arming college pd's

[Magicman]

OH After Effect of VA Shootings


A police union wants some big changes to increase security on a Central Ohio campus. The union wants 16 fully trained police officers at Columbus State to be able to carry guns; some feel officers can't serve and protect adequately without them.

Just one day after a lone gunman killed 32-people and himself at Virginia Tech, a local police union wants to increase security at Columbus State Community College.

Jim Gilbert is the president of the Fraternal Order of Police. He told NewCenter the 16 fully trained police officers who patrol Columbus State are essentially "useless" since none of them are allowed to carry guns.

"For them to not allow police officers on this campus to not be armed is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard of. You cant provide a safe environment if your not willing to give the weapons needed to those officers," Gilbert stated

Right now, the college only allows the officers to carry mace, a batton and handcuffs. It's a big concern for a 20-thousand student urban campus.

Amy Barends, an employee in the admissions department at Columbus State said, "It just makes sense to give them the tools to do their jobs. It's sort of like sending a firefighter into a building with out a hose. It doesn't make sense."

As for students, we had a hard time finding anyone who opposes the Police Unions request.

"Here, if something happened, the guards don't have any way to protect us to take down an intruder or anything like that," says student Chris Betts.

Jim Gilbert, and fellow police officers are trying desperately to combat the violence on college campuses, but it is in fact increasing.


Last Updated: Wednesday, April 18 2007, 01:24 PM

[JSandi]

If they are certified/sworn and in uniform, expected to enforce the law and make arrests they should be armed.

[Magicman]

I agree! And I think it is dangerous, especially in light of recent events, to have officers unarmed. When they were talking about this on the news today, most people didn't realize they weren't armed. So now we are looking at a situation where any news reading or seeing person in central OH knows this. And this school is not exactly in a good area of town and I think the student's tend to be "eccentric". Ticking time bomb.

[willowdared]

California University/College/School Police have full peace powers and are POST certified - oh yeah, and armed.

[Magicman]

That's the dumbest thing about this college. They're all OPATA certified, have full arrest powers but the admin of the college feels the guns are too intimidating. Wait til a shooting happens there and see the lawsuits flow. It's bs if you ask me.

[Bearcat357]

California University/College/School Police have full peace powers and are POST certified - oh yeah, and armed.

Same with Missouri....we all attend the same academy.....and all are certified the same way....just some university's and at least one park ranger program I know of choice NOT to arm them......

Just read the paper back home.....and the debate is on if they need to arm the University where I attended the academy at....

Asshats.....there should be no debate. They should be armed!

[Magicman]

You know that guns can be very intimidating and interfer with the intellectual process of higher education.

[Bearcat357]

You know that guns can be very intimidating and interfer with the intellectual process of higher education.

When the university I attended armed up about 5 years ago, there was a lot of ticked off folks.....from staff/facility....all the way up to alumni....

Idiots.....cause we all know if something happened and the LEOs weren't armed, these same folks would be going nuts.....

[Magicman]

you're right Bearcat. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. Anyone wishing to send a message to the college let me know.

[PhilipCal]

Arming College P.D.s

In Alabama, all state supported college and university police are fully empowered, APOST certified, peace officers. They are armed. Quite a few private institutions have security departments which are not armed, nor are the personnel certified Peace Officers. Whether or not this will change in light of the VT incident is questionable. There is considerable potential liability involved in arming what are essentially private security forces. The state supported schools aren't imune to suits. I don't want to give that impression. But their Officers can usually qualify for a degree of "Good Faith Immunity" and other limitations on suits and damages. The private schools don't have even this qualified immunity.

[Mirrain]

Hopefully they don't just add the weapons and leave it at that. Why police in campuses aren't allowed to carry is beyond me.

Those guys should be armed and given a lot of time to train on these situations.

[MikeUD]

I'm about to start FTO with an unarmed campus department after finishing 28 weeks of Academy. Yeah, I knew we were unarmed going in, but it's still not something I was happy about. Sadly, knowing the political climate here, I'm no so sure that this incident will bring about any change, and being the FNG I'd rather not start of my career as "one of those instigators."

[SilverE2]

I'm at University of Florida, and all of our police officers are armed...

[t150vsuptpr]

Virginia Tech Police Department is a full service police department and an armed one at that. There is also the Blacksburg City Police Department. Their Crystal Ball was in the shop for an oil change and their Ouija Board was on loan.

You can train all you want, enact all the laws you want, take every precaution dreamed up by a Monday morning quarterbacking liberal talk show host or Hollywood celeb, and a determined individual can still get through.

It's damn near impossible to get a certifiable nut locked up until after they've killed a few. Wasn't always like that. Thank the ACLU and the liberal APA. This kid should have been locked up a long time ago. He wouldn't stay on his meds and he was wired wrong.

Rant over.

[PicardMD]

I think a better way to address the issue and help arm all qualified LEO's is through state legislation, taking the decisions out of college administrations hands. Define sworn peace officer through legislation and mandate equal certification for all sworn peace officers. Then, give them the ability and right to be armed through state law. College administration should have no say in such matters. In fact, for state universities, the campus PD should not even be governed by local university administration. They should be governed under a state body that oversees all campus PD's in the system (sort of mirror the state police). As for private universities, if they wish to receive any kind of state or federal fundings/grants, they should be required to fund and set up an independent fully trained/certified armed campus police department overseen/governed by the local police department or sheriff's office (and not by university administration).... Probably will never happen, but it's just a thought...

I also agree with t150 that doesn't matter how well armed the law enforcement communities are, nut cases will always manage to slip through, and trageties like VT can still happen anywhere, anytime...

P