UDM Police

[ekleezy]

They might want to reconsider after last nights events.
Prayers to officer Rose and his family.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...y-Detroit.html

It's really unfortunate and I hope Officer Rose has a speedy recovery. This also shows why areas surrounding college campuses need more patrolling though. If students, faculty, etc. are expected to live nearby then they have to feel like there is a police presence trying to prevent crime. Even seeing the occasional WSU PD car drive by is reassuring that less crime is likely.

[GMan]

It's really unfortunate and I hope Officer Rose has a speedy recovery. This also shows why areas surrounding college campuses need more patrolling though. If students, faculty, etc. are expected to live nearby then they have to feel like there is a police presence trying to prevent crime. Even seeing the occasional WSU PD car drive by is reassuring that less crime is likely.

Vital neighborhoods do need patrolling. Is it the colleges duty to operate outside their property jurisdictions though? Their resources are stretched as is everyone's. Should they be called to respond to general suspicion calls outside their property lines?
I can't imagine the resources are available to them to support this kind of mission. Do they have access to the interdepartmental communication channel to call for help from the DPD? Do they have funding for equipment such as body armor?
I know sometimes jurisdiction lines are blurred but I wonder if the colleges should be into policing issues as deeply as they are.
Thoughts?

[professorscott]

Vital neighborhoods do need patrolling. Is it the colleges duty to operate outside their property jurisdictions though?

Well, if Detroit was able to provide effective police protection, we wouldn't be having this discussion. I know from personal experience that the U of D Mercy Public Safety Officers have performed duties in the off-campus neighborhoods for decades, though perhaps unofficially. They have saved my skin more than once. Many of the students and faculty live in the neighborhoods just off campus, and the UDM officers work in the neighborhoods makes the University a more attractive choice for students [[and, relevantly, their parents) than if they were left to the scant amount of patrol work that the city police are able to perform.

Is it the University's duty? Not really. But it's necessary.

[GMan]

Well, if Detroit was able to provide effective police protection, we wouldn't be having this discussion. I know from personal experience that the U of D Mercy Public Safety Officers have performed duties in the off-campus neighborhoods for decades, though perhaps unofficially. They have saved my skin more than once. Many of the students and faculty live in the neighborhoods just off campus, and the UDM officers work in the neighborhoods makes the University a more attractive choice for students [[and, relevantly, their parents) than if they were left to the scant amount of patrol work that the city police are able to perform.

Is it the University's duty? Not really. But it's necessary.

I agree Safe Neighborhoods makes it more desirable for faculty and staff to live adjacent to campus. The bigger question is should it be the norm? Yes D.P.D. capacities are stretched beyond their limits but beyond patrolling and reporting, should university police be expected to approach and engage suspicious individuals beyond the campus?
Are school dollars used for securing campuses best used to patrol neighborhoods? Are they adequately trained and equipped to handle a home burglary or car breaking outside the gates of the campus? If this is the new norm, should campuses then be expected to have say their own swat teams? How about their own autonomous fire department then?
How far does it go?
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