Door checks upset students

In the aftermath of last week's assault in Noah Hall, efforts have been made to educate members of the Oberlin community about what they can do to ensure their own security as well as that of others, an endeavor which many people feel has been misguided.

Although the police's primary suspect, 18-year-old Taylor Wynn, turned himself in on Nov. 12 and charges have been filed against him related to the Nov. 8 attack in which a 20-year-old Conservatory student was injured, the heightened sense of security on campus has remained. The fact that the alleged attacker is believed to have gained access to the dorm by following another student inside has led security officials to stress the need for increased vigilance on the part of students, as well as other members of the community.

In fact, no significant changes have been made with campus security because the attack did not result from a lapse in official security procedures. "We have intensified patrols," said Director of Safety and Security Keith James. "But to be honest with you, we couldn't find that Security was at fault."

While there have not been any changes in the actual operations of his department, James did explain that there continue to be a number of programs in various residence halls to educate residents about what they can do to increase security in their dorms. These programs are meant to convey lessons such as keeping one's room locked, making sure not to prop open exterior doors and not to let any strangers inside of residence halls.

One program which was not officially mandated by Safety and Security, but has been widely reported to be undertaken by Security officers in residence halls across campus, has many students up in arms about issues regarding their privacy and the extent to which Security's educational efforts are required. In various dorms across campus security officers were doing checks to see if students' doors were kept locked at all times.

While this was the common goal for the checks, which have occurred throughout the past week, they were carried out in different ways on different nights in different dorms. Some students were locked out of their rooms because they had left their doors unlocked and others reported officers entering their rooms without knocking after finding unlocked doors. In all cases there was no prior notification, not even of residence coordinators, area coordinators or other Res Life staff. These checks were reported to have occurred in French and Spanish Houses, as well as Fairchild, Dascomb, East, North, and Barnard halls.

One of these door-checks occurred around 10 p.m. Sunday night in Dascomb, according to RC and House Manager junior Alison Carter. She said that some security officers came around to check if doors were locked. If a door was unlocked, the officers would open it a little bit and tell anyone inside the room that they were Security and the door should be locked, and if no one was there they would lock the door and leave.

Carter said she understood the motives behind these checks, but she wasn't happy with them at all. "The purpose was to be educational, to notify lots of people about the risk that anyone can walk in," she said. "But I know a lot of people weren't happy. Instead of educating people they just made people more mad." She said she thinks many dorm residents don't want to sit in their rooms with their doors locked. "That's not the community we try to create as RCs," she said.

Sophomore Cassie Ogren was in her room in Spanish house when her room was checked. According to Ogren, the officers tried the lock, and when they found it unlocked they knocked on the door to let her know that it was security and to warn her to lock her door. "I found it a little scary to be in my room and have someone try my door," she said.

She said she thought it was a good idea to make sure the doors were locked. However, she said, "Given the circumstances [of the recent assault], it would freak anyone out."

In addition, she said, "I keep my door locked when I'm sleeping. I guess I can see where it's a good idea, but somehow it's a bit paranoid people should lock their rooms when they are in the room awake."

In East, the checks were made at about 11:15 p.m. on Monday, according to junior Clait Smith, an RC in the building. "I think what security did the other night was wrong. It's one thing to knock on people's doors (even as late as it was) and tell them to lock their doors. It is another thing entirely to lock people's doors without speaking to them," he said.

According to Smith, no one was notified before the checks, and the officers didn't leave any notes on the doors which they locked notifying students why they had been locked. He explained that some students, especially those who live in singles, didn't know why their doors had been locked, which made them very uncomfortable. "One girl I let in had gone to the bathroom to wash her hands for one minute and came back to find herself locked out," he said. "What they did was scary to some of the residents. It doesn't solve a damn thing and I believe it to be dangerous in and of itself. It is not ever safe for a resident to not be able to seek refuge inside their room if they need to."

James stressed that the door checking was not an official policy of Safety and Security. According to him he just found out that these checks occurred, and they were not even brought to his attention until Wednesday, long after many of them were performed. He said he would speculate that an officer on a regular patrol took it upon himself to do the door-checks, but he said he has yet to have an explanation because he still hads to determine what supervising officer was on duty at the time so he can talk to that person.

"Some students may see this as invasive," he said. "Some may see it as a good idea in terms of assuring that doors are locked." Whatever the student reaction, however, he did stress that it could be extremely problematic if officers entered students' rooms without permission, and said, "We don't go into anybody's room without prior permission or without following the proper procedure. We are very strict on that."

He said that in light of the fact that the assailant in the recent attack probably "tailgated" another student into Noah, Security is paying particular attention to exterior doors in order to make sure they remain locked. On the other hand, in terms of security within dorms when students are around, he explained that there is a balance between providing a sense of security and allowing students to feel at home. "Students want to see us," he said, "But there is a limit."