Dear Editor,
The excessive amount of praise given to the Tufts University Police Department in your article "Police look to make quiet campus even quieter with crime month" on September 21, 2005 was undeserved.
The paragraph that stated there were no incidents of aggravated assault in 2003, and only one last year, failed to mention that we have already had a case of assault on our campus this year. On the night of Friday, Sept. 16, an assault occurred between a Tufts student and a non-Tufts student outside our hall.
TEMS (Tufts Emergency Medical Service) was called and then the TUPD arrived. The TUPD officers did not take action against the assaulter and said it was unclear if the victim said anything before he was hit. As I came to understand it, nothing could be done because TUPD was not present when the assault happened.
While an assault is not preventable by the TUPD, they must take steps to prevent this from happening again. Until the TUPD starts taking action and using more of the authority they claim to have, the TUPD will never be more than a glorified escort service.
Scott Pruessing
LA '09
