On Tuesday the Advisory Neighborhood Commission voted in favor of a resolution supporting an act that could do more for Georgetown students’ safety than the Emergency Preparedness Committee ever could. That is, if the Department of Public Safety and the Metropolitan Police Department find themselves to be good bedfellows.
If the Omnibus Public Safety Agency Reform Amendment act is passed by the D.C. City Council, it will allow DPS and MPD to coordinate with each other to share jurisdiction in the areas surrounding campus. In other words, if DPS and MPD can cooperate more effectively than they have in the past, the result will be an increase in the visibility of officers in surrounding areas where Georgetown students often walk at night.
Currently, DPS is restricted by D.C. law from patrolling outside the boundaries of the Georgetown campus, with an exception made for the section of Prospect Street adjacent to campus. While crimes have occurred on Prospect Street in the past, it seems that the main purpose of the DPS beat there is to keep an eye on the streams of inebriated students wandering home from a night of revelry.
However, in Burleith, an area that seems to be a haven for muggers, it is illegal for DPS to patrol. Unlike West Georgetown, Burleith is a wholly residential neighborhood?meaning that Burleith does not benefit from the extra light and noise of M Street that can provide a certain sense of safety. Subsequently, if a person is to walk home after 11 p.m., it is not likely that he or she will encounter more than one or two other people on the way. This, and the streetlamps which are inevitably out on any block past Reservoir Road, does not provide students with a very reassuring secure feeling at night.
According to DPS, an officer is assigned to patrol the area next to St. Mary’s Hall on the north end of campus 24 hours a day. Regardless of whether or not this actually is put into practice, the OPSARA act could extend this DPS beat to include the areas outside of the campus boundaries that are in much need of officers’ presence.
Even though it is unlikely that DPS will ever have arrest powers outside of the boundaries of campus, their mere physical presence will increase the safety of students. While one can argue that it is the responsibility of MPD to patrol the areas off campus, they too have been glaringly absent from the scene?save on the weekends to bust rowdy student parties.
Director of Public Safety William Tucker says that the bill, if passed, will not increase the security of students. His reasoning? DPS is already there. Apparently Tucker has not ever walked down 37th Street at two o’clock in the morning.
In a letter to the editor of the Voice last fall, then-DPS Communications officer Dave Bledsoe (SSCE ‘02) defended the department by saying that “[DPS officers] do not have arrest authority outside of the campus property. It is against the law for DPS officers to exercise police powers off Georgetown property. Unless the University and the district sign an agreement allowing concurrent jurisdiction, DPS officers cannot perform any law enforcement function off-campus.”
Lt. Brian Bray of MPD, who oversees the areas surrounding the Georgetown campus, expressed to the Voice his willingness in the past to work with DPS to increase student safety.
If the bill is passed, DPS may gain legal jurisdiction off-campus if they return MPD’s willingness to coordinate.
Now that you have your chance, DPS, let’s not let the moment pass.
