Acting Director of Public Safety Mike McNair became the full-time director of the department recently, and is planning to implement a student patrol that former Student Confederation presidential candidates Will Mount and John Lancelot talked about a month ago. McNair and SC President-elect Polson Kanneth are excited about the idea, which probably won't get off the ground until next semester.
While The Eagle thinks a student patrol could potentially be a great idea, we would like to see an extensive amount of planning before any such program is officially implemented. A number of issues need to be addressed, including whether or not students will be in uniform while on the job, whether or not they will carry any kind of weapon, and whether or not they will act or merely report to Public Safety headquarters if they see someone committing a crime.
Currently, the students will probably be paid and will probably be in uniform while on duty. However, we don't know whether or not students will be carrying some kind of weapon. If they do, it might increase the chance of violence or student abuse. However, we feel that students should also have the right to defend themselves in case of emergency. Last week a student was robbed at gunpoint, so pepper spray or something similar might be a good thing for student patrollers to carry. The question of action is also thorny - the University could easily be sued if a student patroller tries to stop a crime and gets hurt. On the other hand, if someone is being physically harmed, the student patroller may feel compelled to act immediately.
The Eagle does not have any concrete answers to these problems - Public Safety and the SC will have to work out the details. However, we do advise a long and intense period of deliberation, planning and training. Students should be involved in the planning process, and Public Safety should not rush the program. Procedures and training need to be clear, thorough and precise, and if they are, AU will be a safer campus.
