The disappearance of Michelle Gardner-Quinn, a senior at the University of Vermont who was found dead six days after she went missing, has led many to question the safety of students around college campuses, including AU.
Gardner-Quinn disappeared from the downtown area near the University of Vermont Burlington and was reported missing after she missed a dinner she had previously planned with her parents, according to The Post. Her body was found Oct. 13 at a popular swimming location 15 miles away from campus.
According to an Oct. 16 information release from the Burlington County police, Gardner-Quinn's death was listed as homicide, with the cause of death still pending.
"We would like to acknowledge that there are times when communities, police departments, the media and specific families are drawn together. In this instance, unfortunately, we have come together and witnessed the unfolding of a terrible tragedy," the Burlington Police Department said in a statement.
Police currently have in custody Brian Rooney, 36, who was seen in images taken from an ATM machine camera talking with Gardner-Quinn shortly before she disappeared, according to The Post. Rooney, who has been arraigned on unrelated sexual assault charges, denied any involvement in the disappearance and subsequent murder.
Natalie Greene, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs, said she has always felt safe on and around campus.
"We're in the Northwest [part of D.C.]. When you see Secret Service driving around, you really don't feel unsafe," she said.
Public Safety has no jurisdiction over off-campus incidents even if AU students are involved, The Eagle previously reported. However, they are in contact with D.C. police departments and officers, helping them establish a good working relationship with the local authorities.
Chiihiro Fujita, a freshman in the School of International Service, said it's "not really inside the campus, but around campus" where she feels unsafe. Fujita said she felt "insecure" when she took a walk around the residential area surrounding AU because it was very dark and there were no lights.
The D.C. metro area experienced an incident similar to the Gardner-Quinn murder in September 2005, when Taylor Behl, a freshman at Virginia Commonwealth University, disappeared. Her remains were found Oct. 5, 2005, in a rural town 75 miles outside of Richmond, Va., according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Police began investigating Behl's relationship with photographer Benjamin Fawley, 38, after pictures he took of Behl and her roommates appeared on his MySpace.com Web site.
A search was conducted of Fawley's residence where items belonging to Behl were recovered, a report by Court TV said. According to the report, Fawley told prosecutors Behl died accidentally during consensual sexual acts, and afterward he panicked and dumped her body.
Fawley eventually entered an Alford plea agreement, wherein Fawley did not admit responsibility for the killing but admitted the prosecutors had overwhelming evidence to convict him, according to a Court TV report.
