It seems more than just a few reputations were lost in the chaos of the post-Duke game riot and the controversies that have followed. The university’s quest to select a new University Police chief to replace Ken Krouse, who retired at the end of last year after 20 years in the position, has all but been forgotten by most students.
During the last week, the university hosted public forums for the three final candidates for the job to give members of the university community an opportunity to ask questions and express their views. Yet despite the outcry from students in the past few weeks about alleged police brutality during last month’s riot — and the mysteriously disappearing footage of the beating of junior John McKenna — students have shown little interest in who could be commanding the university’s police force for possibly the next two decades.
At the forums for former Prince George’s County Police Chief David Mitchell and then for county Acting Deputy Chief of Administration Gary Cunningham, only one student turned out for each. About 15 students showed up for the third forum, which hosted Tom Coppinger, the chief of staff for the State Police superintendent. But most of those were there for a class. There’s no doubt coming out to hear a cop answer questions on a Thursday or Friday afternoon isn’t any student’s idea of fun. But one of these men will soon command the nearly 100 university police officers who patrol the campus. The new chief’s leadership and governing style could go a long way toward determining how police officers treat students.
It wasn’t university police who responded to the first post-game riot in four years. It was their county counterparts who swung clubs and beat students. But the actions of university police can be critical in preventing future riots. Their judgment and actions should be scrutinized and questioned by those they will be serving in order to truly determine who will best serve the community and prevent a repeat of the events of March 4. The next chief needs to find a balance between controlling crowds on Route 1 and allowing riot police and mounted officers to march down Knox Road.
Each of the three candidates answered questions about future riots well, with Mitchell saying he would offer students “a seat at the table with a voice to be heard.” Although each candidate seemed receptive to student ideas and expressed a desire to prevent future riots — a fairly obvious stance to take — they must be pressed further. And it is unfortunate more students did not turn out to do so.
Students need a police chief who will listen and try new ideas. Although police will continue to enforce laws that may be unpopular among students, such as drug and alcohol policies, they can still play a key role in preventing violence. The euphoria and celebrations that follow a Terp victory cannot be contained with any number of mounted police or pellet guns. But what police can do is establish trust with students and handle situations delicately. Reality should govern police actions, not expected realities.
As the administration approaches its final decision, students, whether individually or through university organizations, should express what they want in a chief to the administration through letters, phone calls and e-mails. Although it often may seem like those suggestions are ignored or brushed under the rug, the investigations that are now racking county police should be validation that is not always the case.
Students may have missed an opportunity to voice their concerns during these past three forums, but it’s not too late to be heard.
