John Avery, Staff Writer
The recent shootings at Northern Illinois University have underlined continuing concerns about public safety on open campuses. Officials at PCC have been working to respond to those concerns, with several changes in policy debuting this semester.
Last week the Associated Students issued a resolution calling for PCC to allow properly trained campus officers to carry firearms. This action reverses the position the AS took last year, even though the current executive board includes several of the same members.
“I think I was naïve before,” said Adam Kratt, currently AS vice president for external affairs. “As elected officials, you have to respond to considerations of student safety.”
Student Affairs adviser Rebecca Cobb says she hears of similar concerns from many other community colleges. “Students want to know that they’re safe on campus,” she said. “There’s a lot of fear.” Cobb said she hopes that better communication will allay those fears as the campus works to improve public safety.
Kindred Murillo, vice president of administrative services, plans for PCC to begin holding emergency response drills as soon as this semester, much like the fire drills held in many other schools. Her goal is for key people across campus to be trained for several kinds of emergencies, and for their responses to be practiced at random times each semester. Their first exercise will be a tabletop simulation of post-earthquake decision-making.
Murillo is currently forming a task force to investigate the need for firearms for campus police, ultimately reporting its recommendation to the Board of Trustees. In January she requested representatives from several PCC constituencies, but so far few have replied. She expects the task force to meet before spring break, and hopes to have its recommendation ready before summer.
Its conclusions will have been long awaited. Although several board members have privately expressed opinions about the arming of campus officers, over the last few decades the Board of Trustees has never voted on the issue.
PCC continues to implement its overall critical incident response plan, anticipating contingencies from kitchen fires to terrorist attacks. But Lt. Brad Young, college safety supervisor, said, “Our emergency playbook has a chapter missing.” How are campus police to respond in the event of a gunman at PCC?
“We’re still operating pre-Columbine,” said Peter Michael, chief of police and safety services. The shootings on that campus changed the thinking of police departments around the country, he said.
At Columbine, officers followed what was then standard procedure. They contained the building, keeping people away while police assembled their forces for intervention. Meanwhile, inside the building, the body count climbed.
Police departments later realized that quick action by a handful of officers would have saved many lives. They developed a post-Columbine protocol of rapid deployment for the active shooter scenario, in which the armed officers first at the scene plan and implement immediate intervention to remove an ongoing threat.
With PCC’s current policy of unarmed officers, Young said it would be reckless for them to adopt such a protocol. “I can’t send an officer into a hot zone,” he said.
Right now, Michael said, “We’re gonna say ‘Hang in there. Pasadena Police Department is coming.’” This passive approach disturbs many officers. “It’s not in a police officer’s nature not to respond,” he said
Kratt anticipates a public forum this semester to open further discussion of this topic among the PCC community. Michael said he would be glad to address such a forum, believing the public needs to become more involved.
Michael observed that only 2,300 people have signed up so far for Alert-U (www.alertu.org/pcc), PCC’s text-message emergency alert system, although doing so could save lives during a variety of emergencies. Most people won’t start preparing for disaster until they become a victim, but PCC needs to become proactive, he said. “How many buildings burnt down before every city required fire sprinklers?”
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14 responses so far ↓
1 LAX-SFOtraveler // Mar 1, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Now that PCC is taking the steps to bringing armed campus police officers to PCC, this is the first step to becoming more independent of handling man/woman with a gun calls.
I didn’t like the previous stance that many students made because it shows that they’re anti-law enforcement and that they’re playing politics with our campus safety. No police officers in the United States should be treated like Tijuana cops (in terms of guns, not corruption) since police officers in the United States are among the best trained in the world. When there’s armed campus police, the officer(s) can stop a threat from happening and can save many lives without having to request backup from Pasadena Police. Armed reinforcements can take up to ten minutes.
2 Lancerman // Mar 3, 2008 at 8:51 pm
Very recently, the Pasadena Police Chief voiced strong SUPPORT of arming our campus cops. Gee —-
I think he may have a point?
DUh ?
3 LAX-SFOtraveler // Mar 3, 2008 at 10:56 pm
that’s because Acting Chief Vicino is an adjunct professor at PCC
4 LAX-SFOtraveler // Mar 3, 2008 at 11:00 pm
I believe those who prefer keeping campus police unarmed are either playing politics with campus safety or anti-law enforcement in general. People are used to seeing police officers with guns.
When the officers have guns, they can respond to any threat and can stop a threat from happening, like in 2001 when an El Cajon High School student fired at students and an ARMED campus officer confronted the suspect (student) and stopped the threat.
5 Lancerman // Mar 4, 2008 at 9:54 pm
Forget the “acting” chief. I am talking about Chief Bernie. You know…..the REAL Pasadena chief? Even the janitors at PCC can figure this out. Why can’t the brain-dead Board of Trustless?
I’m going to another college……good luck. I’ll visit you guys in the hospital….or attend your funeral. Or not.
Lance
6 kebmo2mudwaters // Mar 6, 2008 at 10:50 pm
lax-
thanks for deciding exactly why people are against arming the police, I’m sure that saves them a lot of time defending their argument. For you see, of course they are playing politics with our safety or are anti-law enforcement. That’s it.
Where does one get off spewing such rhetoric? I hope to god that’s not the kind of offensive lowbrow writing and arguing they teach at PCC.
7 LAX-SFOtraveler // Mar 6, 2008 at 11:08 pm
yes, there’s cop-haters and those who don’t like guns in general. Law enforcement is put in place TO SAVE LIVES.
8 kebmo2mudwaters // Mar 7, 2008 at 7:42 pm
Well duh, that’s way beyond what I was saying, but yeah, of course there are. I’m just saying don’t pass everyone off as such.
9 jlowder // Mar 14, 2008 at 8:14 pm
If PCC police need guns to satisfy their ego, let them.
The debate should be about WHY school shootings happen, and what we can do to PREVENT them from happening.
Virginia Tech Campus cops were armed and they did nothing to stop 32 people from being killed.
I would rather see money invested into studies investigating why campus shootings are almost unique to the United States, instead of money spent on arming insecure cops who feel they can’t manage the campus without carrying lethal weapons.
Grow a set PCCPD, this isn’t Gaza, it’s a college campus.
10 jlowder // Mar 14, 2008 at 8:43 pm
LAX-SFOtraveler
5 people were shot before the police officer arrived. He didn’t prevent anything.
Lancerman: Good luck, I’ll visit you guys in the hospital… or attend your funeral…or not.
Pathetic. Good riddance, you won’t be missed.
11 LAX-SFOtraveler // Mar 15, 2008 at 4:22 pm
Remember when Lt. Young mentioned that shooting on your article and when he told you to do your homework?
That officer in El Cajon STOPPED a man from shooting at other students
12 jlowder // Mar 15, 2008 at 6:24 pm
Your correct, he did stop a shooter. But he didn’t prevent 5 people from being shot.
13 AS-PCC-VP4PR-A.Kratt // Mar 29, 2008 at 5:26 pm
LAX-SFO, many of your assumptions above are incorrect.
Last year I was the leading opponent to arming campus police.
I do not dislike police officers. I am a former Police Explorer with both Fountain Valley Police Post 1007 and with Lompoc Police Post 700. I graduated from the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Explorer Academy.
Additionally I am a former Correctional Officer in Missouri.
I would prefer that there were no guns on campus.
But lets be honest. Guns are already on campus. That is why my position has changed. I feel for campus safety it is imperitive that our POST Certified Peace Officers be given the tools .. and or handguns so they can effectivly perform their duties.
while total crime on campus has lowered, violent crime has risen. We have had several attacks with weapons. here are but a few things which have happened on this campus;
1. Professor assaulted in a classroom with a handgun
2. Student robbed in parking lot at gun point.
3. Drive by shooting at a campus sporting event.
4. student attacked with a machette on campus
5. Student attacked with a pipe on campus
6. Campus Police Dispatcher stabbed on campus.
and many more events have occured. Additionally ammunition has been found on campus.
Both the decision to oppose arming the police in 06/07 academic year and the recent resolution in support of arming campus police is not related to like or dislike of Police Officers.. but a development and reassesment of the safety and security of students.
Associates Students acts as the voice of the student body. We vote and support issues that are for the benefit. Not based upon out personal ideas
14 redwood846 // Mar 30, 2008 at 4:01 pm
I’m pretty sure LAX-SFOtraveler didn’t mean that EVERYONE that oppose campus police are also anti-law enforcement. I’m pretty sure he was meaning people including ex-cons for the anti-law enforcement.
I personally forgive anyone who currently supports arming campus police (who are those that opposed arming them in the past). I feel the importance of student safety rather than thinking about just firearms.
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