Portland State University takes guns away from campus officers and issues Tasers
PORTLAND, Ore. Aug 15 2020— Portland State University announced Thursday that starting this fall, Campus Public Safety officers will begin conducting campus patrols without firearms.
Instead, officials say they will have tasers.
The university also announced a new process to reimagine campus safety.
PSU says this is an effort that will look carefully at all aspects of campus safety and create a new approach that address the issues of systematic racism and promotes the dignity of all who come to PSU’s urban campus.
Reimagining Public Safety is a process that PSU will begin immediately, developing actionable and innovative measures to revamp the university’s approach to campus safety, according to the university.
PSU says campus Public Safety Chief Willie Halliburton made the decision to begin non-armed campus security patrols as an important first step in building a new approach to campus safety.
“CPSO acknowledges that some individuals on our campus have had negative experiences in their past encounters with law enforcement in their communities. CPSO feels those past experiences should not be a barrier to working together on the holistic plan for Campus Public Safety,” Halliburton said.
Campus Public Safety says if there is an issue, they have to come to an agreement with Portland Police, and they will step in. Officials say they will likely only use Portland Police when a call involving a weapon is involved.
There have been calls to disarm PSU Campus Safety officers, after Jason Washington was shot and killed by PSU officers in June, 2018.
Jason’s wife, Michelle, released a statement Thursday after hearing the news, saying:
“This is amazing news. We are elated we, along with the community, have this victory. While PSU’s decision to disarm their police officers when patrolling in campus came too late for Jason and our family, we hope that it will prevent others from dying needlessly at the hands of PSU law enforcement. We do not want any other family to be destroyed the way ours has been.”