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19th May 2016, 10:45 AM
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:wFQ_JG2PRxMJ:www.centralfloridafutu re.com/story/news/2016/05/19/case-you-missed-rumored-gunwoman-prompts-evacuation/84556350/+&cd=8&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
There was quite a scare at the John C. Hitt Library while students attempted to study for their finals on April 26, and were instead commanded to evacuate the building.
The whole uproar was sparked by an exchange in a GroupMe chat, which said that a Middle Eastern girl was in a stairwell holding a gun. The end result was a mass alert sent out by UCF reading, “POSSIBLE MIDDLE EASTERN GUN MAN/WOMAN IN UCF MAIN CAMPUS LIBRARY. AVOID THE AREA!”
Numerous students piled out in front of the library around the Reflecting Pond and waited as the UCF Police Department searched the building.
News choppers swarmed the skies and reporters interviewed bystanders to get the scoop while students waited calmly for police to finish their search for the mysterious “Middle Eastern gun man/woman.” Unable to find a suspect or any weapons, UCFPD finally allowed students to re-enter the library again to retrieve their belongings.
Police cars outside the UCF library, which was evacuated Tuesday after reports of a possible gunwoman. The scene was cleared around 5 p.m. with "no threat" discovered. Jillian James, Central Florida Future
A press conference followed shortly after the incident, during which UCF Police Chief Richard Beary defended UCFPD’s language in the alert. Beary said that the urgency of the situation and the potential danger to students justified describing the suspect as Middle Eastern. Beary also addressed concerns about UCFPD’s response and the accidental discharge of one police officer’s weapon.
One of the students who was disturbed by UCFPD’s loose use of the term Middle Eastern was Tahoora Ateeq, president of the Pakistani Student Association at UCF.
“With this term categorizing such a broad group of people, its use is subjective and not at all conducive to identifying a suspect in such an emergency,” Ateeq said. “Rather, it could lead to racial profiling and put a large number of students in danger.”
CENTRAL FLORIDA FUTURE
UCFPD closes investigation into rumored gunwoman
UCFPD closed the investigation into the rumored gunwoman May 13, with Beary asserting that they were “unable to clearly determine whether there was a firearm on campus, and therefore, we are inactivating our investigation.”
However, Beary assured attendees in the press conference that they will use this incident to improve their future responses to potential threats.
“We’ve had several discussions internally and with our stakeholders about our actions that day, and we will use that feedback to enhance future responses,” Beary said.
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Gabby Baquero is the News Editor for the Central Florida Future. Follow her on Twitter at @Gabby_Baquero or email her at MariaB@centralfloridafuture.com
There was quite a scare at the John C. Hitt Library while students attempted to study for their finals on April 26, and were instead commanded to evacuate the building.
The whole uproar was sparked by an exchange in a GroupMe chat, which said that a Middle Eastern girl was in a stairwell holding a gun. The end result was a mass alert sent out by UCF reading, “POSSIBLE MIDDLE EASTERN GUN MAN/WOMAN IN UCF MAIN CAMPUS LIBRARY. AVOID THE AREA!”
Numerous students piled out in front of the library around the Reflecting Pond and waited as the UCF Police Department searched the building.
News choppers swarmed the skies and reporters interviewed bystanders to get the scoop while students waited calmly for police to finish their search for the mysterious “Middle Eastern gun man/woman.” Unable to find a suspect or any weapons, UCFPD finally allowed students to re-enter the library again to retrieve their belongings.
Police cars outside the UCF library, which was evacuated Tuesday after reports of a possible gunwoman. The scene was cleared around 5 p.m. with "no threat" discovered. Jillian James, Central Florida Future
A press conference followed shortly after the incident, during which UCF Police Chief Richard Beary defended UCFPD’s language in the alert. Beary said that the urgency of the situation and the potential danger to students justified describing the suspect as Middle Eastern. Beary also addressed concerns about UCFPD’s response and the accidental discharge of one police officer’s weapon.
One of the students who was disturbed by UCFPD’s loose use of the term Middle Eastern was Tahoora Ateeq, president of the Pakistani Student Association at UCF.
“With this term categorizing such a broad group of people, its use is subjective and not at all conducive to identifying a suspect in such an emergency,” Ateeq said. “Rather, it could lead to racial profiling and put a large number of students in danger.”
CENTRAL FLORIDA FUTURE
UCFPD closes investigation into rumored gunwoman
UCFPD closed the investigation into the rumored gunwoman May 13, with Beary asserting that they were “unable to clearly determine whether there was a firearm on campus, and therefore, we are inactivating our investigation.”
However, Beary assured attendees in the press conference that they will use this incident to improve their future responses to potential threats.
“We’ve had several discussions internally and with our stakeholders about our actions that day, and we will use that feedback to enhance future responses,” Beary said.
-----
Gabby Baquero is the News Editor for the Central Florida Future. Follow her on Twitter at @Gabby_Baquero or email her at MariaB@centralfloridafuture.com