Plainclothes officers’ use challenged

In response to a series of thefts perpetrated on campus this year, Vassar Safety and Security is considering employing plainclothes officers to catch culprits and prevent further larcenies, in addition to their current job: upholding student safety rules regarding drugs and alcohol. The officers, who do not wear the standard Safety and Security uniform, would most likely stand inside the lobbies of residential buildings and the Library and attempt to stop anyone entering without swiping a Vassar identification card. Recently, the presence of these plainclothes officers has been criticized by the Vassar Student Association (VSA).

According to Director of Safety and Security Don Marsala, Vassar has used plainclothes officers for about 15 years on major holiday weekends like Halloween or on nights that include large campus events, like concerts. These officers have often been deployed at the behest of the Office of Residential Life to help address situations in which students are drinking dangerously. "We generally use them at Res Life's suggestion," said Marsala. "We usually only use them for big events. They go through the dorms, mostly looking for parties, underage drinking and pre-gaming."

But after reports of thefts began to accumulate in unusually high numbers this year, Marsala and his colleagues began to consider using undercover officers to catch potential thieves, in addition to enforcing safety rules. "We've had a rash of thefts—more than I can remember in recent years," said Marsala. A total of 25 larcenies have taken place this semester, mostly of laptops and wallets. Thirty-three bicycles have also gone missing; according to Marsala, this number is exorbitant compared to the usual total of 15 that go missing in a school year. Many incidents have occurred in the Library, where students have left laptops unattended for short periods and returned to find them missing. One thief was even bold enough to steal a desktop belonging to the school from one of the Library's computer areas. In other cases, students have had their rooms burglarized after leaving them unlocked for just a few moments. According to Associate Director of Safety and Security Kim Squillace, one student signed off of her computer at 11:47 a.m. and found it had been stolen when she returned to her room at noon.

Marsala thinks those responsible are probably not members of the Vassar community but intruders who use a method termed "piggybacking": slipping inside buildings by following Vassar students after they swipe their identification cards. He cautioned, "We don't know for sure; it could be [a member of the Vassar community]." But he stated plainclothes officers could monitor entrances inconspicuously and apprehend trespassers who piggyback their way into restricted student areas.

"You're not going to do anything if you see [a uniformed officer] standing right there [by entrances to buildings]," said Marsala. "But maybe if we have plainclothes officers there, they'll be able to catch people they see piggybacking."

He and Squillace think local youths could be entering card access buildings illegitimately and stealing items of value. "Kids from the local high school could be coming over after school," Marsala hypothesized. "They know it's easy pickings because no one here locks their doors." This theory was supported by a theft perpetrated in the campus computer store on Friday, Nov. 11, during which three teenagers distracted an employee of the Computer Store and stole three iPods.

Marsala and Squillace think that students should be more proactive in taking steps to secure their property. For instance, they urge students to avoid holding or propping doors open, especially if suspicious individuals are lurking by entrances to slip in behind them. If students observe unfamiliar persons piggybacking, Marsala and Squillace advise calling Security rather than directly confronting potentially dangerous intruders. They also suggest that students lock their rooms whenever they leave.

"Students think of the door to the dorm as the front door of their house," said Squillace. "But in reality, the door to their rooms is like the front door to their house. You wouldn't leave the front door of your house unlocked; that wouldn't make sense." Safety and Security officers are hoping their discreet presence by building entrances, in addition to increased student awareness, will reduce theft by a significant margin.

But some students have responded strongly to other implications of the potential presence of plainclothes officers. In a meeting of the VSA Student Life committee on Thursday, Nov. 10, Marsala and Squillace came under fire for suggesting plainclothes officers might be utilized in the dorms on a regular basis. Many of the VSA representatives present expressed concerns that plainclothes officers might work to catch students committing conduct violations like underage drinking and drug use. Other committee members asserted the implementation of a plainclothes force would be mystifying and troubling for students, who value transparency in Security practices.

"Many students we have heard from are upset and confused about practices related to the use of plainclothes officers in the residence houses," said Class of 2012 President Pam Vogel '12. "Neither students nor Safety and Security wishes to operate in an atmosphere of rumors and adversarial relationships."

After the meeting, several VSA representatives joined to form a working group to address unresolved questions regarding Security activity on campus this semester, especially the use of plainclothes officers. The group, composed of Vogel, Jewett House President Clayton Masterman '13, Lathrop House Prseident Dallas Robinson '14, Ferry House Representative Grace Ashford '14, Town Houses President Alejandro Montoya '12, and Class of 2014 President Michael Moore '14, will meet during the week and present the result of their efforts (possibly a formal resolution of some kind) at the VSA Council meeting this Sunday, Nov. 20. "We are incredibly concerned with the presence of plainclothed officers in our residential space," Vogel said, adding, "we hope to find a way to address that concern effectively, in partnership with the administration."

VSA Vice President for Student Life Charlie Dobb '12 said he invited Marsala and Squillace to a Committee on Student Life meeting to spark productive consideration of Security activity. "It is the point of these committee forums with administrators that they raise more questions than answers, and that's exactly what last week's meeting did," he wrote in an emailed statement. "The working group developed as a subgroup of committee members who felt particularly strongly that they still had questions on the topics discussed, particularly with regard to the issue of plainclothes officers."

Squillace said plainclothes officers could soon be dedicated largely to the prevention of theft and trespassing. She noted that the officers would be deployed during the afternoon, when many of the thefts have taken place but few students are drinking or using drugs. "[The thefts] are happening during the daytime," said Squillace. "We're not out there trying to catch people drinking or smoking pot."

Still, she and Marsala were struck by the negative reaction of students to the existance of plainclothes officers. "Lately we've been thinking maybe we won't because of the outcry from students," Marsala said. "We heard them loud and clear." Ultimately, he and the members of his department will make their decision about implementing plainclothes officers after consulting several high-ranking college officials, such as President of the College Catharine Bond Hill and Dean of the College Chris Roellke.

Marsala recognized that some students might be upset if plainclothes officers are ultimately stationed in the residential houses, but said that his department's duties lie primarily with preventing crime on campus. "When all is said and done, we're charged with the security of the College," he said. "We're going to have to make some tough choices."