It seems nowadays that everywhere you look on campus, there’s a reason to be concerned.
First, a woman is sexually assaulted on the Portland State campus by two strangers. The Campus Public Safety Office acknowledge the crime as a rarity, and while the student population is a little concerned, it trusts the school’s judgment and counts itself as safe.
On Thursday, Jan. 12, Portland State hosted a public-safety forum. The event, which was open to the public, provided a venue for discussion of campus public safety between staff, faculty and students. The forum resulted in several troubling questions raised by the university community.
Sitting on the university panel was Jessica Amo, assistant director of the Women’s Resource Center; Dr. Marcy Hunt-Morse, director of Counseling and Psychological Services; Phillip Zerzan, director of Campus Public Safety Office; and Charles Lopez, executive director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Michele Toppe, dean of student life, mediated the discussion.
The Oregon University System will not appeal a court decision that allows guns on campuses.
The decision overturned decades of prohibition, but upheld a 1995 Oregon law intended to prevent cities from creating their own gun laws, giving that power instead to the state legislature. The OUS was challenged by gun rights advocates over its decision to disallow firearms being carried on campus even with a concealed weapons permit.
While the court decision represented a victory for gun rights advocates, the OUS intends to rely on internal policies to continue to promote the safety of students, according to Diane Saunders, director of communication for the OUS.
The Millar Library was closed minutes after 6 p.m., nearly 5 hours earlier than scheduled. One librarian, who declined to give his name, stated that they were advised to close early by a PSU Campus Public Safety officer, who cited concerns over the potential occupation of PSU by Occupy Portland protestors. Approximately 1,000 Occupy Portland protestors are currently holding a general assembly in Pioneer Square.
The Campus Public Safety Office at Portland State has filed 17 reports so far this year related to graffiti, fast approaching the total of 24 graffiti listings last year.
The Campus Public Safety Office arrested three individuals for possession of heroin during the month of April.
Recently, former Portland State student Heath Avery was sentenced to nearly six years in prison for stabbing fellow student Andrew Richardson last August.
Students have reported seeing large quantities of needles in the sharps-disposal bins in Portland State restrooms.
The theft of ASPSU President Katie Markey’s work computer from the ASPSU office in Smith Memorial Student Union has raised questions about the office’s security, as student government computers have been known to carry sensitive information collected about voters in registration drives.
On Wednesday, TriMet employees protested outside Smith Memorial Student Union to raise awareness over ongoing labor disputes, including safety issues and a shortage of drivers.
Recently, reports of theft and crime have been increasing at Portland State, compared with the past few years. As a result, Campus Public Safety Office is working on ways to prevent minor crimes on campus—the majority of which are related to theft of laptop computers.