4/5/98
ATHENS, Ohio -- The Office of Student Judiciaries will review the arrest reports of the Athens Police Department and make a determination of appropriate university discipline that should be taken in addition to whatever legal action has already been initiated by the city, Ohio University President Robert Glidden said Sunday.
Athens Police Chief Rick Mayer said in a Sunday press release that about 27 persons were arrested, most for failure to disperse and persistent disorderly conduct, during a confrontation between officers and people on Court Street early Sunday morning. He said that at least two officers received minor injuries from thrown objects.
Glidden said: "Since this is the second time in as many years students and police have had a confrontation linked to the change to daylight-saving time, and campus-community talks have failed to make a difference, it makes sense to reexamine the factors involved, and for students and non-students alike to claim their share of personal responsibility."
This year, Glidden went to the streets himself and spoke with both students and law enforcement officials before and after Athens Mayor Rick Abel declared an emergency and ordered streets and sidewalks cleared at 1:41 a.m. EDT.
"I believe that most students were drawn by curiosity," Glidden said, "and played the part of pawns for the handful of instigators who threw asphalt and other items and set, I am told, trash receptacle fires, prompting the emergency order from the mayor to clear the streets.
"Some students felt that if police had maintained a stronger presence on Court Street prior to 1 a.m., crowds would not have spilled from the sidewalks onto the street, setting up conditions for the police to clear the street. Such second-guessing is irrelevant. Once the order citing Ohio law was issued to clear the sidewalks and streets, it was poor judgment to stay on Court Street.
"Some students have told me the police response was more harsh than necessary because students are resented by townspeople, even though, and perhaps because, they are the mainstay of the local economy. That too, is irrelevant.
"Some students in our excellent communications programs tell me the video images and news reports sent out to the nation portray the confrontation as more serious and more violent than it actually was. Again, irrelevant.
"The town police chief has blamed the larger crowd this year particularly on Columbus television news coverage citing last year's disturbance and speculating about what might happen this year. I'm not sure that's correct. If anything, local print media reminded more people as they reported on discussions that have taken place between campus and city officials since last year. All news coverage -- not just TV coverage -- may have heightened curiosity about what would happen this year. But the responsibility lies with those ostensibly intelligent people who indulged their curiosity. To blame news media coverage for the black-eye to the town and to the university is not fair.
"Because this has now happened a second time, there is talk this will become a tradition. We, as a university, can no more limit access to adults who use public sidewalks and streets than the city. But we can say that if any of the arrested individuals are university students who committed serious offenses such as assaults on police officers, we will deal with them severely, up to and including expulsion."