President Kenny Issues New Update, Inaccuracies In Initial Report
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President Shirley Strum Kenny issued an update today at 1:30 PM on yesterday's alleged gunman incident, stating that the initial report given to UPD was "not accurate." An investigation has revealed the following: the initial report given to our University Police by an individual working in the SAC Dining Hall was not accurate. He had initially reported to University Police that a person he confronted for shoplifting food was carrying a firearm. After a thorough investigation by our University Police and the Suffolk County Police, a number of inconsistencies were found in this report. There is an ongoing investigation. Our University Police invoked the SB Alert system since our first concern is the safety and security of all those on campus. We cannot take any risks. Yesterday's incident has shown us: Overall our SB Alert worked. We are now looking toward ways to make it even more effective. Our Emergency Management Team coordinated all aspects of the University response in a professional way. The response of the University Police, the Suffolk County Police Department, and the New York State Police was immediate. We are grateful to the men and women of these forces. If members of the Stony Brook University community have not already done so, we encourage you to sign up for SB Alert by entering your preferred contact information into the SOLAR system. Do this by going to the Emergency Management website at www.stonybrook.edu/sb/emergency/comm.shtml and click through to the SOLAR system. The University Administration is reviewing yesterday's incident and emergency response effort, and we will address any deficiencies we find. We appreciate suggestions for improvement. Suggestions may be sent to campussafety@stonybrook.edu. We will continue to assess and improve our emergency response methods and procedures in order to provide a safe, secure, and caring environment for our students, staff, and faculty. |
NO FIREARM INVOLVED
In a report from yesterday, Olivia Winslow, (Newsday), quotes Ass. Chief Douglas Little saying that the person who did not pay for his food on Monday "was not carrying a firearm", as it had been originally reported, but that the whole scare was the result of an incorrect assessment by one of the security guards in the cafeteria. For unknown reasons this crucial point has been omitted from the Stony Brook official report above.
The fact that the S.A.C. cafeteria is full of overzealous employees and/or security guards who sometimes/often inappropriately harass customers is a fact that needs to be investigated. I have been the victim of this harassment. Once, after buying some pizza, I went back inside to add some garlic powder. While doing this I tried to reach my mp3 player inside my pocket, and apparently this action triggered the suspicions of one of the security guards. Not only was he rude, but he grabbed my coat, demanding to see all the contents of my pockets. After verifying I had not taken anything he went away, not apologizing, but blaming me for his mistake.
The unnecessary rudeness involved made this a more degrading experience that it should have been. It made me wonder how often this abuse happens, and whether it is not done this way on purpose, just to intimidate other students.
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POLICE: REPORT OF GUN ON STONY BROOK CAMPUS WAS WRONG
By Olivia Winslow | olivia.winslow@newsday.com
9:35 PM EST, February 26, 2008
There was no gun.
After reports on Monday that a man with a gun was on the loose at Stony Brook University created fear and confusion across the campus, university police officials said Tuesday that the cafeteria worker who made the report was not correct in his assessment.
The worker had reported that a man he confronted who was trying to shoplift food had displayed a gun in his waistband.
The suspect "was not carrying a firearm," said Assistant Police Chief Douglas Little.
"The initial report given to the university police department by the individual working in the SAC dining hall was not accurate," Little said.
"He initially reported to university police that a person he confronted for shoplifting food was carrying a firearm. After a thorough investigation by the University Police Department and Suffolk County police, there were many inconsistencies in the report and our investigation is ongoing," Little said.
A cafeteria manager said the employee who made the report was not at work Tuesday afternoon.
Stony Brook updated its Web site with the information about the "inaccurate" report.
Staff writer Matthew Chayes contributed to this story.
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