Student threatened with weapon at Court 17

A UW Tacoma student was threatened with a weapon by another tenant in the Court 17 parking garage last month, raising concerns about the security of students living in the student housing program there. The student, who has chosen not to be named for safety concerns, was returning to her apartment (which is not part of the student housing program) late on Sat., Feb. 6 when the tenant confronted her and her boyfriend about nearly backing into his car a few days before. A gun was clearly visible in the tenant's pants. "You could totally tell he was intoxicated," the student said, mentioning that she had often seen the tenant with his weapon. "He's always playing with his gun, all the time," she said. The tenant referred to the gun as his "license to kill," according to the victim. He made threatening and disrespectful comments, including, "I just want to kill someone." The tenant also repeatedly pointed to the student's apartment while talking to her. The couple then drove away, but the tenant returned to apologize when they got back early Sunday morning. However, the student was even more unsettled by the fact that the tenant knew exactly where she lived. "Even then I was scared to go in my apartment," she said. "It's all windows, right by the road." The student approached Court 17's management on Mon, Feb. 8 to move to a new unit, but did not call the police. "I was just scared and didn't want to make him angry," she said of her decision. However, apartment management contacted the Tacoma Police Department and the tenant was arrested and booked for intimidation with a weapon, according to Public Information Officer Mark Fulghum. The tenant did not pull or point the weapon during the dispute, according to the police report. The report also states that the tenant had accidentally discharged his weapon in the building on a previous occasion, Fulghum said. The student was then told by apartment management that the tenant would then be evicted in a process that would take somewhere between three and 20 days. In the days following the incident, the student saw the tenant staring into her windows from the street. She had also seen his car outside the building as recently as Feb. 24, 17 days after the arrest was made. "We are working to resolve this situation," apartment manager Mark Blower said, but could not comment on whether the tenant is being evicted or if he is still a resident at Court 17. However, he did point out that they do thorough background checks on all tenants, and do not rent to anyone with a criminal convictions for murder, assault, rape, theft, burglary, malicious mischief, arson, and other charges. "There's no way we would waver from any of that," he said. In fact, it is technically against the rules to have a gun in the building. However, he pointed out that because management cannot search tenant's apartment units, it would be possible to own one without them knowing. "He's not after her, he's not stalking her, he knows what he did was wrong," Blower said. Blower denied knowledge of any reports that the weapon had been discharged within in the building, or that such an incident had been reported to maintenance staff. However, the student claims to have seen bullet holes in the closet of another tenant's neighboring apartment after the event. Though this incident involved a student who is not in the student housing program, Court 17 is home to many UW Tacoma students including those who move into the building for a more dorm-like experience. Ultimately, the event calls attention to the differences between a traditional dorm and UW Tacoma's student housing. "Technically it's not a university building," Associate Director of Student Services Julie Draper said. Students in the student housing program live with roommates and have Resident Advisors, but share the building and its facilities with non-student community members. However, the fact that Court 17 is a functional apartment building offers certain security advantages. Unlike many traditional dorms, the building is only accessible to residents and their guests, and all residents are background checked. "They do all that more than I've ever seen another residence hall do that," Draper said. Additionally, campus safety patrols the Court 17 parking garage 24 hours a day. Neither Draper nor Campus Safety were aware of this particular event, but Draper did say that had someone in student housing been involved the university would have been notified and followed up with "immediate crisis response." Because the university was not been officially notified of the incident, they have not taken any action in this case. However, Director of Campus Safety Susan Wagshul-Golden wanted students to know that there are resources available for students in situations like this, regardless of where they live. "It's about education and awareness and preparedness, that's our mantra," Wagshul-Golden said. Campus Safety can work with students to create a safety plan, and offer escorts to students on campus or in the Court 17 parking garage. Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) classes are also offered at to students minimal cost. Meanwhile, the student involved in the incident is still living in the same apartment, in spite of attempts to move immediately. "I'm scared all the time, like paranoid and looking around," she said. The student now parks on the street, where other people will be able to see her enter and exit the building. The student currently lives in a ground floor apartment with large windows looking out onto the street. While she wanted to move into a different studio at Court 17 immediately, the student says that none were available. Her next objective was to move out of the building, but she says she was told in order to end her lease early she would have to continue to pay rent on the apartment until a new tenant was found, which she can't afford to do. "They made it impossible," the student said, adding that apartment management was reluctant to work with her on even though she felt unsafe. Blower said he was unaware that the student was dissatisfied with the management's response to the situation. Wagshul-Golden encouraged any students who are concerned about their safety or that of a friend to call (253)692-SAFE, a 24-hour security hotline. Students can ask questions anonymously and receive advice on anything from domestic violence issues to self-inflicted injuries.