Campus Police advance weaponry
By Kristen Marshall - Staff Writer

BRIAN DAVIS - STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Campus Police recieved a grant from the North Carolina Governor’s Crime Commission last year, with which they purchased new handguns and shotguns. Two Remington Model 870 pump-action shotguns, like the one shown above, are now located in two of the Campus Police vehicles.

Campus Police recently purchased new equipment, including two new shotguns, in order to protect and serve the UNCA campus.

“It was to better equip the department,” said Steve Lewis, director of Campus Police.

The North Carolina Governor’s Crime Commission issued a grant of around $24,000 to UNCA Campus Police last year, which they used to purchase the weapons. The Commission administers over $30 million in grants to justice programs all over the state, according to Lewis.

Two Remington Model 870 pump-action shotguns now sit between the front seats in two of the Campus Police vehicles.

“An advantage of the shotgun is its longer range,” Lewis said. “Every new officer who’s come through basic law enforcement training has trained with a shotgun.”

Each officer also received a new handgun, a .40-caliber Glock 22.

“To my knowledge, we were the last agency in Buncombe County that did not furnish the officers their handguns,” Lewis said. “The officer had to buy his or her own gun. That creates training problems when everything’s not standardized.”

The department also purchased a recording device, to keep track of radio transmissions and telephone calls. Funds from a different account also allowed them to purchase bullet-proof vests, which each officer now wears at all times.

“A lot of those things, handguns, shotguns and vests, are items that we certainly hope we’ll never have to use,” Lewis said. “Every day that goes by that we don’t have to use them, we’re very, very thankful.”

There were no seriously violent crimes that occurred last year on campus, and in the past three years, there has only been one forcible sex offense, according to the Campus Security Statistics survey, an annual report of all offenses committed on UNCA’s campus.

Ideally, there are at least three officers on campus during each 12-hour shift. There are currently 11 officers on staff, but a new officer and sergeant are in the process of joining the department, according to Lewis.

The bulk of offenses reported are property offenses, like larceny and breaking and entering motor vehicles.

The second most common offense is underage drinking, according to Lewis.

Most students consider UNCA a safe campus and are not afraid of living here.

“I think this is an extremely safe campus,” said Emily Jones, freshman student. “Where I come from, it really isn’t a safe environment, so I’m used to having to lock my doors. I know people here who leave for class who don’t even lock their doors.”

The new weaponry the Campus Police now have has shaken some students who were not aware of the new weapons, according to Amanda Meyers, senior art student.

“They already carry handguns in their holsters,” Meyers said. “What is the point of having two types of guns when this is a relatively safe campus?”

Freshman student Meredith Wagner-Hoehm agrees.

“It doesn’t make sense. I can understand why they would need some sort of weapons, but I’m not sure if they would need guns in general,” Wagner-Hoehm said. “I think having multiple guns is a little over the top.”

For the younger officers in the department, it is an on-going struggle to be taken seriously by the student body.

When it comes to making charges, some students do not think Campus Police has the right to issue citations and make arrests, according to Lewis.

“Most of us who have been here for awhile have grown accustomed to that, being called security rather than police,” Lewis said.

A lot has changed in the past decade as far as the safety of the campus is concerned.

“When I started in 1995 as a security officer, day shift officers did not carry weapons, but evening shift officers and night shift officers did,” Lewis said.

The number of security phones on campus has increased, as well, jumping to about 12 from only four in a few years.

“Since they are real police, they should be armed as such,” said junior Roland Crandall, junior student. “People aren’t yelling and screaming about normal cops having shotguns. I don’t see what the problem is with Campus Police being armed as real policemen because that’s what they are.”

Some students have never experienced anything to cause them to feel threatened on campus and think Campus Police is going overboard to protect students, according to Meyers.

“There’s no fence around UNCA,” Lewis said. “Most of the things that have the capability to happen in downtown Asheville have the capability to happen here.”

If they can't buy enough and share with the rest of the campus, they shouldn't have them.

he's got TWO guns?!   Oh the horror!

At a certain point in my Life (say 40) , I realized that the Majority of
18 - 22 year olds , (whose only Life experience consists of going to school )

are Dumber Than Dirt when it comes to understanding the realities of Life.  

Crime in Asheville????? What, someone spit on the sidewalk there???????    

It is sad how many people are being brainwashed in American Colleges and Universities.
And they asked an Art Student...could they have found anyone more LIBERAL!
Multiple guns (pistol & shotgun) is over the top, man would that girls jaw drop if she took a look in my den at home

Quoted: At a certain point in my Life (say 40) , I realized that the Majority of 18 - 22 year olds , (whose only Life experience consists of going to school ) are Dumber Than Dirt when it comes to understanding the realities of Life.

+1, sad but true

I also question the reasoning behind the purchase of LONG RANGE shotguns by campus police.  They should be arming themselves with AR's, of course!  (And they should walk around with fully-stocked chest rigs just to really freak the students out!)

Quoted: I also question the reasoning behind the purchase of LONG RANGE shotguns by campus police.  They should be arming themselves with AR's, of course!  (And they should walk around with fully-stocked chest rigs just to really freak the students out!)

So long as the students have the same right.

Quoted: It is sad how many people are being brainwashed in American Colleges and Universities. And they asked an Art Student...could they have found anyone more LIBERAL! Multiple guns (pistol & shotgun) is over the top, man would that girls jaw drop if she took a look in my den at home

I agree-
Art Student= Liberal Moonbat

Quoted: At a certain point in my Life (say 40) , I realized that the Majority of 18 - 22 year olds , (whose only Life experience consists of going to school ) are Dumber Than Dirt when it comes to understanding the realities of Life.

As a 19 yr old college student I say you are spot on the mark.

My God, it never ceases to amaze me how dumb some of my classmates are.

Emily Jones


Amanda Meyers




You know, something just screams hippy judging from these facebook pics

Not all college students are a lost cause. Me and all of my buddies are gun owners. Hell, even some of the girls I hang out with shoot and hunt. There are still a few of us that aren't brainwashed.




Course we live in Montana, That could have something to do with it.

I've been told Asheville, NC is a hippie mecca.

Its kinda sad these morons sometimes have to learn about reality the hard way .

Nevermind

Quoted: “An advantage of the shotgun is its longer range,” Lewis said.

Quoted: Quoted: “An advantage of the shotgun is its longer range,” Lewis said.

Than a 40 caliber handgun, I would think so. No?

someone should buy them an AR or 3 just to piss off the hippies

“An advantage of the shotgun is its longer range,” Lewis said. “Every new officer who’s come through basic law enforcement training has trained with a shotgun.”

I wasn't aware that shotguns were renowned for their longer range.  

Oh the horror...two shotguns!  That's soooo much firepower!  I'm scared!  Hope they don't rack them when I'm around....I'd probably pee myself!

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: “An advantage of the shotgun is its longer range,” Lewis said. Than a 40 caliber handgun, I would think so. No?

With slugs, it would have a longer effective range, but buckshot actually has less effective range than a pistol in decent hands.

Unfortunately alot of NC is being taken over by Libatards.  Jobs are moving here, and bringing people in from all over the country.  The Chapel Hill- Raleigh/Durham area are almost assimilated....

I am sure that Columbine High School was a "relatively safe" campus right until the very moment it wasn't....

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: “An advantage of the shotgun is its longer range,” Lewis said. Than a 40 caliber handgun, I would think so. No?

the article doesn't mention the .40 until AFTER the shotgun.

I can understand why they would need some sort of weapons, but I’m not sure if they would need guns in general

This bitch is confused

Quoted: At a certain point in my Life (say 40) , I realized that the Majority of 18 - 22 year olds , (whose only Life experience consists of going to school ) are Dumber Than Dirt when it comes to understanding the realities of Life.

+a double 5 pump no fat latte.

I was in Starbucks (yes, I do like their coffee) studying and there was an 18 year girl talking to her friend - I swear I wanted to thrash her about her head and shoulders.  "Iraq is about the oil, My civil liberties are under attack (wire tapping), I just want to go where people understand the world (in regards of moving off to school)", she says.

No I didn't, but yes fellas, I shoulda drawn down.

"this is a safe campus, the cops don't need 2 guns"..."in fact this campus is so safe that I don't think we even need the cops".    Did the idiots ever think that their campus was safe because the cops anticipate and prepare for bad situations?  If the cops are doing their job and the campus is safe, why would anyone want to mess with the working system?

As a college student, I will say that Campus Cops are a joke.
ETA: At least at my school.

I am 18 and I think 1 gun is enough....




....as long as it is the minigun.

ETA if it isnt the minigun, you need at least 3 with multiple reloads, a bulletproof vest, and a secondary bunker with more ammunition, guns, and supplies. Fuck hippies.

Those campus commandos probably need all of that firepower if encounter a sex-crazed coed.

Quoted: I've been told Asheville, NC is a hippie mecca.

It is.

Reminds me of NJIT in the middle of Newark.  The entire school is like 20 square blocks, and they had a police department of 65 officers!!!

These pussies are the people who will be leading this country in 30 years. Add to that 30 years of unchecked 3rd world immigration and breeding.

European style liberal "ruling elite" faggotry meets brazilian/south-african demographics.

WONDERFUL!

Quoted: Reminds me of NJIT in the middle of Newark.  The entire school is like 20 square blocks, and they had a police department of 65 officers!!!

Patrol officers?

Quoted: Quoted: I've been told Asheville, NC is a hippie mecca. It is.

More hippies per square inch than anywhere east of Berkley and south of MA.

Quoted: Quoted: At a certain point in my Life (say 40) , I realized that the Majority of 18 - 22 year olds , (whose only Life experience consists of going to school ) are Dumber Than Dirt when it comes to understanding the realities of Life.   hr As a 19 yr old college student I say you are spot on the mark. My God, it never ceases to amaze me how dumb some of my classmates are.

+1, there are alot of really dumb people in my classes.  They may be able to make A's in Thermodynamics, but they dont know a thing about the real world.  I am just happy my parents did not shelter me.

Quoted: As a college student, I will say that Campus Cops are a joke. ETA: At least at my school.

I would not mess around with campus police at LSU.  They dont like it when you make fun of them.  But then again they are on a college campus so they let alot of stuff go.

Quoted: Quoted: Reminds me of NJIT in the middle of Newark.  The entire school is like 20 square blocks, and they had a police department of 65 officers!!! Patrol officers?

Yes.

My campus is fairly safe as well, until last month when a drunk student was shooting his .38 outside his apartment just off campus. You can bet the campus cops are glad they had vests and guns. The city cops showed up in time and unfortunately had to take him out when he pointed it at them. The city cops are usually called up for anything like that because they don't want our campus police to handle the dirty work. It looks bad when your campus police force puts down a student.

My math might be off but...$24,000 for a bunch of Glock 22s and a couple of Remington 870s?  

ETA - And for 11 people... One Glock 22 is around 500...times 11 = $5,500... About $1,000 for mags...  MAYBE another $1,000 on ammo.  Then something like $4-500 each for two 870s...  So that's...  $7-8,000.  What was the other $16,000 or so spent on?

Quoted: Those campus commandos probably need all of that firepower if encounter a sex-crazed coed.

Especailly if she is on roller skates.

Quoted: If they can't buy enough and share with the rest of the campus, they shouldn't have them.

Hey - how'd you get away with keeping your avatar?

Staff made me change mine!

I heard on Dallas SWAT, that the 870, was a devistating weapon, and lord knows we don't need "devestating" weapons on college capuses.

Quoted: My math might be off but...$24,000 for a bunch of Glock 22s and a couple of Remington 870s?   ETA - And for 11 people... One Glock 22 is around 500...times 11 = $5,500... About $1,000 for mags...  MAYBE another $1,000 on ammo.  Then something like $4-500 each for two 870s...  So that's...  $7-8,000.  What was the other $16 or so thousand spent on?

Factor in new holsters, mag holders, ammo for duty qualification and training, automatic locks for the shotguns within the cars, paying t have the locks installed,etc

Quoted: At a certain point in my Life (say 40) , I realized that the Majority of 18 - 22 year olds , (whose only Life experience consists of going to school ) are Dumber Than Dirt when it comes to understanding the realities of Life.

AMEN brother.

Quoted: Quoted: It is sad how many people are being brainwashed in American Colleges and Universities. And they asked an Art Student...could they have found anyone more LIBERAL! Multiple guns (pistol & shotgun) is over the top, man would that girls jaw drop if she took a look in my den at home I agree- Art Student= Liberal Moonbat

Perhaps most of them. Mrs. samsong has her Bachelors of Science in Art, and is just as conservative a woman as you will ever meet.

Quoted: Quoted: My math might be off but...$24,000 for a bunch of Glock 22s and a couple of Remington 870s?   ETA - And for 11 people... One Glock 22 is around 500...times 11 = $5,500... About $1,000 for mags...  MAYBE another $1,000 on ammo.  Then something like $4-500 each for two 870s...  So that's...  $7-8,000.  What was the other $16 or so thousand spent on? Factor in new holsters, mag holders, ammo for duty qualification and training, automatic locks for the shotguns within the cars, paying t have the locks installed,etc

I didn't think of that stuff, but...$16,000 for all that?  Sounds a tad expensive.  

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My math might be off but...$24,000 for a bunch of Glock 22s and a couple of Remington 870s?   ETA - And for 11 people... One Glock 22 is around 500...times 11 = $5,500... About $1,000 for mags...  MAYBE another $1,000 on ammo.  Then something like $4-500 each for two 870s...  So that's...  $7-8,000.  What was the other $16 or so thousand spent on? Factor in new holsters, mag holders, ammo for duty qualification and training, automatic locks for the shotguns within the cars, paying t have the locks installed,etc I didn't think of that stuff, but...$16,000 for all that?  Sounds a tad expensive.

They might also be paying the officers' overtime for attending the firearms training with the new weapons from that money.

Also, they probably only paid around $434 per pistol

Quoted: Quoted: I also question the reasoning behind the purchase of LONG RANGE shotguns by campus police.  They should be arming themselves with AR's, of course!  (And they should walk around with fully-stocked chest rigs just to really freak the students out!) So long as the students have the same right.

Agree.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My math might be off but...$24,000 for a bunch of Glock 22s and a couple of Remington 870s?   ETA - And for 11 people... One Glock 22 is around 500...times 11 = $5,500... About $1,000 for mags...  MAYBE another $1,000 on ammo.  Then something like $4-500 each for two 870s...  So that's...  $7-8,000.  What was the other $16 or so thousand spent on? Factor in new holsters, mag holders, ammo for duty qualification and training, automatic locks for the shotguns within the cars, paying t have the locks installed,etc I didn't think of that stuff, but...$16,000 for all that?  Sounds a tad expensive.

The article says they bought the new weapons with the grant money...It does NOT say the weapons were the ONLY things they bought with the grant money
The focus of the article was the weapon purchase, not the grant itself...So, the other things purchased with the money are not relevant to the article, and therefore not mentioned in it.