By Lauren Underhill
In addition to the approximately 50 Northeastern police officers who hold students accountable for their actions, Northeastern students also live in the shadow of the hundreds of officers that make up the Boston Police Department.
With the recently buffed-up police patrols in Mission Hill, the passing of the Operation Student Shield ordinance and the “zero-tolerance” policies now in effect in Boston, students caught under the thumb of the law can fall back on their constitutional rights to defend themselves.
On her first weekend this year at Northeastern, junior behavioral neuroscience major Lauren Sayre said she had a confrontation with police when they came into her Westland Avenue apartment. The police approached her apartment because of a noise complaint in her building.
“My apartment happened to be the first one they reached,” Sayre said. “I figured that if I didn’t let them in, that we could somehow get into bigger trouble. Besides, there wasn’t even a party in my apartment. I’ve never dealt with police before, so I didn’t know what to expect.”
Sayre said the police yelled, accusing her of being drunk and hiding people in a back room.
Attorney Brian McMenimen said it is hard to determine how to respond in certain circumstances, since each is handled on a case by case basis, and offered advice for students who may be caught in different scenarios.
“There are some definite rules that students can use without question to protect themselves,” McMenimen said. “One is the right to remain silent. You never have to respond to a police officer’s questions. If you have something to hide, telling them or admitting to them that you did or have something you should not have will only get you arrested; and when you go to court, the most damaging evidence is your own statements.”
Another rule is to never consent to a search of person, possessions, car or dwelling. Once consent is given, the police can enter, anything illegal they see can be seized and students can face arrest and prosecution, McMenimen said.
When sophomore engineering major James McNulty was stopped by NUPD last semester and asked to open his backpack, he was not sure of his rights.
“The officer said he knew we had beer because he could see the outlines of the cans in the backpack,” McNulty said. “We finally opened our bags after they kept saying they would ‘lock us up.'”
In cases like this, Attorney Edward Pasquina, a Northeastern alumnus, said it is important for students to protect their rights.
A doctrine dubbed “Terry Stop” in regards to a Supreme court case, Terry v. Ohio, 1968 outlines that an officer does not have the right to stop and frisk a person on the street unless he has specific reason for suspicious activity and/or believes the subject may be carrying a weapon. The officer has no right to frisk an individual unless he feels that his safety is endangered.
If an officer witnessed the actual exchange of alcohol in the streets, he or she may have enough probable cause to confront the suspects. But if a person is stopped based on the fact he or she is carrying a backpack or even a 30-rack of beer and is within the age range of 19-25, then, according to attorney Pasquina, there is not much probable cause to stop an individual.
Associate Director of Public Safety James Ferrier said his officers will stop people that look between 18 and 25 years old if they are carrying a suspicious bag or cases of alcohol. Their purpose is to stop crimes before they occur, Ferrier said.
McMenimen said police are not supposed to search people just because they appear to be under the age of 21. He said many police use power of authority as a means to persuade people into consent.
“They know the game a lot better than most college students,” McMenimen said.
Many students assume, while on campus, NUPD officers have power to search and question them. Although the NUPD has full law enforcement authority in and upon all property owned, occupied or used by the university, they still must adhere to the same guidelines and laws as the Boston Police, meaning students still have the right to remain silent if stopped on campus.
Although Sayre’s situation occurred off campus, she still had the right to remain silent.
“After they were done yelling at me about how drunk I supposedly was, they just left the building and didn’t even go upstairs [where the party was],” she said.
Sayre did not have to let police into her apartment but, since she had nothing to hide, it was probably a smart idea to let them in, Pasquina said.
However, when NUPD officers make confrontations in residence halls, persons must produce identification in order to prove the right to be on that privately owned property. Otherwise they can be arrested and charged with trespassing.
If the tenant stops the source of the complaint such as noise, then officers have no further right to investigate, McMenimen said. If the noise persists, however, officers have the right to further their investigation and may get a warrant.
Not many arrests are made by NUPD on campus each year, Ferrier said.
“Usually there are about 30 to 40 arrests each year, most of which are not students,” he said.
The NUPD prefers to handle minor misdemeanors through the school by referring students to the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution (OSCCR), Ferrier said.
Despite pressure to become more forceful and make more arrests with minor infractions such as these, Ferrier said he prefers dealing with these students within the university.
Ferrier also said he believes OSCCR’s process is more effective than the court system, that will let defendants off with a fine.
“We are not bad guys,” Ferrier said, “but we have no tolerance for those who provide alcohol to minors and who consume alcohol and by their behavior demean the quality of life on our campus or in our neighborhood.”
Although NUPD does not have the jurisdiction to patrol students off campus, the university does have the right to discipline students. In addition to local, state and federal laws, the Student Code of Conduct governs all Northeastern students’ behavior on and off campus.
