Students take a swim

Public Safety reports find students take late night swims in the reflection pool

With the fall season approaching and temperatures dropping, swimming is not necessarily the first thing on students’ minds. However, according to recent Public Safety reports, some students are still in the summer swim mindset.

According to these reports, there were two incidences of students caught swimming in the reflection pool by the dorms on Aug. 26. The first instance occurred at a few minutes past 2 a.m.; the second happened almost thirty minutes later. Public Safety Officer Gary Purvis dealt with the first offense where two males in their boxers were swimming in the reflection pool.

“I ended up chasing one of the guys, who jumped on to one of the SNAP golf carts, telling the guy to drive away,” Purvis said. The driver drove right up to the officer, who cuffed the fleeing offender. The other male was hiding in the bushes and was caught by Public Safety Detective Robert Butler. Both students were underage and under the influence of alcohol.

The second incidence occurred barely thirty minutes later when Sgt. Reonas of Public Safety was dispatched to the reflection pool in reference to two males swimming. Upon Reonas’ arrival, the males ran away and swiped themselves into Foundation Hall. The males were identified the next day when footage was pulled. All offenders have been referred to the Student Judicial Board.

“Alcohol was definitely a factor in this situation,” Purvis said. According to the officer, the two offenders admitted they probably would not have run, much less go for a swim, if they had not been drinking.

Lieren Forbes is a junior environmental science major and a Community Advisor for the second floor of Wells Hall. According to Forbes, people have been known to urinate in the pool, and that just a few weeks ago, a dead fish was floating in it.

“It’s just kind of nasty,” Forbes said.

Forbes also does not understand the purpose of evading Public Safety officers.

“Campus police are nice—they aren’t going to beat you up.”

David Smith, a graduate assistant and the Community Director of Wells Hall, said that taking an impromptu dip in the reflection pool is not a good idea.

“I guess it’s not that big of a deal, but it reflects poorly on the school. It was very foolish on their part.”

Purvis also gives advice to future students who might get into trouble with Public Safety.

“When you run, you change the whole situation,” Purvis said. “Running from a police officer is an arrestable offense.”

Posted by Kathryn Shadden on Sep 15 2011. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.