Spelman participate; Clark-Atlanta and Morris Brown do not have the officers."

However, a Clark-Atlanta security officer, on conditions of anonymity, stated that what Davis calls "non-cooperation" has more to do with CAU's belief that the Atlanta Police Department needs to have a larger presence in the area.

"They're like little children fussing over whose turn it is to do the dishes," said Nathaniel Roland, a Sophomore Biology major, commenting on the indecision by the various police chiefs regarding the patrolling of the Woodruff Library area.

"Instead of playing pass-the-blame, why don't they stop bickering for a while and get something accomplished before somebody actually gets killed?"

Davis says some things are being done.

"We have doubled the round-the-clock foot patrols, and there will be a Morehouse patrol car [along] with a Spelman car near the library," he said.

Yet, The Maroon Tiger's periodic check of the library surroundings on the night of Davis' announcement revealed neither patrol car nor foot patrol during the vigil.

This is not the first time Chief Davis' promises have not materialized.

Following the shooting deaths of three Morehouse students in the Fall of 1994, the Morehouse Campus Police undertook a comprehensive crime prevention program and outlined plans to install emergency phones outside buildings, and equip parking lots with closed-circuit cameras.

The Department also said it would frequently provide safety classes and other exhibits to promote awareness.

To date, none of these ideas have taken shape.

When asked if any official statement will be released to dispel the rumors surrounding the recent events, Davis replied,"It is not my responsibility. Dean Gaffney [Dean of Student Affairs] can do it if he wants to."

However, other police departments have been more forthcoming.

Clark-Atlanta University Chief of Police, Captain Pollard, said his office will be providing students with an "FYI" (For Your Information) detailing the events, and Sergeant Lane, Night Supervisor for the Woodruff Library Security Force, has explained that their "doors are always open to provide students with whatever information is needed."