The Independent Student Voice of PCC, Serving Pasadena Since 1915
Volume 94, Issue 12
Lancers say
farewell to
football - until
season.
e 5
split by the issue of guns. Most of
us are against it. Some of us just felt
that more time was needed to get an
accurate consensus from the stu¬
dent population.”
Proponents for armed police give
valid reasoning, stating it would cre¬
ate the presence needed to diffuse
potential life threatening situations.
Since the start of the fall semester
several high-profile school shootings
have made national headlines.
“Without guns the police are tar¬
gets. If I were a cop and there was a
shooting I would stay in the safety of
my office," said Sansosti. “I am for
arming the police because I personal¬
ly understand the dangers that they
face. I would hope that students look
at all the aspects behind this issue and
not be closed minded.”
Although no police would be quot¬
ed about the AS vote, they have gone
on record in the past emphasizing the
need for officers to carry guns.
Kratt was a passionate voice in
opposition of armed police. He felt
that the meeting should not end with¬
out a definitive stance by the AS.
“We would be approving deadly
force by allowing this to occur. As
an elected official I have to vote on
my conscience in a timely manner.
Anything that puts students in dan¬
ger I have to be against,” said Kratt.
He went on to give examples of sit¬
uations that could occur. "There are
cases where police have shot people
for pulling out their cell phones,
wallets or toy guns.”
It was also noted at the AS meet¬
ing that campus police overstepped
their boundaries by using pepper
spray on students in the hallways of
the C Building during a anti-war
protest. "I don’t think that it’s a
good idea to give them guns,” said
PCC student Greg Donohue. “It
sounds already like the cops have
used too much force. If they would
have had guns at the riot it might
have gotten out of control.”
The start of
a fresh season
- Women’s
Basketball.
Teresa Baxter
Story Manager
Student organizations united to
address the heated topic regarding
campus police being armed with
guns. The Inter Club Council brought
up the issue to campus leaders last
month resulting in 75 percent of the
club representatives voting to oppose
arming of police.
"The ICC meeting ended with an
open forum allowing each club to
- have a voice in this matter,” said Scott
Blanks, ICC chairperson. "It is a hot
issue that needed to be addressed. By
the end of the meeting, the ICC put it
to a vote where it was decided no
guns are needed on campus.”
After the ICC’s vote, Michael
Sansosti, PCC student trustee,
asked the Associated Students
Board to chime in on the debate,
which led to what some have called
a pressured vote that ended 4-3
opposing guns on campus.
After representatives debated the
issue Adam Kratt, vice president of
campus activities, made a motion not
to allow campus police to be armed,
it was seconded by Blanks. The
motion was carried and the AS offi¬
cially went on record being against
allowing PCC police to carry guns.
Although the measure was pushed
through by the majority of the AS,
some members felt it was not dis¬
cussed thoroughly enough.
"This issue comes up every few
years, but we were still taken aback
by its appearance this semester,"
stated Natalie Courtney, AS presi¬
dent. "It came about so suddenly
that I’m not sure if by voting on it so
soon that the AS has had a chance
to properly be the voice of the stu¬
dents, which we are meant to repre¬
sent. It was my decision to refrain
from committing to either side.”
"I wanted to give it more time,”
said Elaine Reodica, vice president
for external affairs. “We weren’t
Two Live Shells
Found at PCC
Within the last several years, dozens of bullets have been found throughout campus. Shells
ranged from 22-caliber to armor piercing bullets, as seen on the desk.
lets on campus is not something
new. “We have had ammunition of
different calibers trickle in over the
six years that I have been here with
no pattern or regularity,” he said.
“As far as where they are found,
there’s no particular location at all.
We’ve found them in driveways, on
sidewalks and in classrooms.”
Young also noted that, although
unused, this ammunition could still
pose a threat to campus security.
“What we have here is live ammu¬
nition, which means that they
could actually discharge,” he said.
“You could hit these the wrong
way, drop them, or they could get
too close to the heat and they
might explode.”
Adam Kratt, vice president of
campus activities, who has vehe¬
mently opposed an armed police
department in the past, seemed
unmoved by these bullets.
“We don’t know for sure if
someone other than a student
dropped these bullets or they
belong to some off-duty police offi¬
cer,” he said. “A bullet by itself can
do no harm. If they had evidence
of students carrying guns, then I
think we may have a concern, and
we could then look into it. To arm
the police leads to the chance of
more violence and puts the stu¬
dents at risk. We don’t need an
OK-corral on campus where some¬
one might get shot,” he added.
Raul Cabral
Staff Writer
Two unused bullets were found
on the PCC campus in the last
week, once again opening the
debate as to whether or not police
officers and cadets on campus
should be allowed to carry
firearms.
The first shell was found on
Wednesday, Nov. 8 on the east side
of the D Building by a campus cus¬
todian, who notified campus police
when he found the Winchester 20-
gauge shotgun shell. A PCC student
found the second, a 9-millimeter
bullet, on Monday in V109.
Lt. Brad Young, said finding bul¬
AS, Clubs
Oppose
Arming
Police
Gun debate rages on as the student leaders officially
declare their opposition toward arming campus police.
Pasadena City
College
