University Concludes Alleged PSafe Assault Investigation

, by Lily Baggott, Assistant News Editor

The University has concluded its investigation into the alleged Public Safety (PSafe) assault on Paulie Lowther ’13 on Oct. 30. Vice President for Institutional Partnerships and Chief Diversity Officer Sonia Mañjon and Human Resources conducted the investigation.

“Wesleyan University has conducted an investigation based on a student complaint about Public Safety’s response to a security alarm at the Freeman Athletic Center on October 30, 2012,” Director of Media Relations Lauren Rubenstein wrote in an email to The Argus. “The investigators (from the Office of Diversity and the Human Resources department) found that while there was no malice or harmful intent, there were shortcomings in the actions of the officers.”

With the conclusion of the investigation, the University has prescribed further training for PSafe officers.

“The University has formally reviewed these findings with officers involved and has arranged for additional officer training,” Rubenstein wrote.

Lowther wrote in an email to The Argus that he respects the decision of the University despite his beliefs.

“They told me that they could not find any malicious intent, and that the Public Safety Department will be undergoing more training as a result of my complaint,” he wrote. “I really have no general comments. The authority is always in the right, regardless of the truth behind their decisions. I could talk forever about it, so I’d rather just say nothing.”

The Middletown Superior Court heard Lowther’s case on Nov. 9. Lowther was found guilty of Simple Trespass, a reduction from his original charges of Criminal Trespass and Breach of Peace and was given a fine.

  • Mom

    P-Safe Officers rough up a student, give him a concussion, and while he is subdued one officer slaps him in the face multiple times, and all that happens is “Reconstitute and review PSAFE advisory committee; review alert protocols so to avoid giving the impression of targeting any particular group; engage outside consultants to conduct a comprehensive review of the department.”??? These officers were never put on leave. They did not receive reprimands. They were not suspended. None were terminated. It is a fact that they did not handle this properly. It is a fact that a young man got a concussion. It is also a fact that the officer had no reason to slap the young man while subdued. The most sobering fact is that the officers are still Wesleyan employees, still on campus until they get caught doing something else. Let’s hope Wesleyan isn’t the site of the next Trayvon Martin incident, because it could have been in late October. Wesleyan decided to take the word of the officers in the hot seat over the word of the victim. Shame on the Administration for sending the wrong message to all students who have been unecessarily harassed and abused by PSafe. I sincerely hope there isn’t a next time, but nothing will ever erase the clear message from Wesleyan administration: truth without power has no chance…integrity is not as important as the politics.

    • Justarealperson

      You are an idiot, your little spoiled brat should not have been in the building to set off the alarm in the first place. How about you put the blame where it belongs, but I’m sure your child is ” a sweet boy, who would never hurt anyone” get real and find a real cause of ” injustice”

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