For one Tufts student, recent reports of a male intruder in the Cousens Gymnasium women's locker room prompted a case of deja vu.
While showering in a fairly empty locker room in September of 2004, the female student - who requested to remain anonymous for security reasons - saw a man "duck into a shower stall and close the door." After she told him to leave, he "acted surprised," as though he was unaware he was in the women's locker room. He then apologized for being there.
"I yelled at him to try and scare him so he wouldn't do it again," said the student, who reported the incident to the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD)
That may not have deterred him, however: After reading the description on the posted safety alert flyers posted in response to the two recent incidents, the student is "pretty sure" it describes the man from her previous experience.
Those flyers state that on Sunday, Jan. 29 and Saturday, Feb. 25 of this year, a woman reported seeing a man in the women's locker room at Cousens Gymnasium, according to TUPD. In the first incident, the woman added that she thought she saw a camera lens, indicating the man may have been carrying a video camera.
Jermaine Reese, a security guard who works the 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. shift at Cousens, is responsible for checking Tufts ID cards upon entrance to the gym.
Reese said that the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) has told Cousens security guards to watch for suspicious people. He said he knew nothing more about the incidents than the description of the suspect from the flyers.
"We just notify [TUPD]" if any incidents occur, Reese said.
Reese said that "one or two" female gym users have expressed concern about the man. He said one woman asked him if she should feel comfortable taking showers in the locker room.
The situation is "a picture that's not painted fully," he said.
The flyers posted around Cousen's gym and women's locker room describe the man as "a white college aged male, with round wire frame glasses, wearing a black sweatshirt, black shorts, and a white baseball cap."
The flyers also encourage gym users to be aware of their surroundings, know the locations of panic buttons and enter the Tufts emergency phone number in their cell phones.
Emily Bless, a freshman from the track team, said she entered the number in her phone before she learned of the incidents.
Andrea Northup, a sophomore on the cycling team, changes in the Gantcher Center restroom late at night instead of in the locker room.
"If there's no one in there, it's kind of sketchy," she said of the locker room.
After filing her report, the student who saw the man in September of 2004 learned that she could have pressed an emergency button that would have notified the police. At the time, she was unaware such a button existed in the locker room.
"[There was] no label," she said, and she suggested that the police work on putting up "better signage."
Though small signs have been added saying "push for police" and "for emergency only," many are still unaware of this emergency option.
"I had no idea [about the button]," said Lauren Gelmetti, a freshman on the softball team. Other female athletes and gym users said they were also unaware of the buttons.
Gelmetti said that people entering Cousens can easily bypass the security desk in the gym lobby. "People can enter the gym through Halligan Hall. You don't need a Tufts' ID," she said. "It's pretty easy to do. I've done it before when I didn't have my ID on me."
Other doors to the gymnasium also remain unguarded. Although security guards have been notified about the reports from the police, those doors remain unwatched and security measures have not changed.
Reese said that Cousens could add additional security measures, such as a mechanism that would require people to swipe their ID cards to enter both the facility complex and the locker room. He also added that security cameras in the locker rooms and Cousens lobby could improve the building's security.
The student who filed the report last year also said the back entrance to the locker room should be locked and only the main entrance should be used. "I know he entered through the back door," she said of the suspect.
Freshman soccer player Kellie Siler doubted such measures would make much of a difference. "Nobody really pays attention to who's going in and out at the main door," she said.
Despite TUPD's efforts to alert everyone from security guards to females who use the locker room, no real changes have been made as a result of the police investigation.
Gary Heffernan, a sophomore and supervisor at the Lunder Fitness Center, said that he has seen no suspicious people in the fitness center.
He also said no female gym users have approached him about the issue. "I've never heard any concerns," he said.
