That’s it, texaspg. I think if we want to talk about withdrawal policies relating to mental health (a very interesting and controversial topic), we should start a new thread.
I don’t know how common these types of incidents are on and around most campuses, but Yale students have been the subjects of robbery (one involving a handgun) around the campus in the past 17 days, all of which fall under the jurisdiction of the YPD:
http://www.nhregister.com/general-news/20150120/police-3-yale-students-robbed-at-gunpoint
http://www.nhregister.com/general-news/20150128/yale-police-woman-robbed-near-campus
The armed robbery occurred 4 days before the Blow incident.
This is a troubling cluster of cases, more than I can recall over the last six years. Whether it signifies a change of some kind, I don’t know. It might be that increasing gentrification around campus has made students more complacent about safety.
Blaming the students again, are you?
I did a show at the Yale Dramat many years ago (I was not a student, but the producer told me I could audition and I was cast in the chorus of Sweeney Todd in '89), and at the time, New Haven felt much less safe than it does now, although I don’t know what has happened with the crime statistics since then. One of the cast members was mugged on his way to rehearsal. It is more gentrified around campus now, but you only have to go a couple of blocks to experience a very different world than most Yale students have probably experienced. I’m sure for crimes of opportunity, a campus full of relatively wealthy students is prime pickings for criminals.
I just don’t think guns should be drawn for property theft.
While I don’t appreciate your insinuations, I’ll respond–in many threads, including those involving sexual assault, I’ve said that it isn’t “victim-blaming” to say that students should protect themselves against crime. This is why I told my daughter to lock the door to her suite, and not just the door to her room, and why I’ve told her to be careful where she goes around campus, especially alone and at night. The three students who were robbed at gunpoint were on a trail that is near (but not on) campus. The crime happened at 6:30, so I guess it was dark, although it wasn’t very late. A couple of those other crimes happened at places that aren’t remote at all, so they concern me even more.
I advise my children to protect themselves as well, and like you, I don’t consider that to be victim-blaming. What you wrote, however, seemed to go beyond that to me.
What is interesting in this thread is the lack of acknowledgement by anyone that none of this would have happened, if the piece-of-you-know-what hadn’t so brazenly trespassed (b&e) multiple times to steal laptops (grand larceny), and wallets and checkbooks and used them, both during daylight and at night in the bedroom while the occupants were sleeping, combined with the fact that other robberies, one at gunpoint by another (or the same??) p-o-s were also taking place in the vicinity.
Some posters seem to go to great lengths to rationalize that this was only property theft, like this guy didn’t really do anything that was a big deal (really?), thus any police officer reacting as though he may be about to confront a violent criminal is described as “nonsense” and “absurd.” I personally find that way of thinking bizarre, but I am very appreciative of our law enforcement officers and what they do and deal with to protect us.
No one is saying that burglary or theft is not a big deal. But neither is considered a violent crime, although burglary is often considered more serious due to the potential of violence if either a resident or the burglar gets trapped inside during the crime.
What is Yale PD’s doctrine with respect to drawing guns when finding a burglary suspect (assuming that the nature of the crime was accurately communicated to the officer on the street)? How does that compare to that of other police departments? It seems that there is a lot of disagreement on whether the officer should have drawn his gun quickly in this case.
ucb,
I posted earlier in this thread that according to a source I found on CT law, the term “burglary” includes theft with a weapon, see #145. Did you miss that? That makes it a violent crime. Its possible that in CT, all burglary suspects are presumed to be armed, but I don’t know that.
While http://www.cga.ct.gov/2007/rpt/2007-R-0505.htm includes classes of burglary with firearms or other weapons, it is likely that the more common types of burglaries are not those classes of burglary. So then there could also be a question about whether it is normal practice for a YPD dispatcher to distinguish between common unarmed burglary and armed or violent burglary, and (if so) whether this was accurately communicated to the officer.
I agree that there are lots of unknown facts in this case, which is why I advocate reserving judgment until more facts are released.
Adding also for clarity to ucb: the perpetrator’s acts fit the definition of 2nd degree burglary, whether or not he possessed a weapon, and that being a Class C felony. (not a misdemeanor or “minor” type of burglary).
Burglary is generally a felony. Note that the CT definition has first, second, and third degree burglaries. First covers situations while armed or if someone is injured during the crime (class B felony). Second is of a dwelling at night or which is occupied (class C felony). Third is all entries to commit a crime (class D felony). Both second and third have subclasses “with firearm” (same class felony, but with one year mandatory minimum sentence).
And of course if one is asleep while burgled, it is impossible to know if the burglar is armed.
I like that you threw the word “loaded” in there… would you prefer the police carry unloaded guns? And “such a situation” when we really don’t know all the details.
I drive and walk by people everyday that have loaded rifles and handguns, and I have never witnessed (or heard) about one “accidentally” going off. I assure you if guns of any of the people that I pass each day were “accidentally” discharged I would hear about it.
That said, if you want to blame the black police officer for being racist, that is within your rights as well.
If your daughter had been standing behind the suspect, hopefully she is smart enough (she is at Yale after all in this situation) to move somewhere else.
I am amazed that you can write “I’m amazed to hear that anybody thinks it’s appropriate to draw a loaded gun on a person emerging from a college library” with a straight face. What are the other places on your list where police are not allowed to use their tools to carry out their mission?
Ucb,
You might also be interested in researching the felony-murder rule and consider how it might apply to this case if Blow Jr had *accidentally * been shot. Under that rule, the felony burglar is the one who could be charged for Blow’s murder, not the cop (depending on the circumstances, of course).
His name isn’t Blow Jr.
Did they even find the real suspect? And it’s strange and frightening for the son to get confronted by a weapon like.
I know that isn’t his name, but you obviously know who I am talking about anyway. I try not to use the full names of non-public-figure private citizens when posting, because I don’t like the idea that discussions about him by anonymous posters will come up in internet searches for his name. I don’t think that fair to him or considerate.
It’s not exactly a common name, so I don’t believe your attempt to rationalize the name-calling. You could call him “the student” or even “Blow’s son” and we’d all know exactly who you were talking about.