Reprinted from Campus Law Enforcement Journal with permission from the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators
Drinking on College Campuses A Communities Approach
by Don Waiski, Deputy Police Chief, Winona (Minnesota) Police Department
Colleges and universities throughout the distance of the WSU campus. Drink spe- 1990s to develop a direction along with United States have been plagued by prob- cials and happy hour prices are common what was taking place with the police lems associated with alcohol. Binge drink- throughout the week. With the number department. ing, deaths, crime and general disruption of students living in rental units close to It also became apparent that a num- to the community are common results the university, problems with loud par- ber of traits were present within the groups of alcohol abuse in "college towns." Com- ties, criminal damage, public nuisance and and/or representatives of specific institu- munities and academia have attempted other quality of life crimes were common. tions. These included leadership, commit- to deal with this problem for years with In 1998 the Winona Police Depart- ment and persistence. little success. Winona, Minnesota has ment implemented the Community Po- As a result of our efforts, crime in the taken a proactive, aggressive and tar- licing Philosophy. Meetings were held City of Winona has decreased by 30% over geted approach to this problem and it's throughout the community to gain citi- the past four years. Many programs and working. This article will outline our ef- zen input on crimes and problems they events associated with binge drinking forts to reduce negative effects of alco- wanted dealt with. Through surveys it have been eliminated. City government, hol within a college community. became evident that alcohol and crimes university officials, law enforcement and Winona is a community of 27,000 resi- associated with it were a top priority. The citizens have commented on the noted dents located in southeastern Minnesota. police department then began to develop improvements- It ranks as one of the highest per capita a plan to deal with this problem. Problems still persist, however, to a ratio of liquor license to population in Beginning in 1998 a number of pro- lesser degree. With persistence, leader- the State of Minnesota at 1:752. Two uni- grams and projects were implemented. ship and hard work improvement will versities are located within the city lim- Continual adjustment and review of pro- continue. its. grams were made. The value of gaining I will outline those programs imple- Winona State University (WSU) is a assistance and cooperation from other mented by Winona to deal with problems public four-year university with a student agencies and groups became readily ap- associated with alcohol. This program also population of 7,400 students. Currently, parent. Even in the initial stages it was involved continual review and adjustments 2,600 students reside on campus. Many evident that no one agency could attack to deal with unexpected events and prob- of the other students reside within a four- this problem alone. lems. block radius of campus in residential Certain groups met many of the pro- rental property. WSU is located in the grams with resistance. Liquor retailers, stu- Neighborhood Police Patrols center of the city surrounded totally by dents and landlords objected to specific Uniformed police officers were placed in residential housing. Winona State Univer- programs directed toward them. Organi- the residential areas surrounding campus. sity is a dry campus. zations that normally didn't work well to- These officers were assigned to foot pa- St. Mary's University is a private, four- gether realized that this problem affected trol. The purpose of these patrols was to year university located near the western everyone. strictly enforce all alcohol related offenses. city limits. Its location is somewhat se- Organizations that have taken part and/ Visibility was also a major determining cluded with over 80% of the students re- or assisted included the Winona Police factor of placing officers on foot patrol. siding on-campus. Alcohol consumption Department, Winona State University, St. Numerous arrests were made for public and possession is allowed on campus. Mary's University, city government, land- consumption (alcohol), loud parties, dis- orderly conduct, and damage to property, The downtown area has ample liquor lords, citizens, students and others. An al- establishments that are within walking cohol task force was formed in the late etc Continued on page 21
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To better use the officers at peak times zation, if alcohol will be present and if so half hour. The organizer was decorating these officers would generally patrol up how much and number of people ex- the house when the officer initially ar- to two months prior to graduation and pected. There are also limits as to the rived. The officer volunteered his services several months after school began. Offic- number of persons for kegs allowed. and assisted in decorating the house for ers were also used in the downtown area There are a number of other restrictioas the much anticipated party. A half-hour when appropriate. and requirements that must be met prior passed, the officer was served and the In 2002 Winona State University do- to approval. organizers were arrested. nated $3,000 to the Winona Police De- This has dramatically reduced the num- partment to offset police overtime in ber of parties where minors attend and Keg Ordinance dealing with this problem. "all you can drink" activities occur. Winona City Code now requires that any person wishing to posses two or more Alcohol Compliance Checks Landlord Tenant Ordinance half barrels of beer in a residentially zoned In 1998 the Winona Police Department It became apparent that certain rental area must first gain approval from the began implementing alcohol compliance property was causing the majority of prob- Winona City Council. This ordinance was checks of liquor establishments. A consis- lems, i.e., noise, loud parties and other enacted to help prevent the large-scale tent and aggressive approach has been alcohol-related offenses. Certain landlord parties where it was common to confis- implemented using underage decoys to were not being held accountable for their cate 4-5 half barrels. The ordinance was enter liquor establishments in an attempt property and/or renters. In 2000 the City upgraded in June 2002 that now requires to purchase alcohol. Employees serving of Winona implemented a Landlord Ten- liquor retailers to keep records of all half minors are arrested. The license holder ant ordinance at the urging of the police barrels sold and requires those purchas- (owner) is referred to the city council for department. ing half barrels to maintain registration fines and possible suspensions of their li- Upon the first violation, the City of stickers on them. quor license. Winona sends the registered landlord a The city council has taken a very pro- warning. On the second violation the city Arrest Information active approach to fines and license sus- sends another warning and requires the The Winona Police Department provides pensions for bars that serve minors. landlord to inform the city in writing how both universities with arrest information they plan on dealing with the problem. concerning their students who have vio- Bar Checks The third violation requires the landlords lated local liquor laws. The university then The police conduct random bar checks to evict the occupants. If the landlord fails takes disciplinary action against students of bars within the city. Many of these to take action they are brought before for their behavior off campus (alcohol checks involved 10-15 police officers the city council and face a fine and sus- related). entering a designated location. Once in- pension of their rental license. It should side all patrons who appear to be under Party Flyers at University be noted that if the landlord attempts to Another common form of advertisement the age of 21 are carded. evict and the court refuses to grant the This practice has been very successful is for party organizers to post notices request the city is unable to take further within residence halls. It is the policy of for the department and has resulted in action against the owner. numerous arrests of minors. Winona State University that no notice Moratorium on Liquor may be posted without the approval of Public Facilities — Monitoring Establishments - Downtown the university. Residence Life Staff is well Winona has an abundant park system with The Winona City Council enacted a policy aware of the problems associated with facilities used for various reasons. A num- to prevent the establishment of any ad- students returning from parties and their ber of groups have used these facilities ditional liquor establishment in the down- subsequent behavior on campus. for parties and the sale of alcohol. In many town area. Residence Life Staff will notify local law cases student organizations would rent and enforcement or campus security when then hold their party. House Parties parties are posted providing the location A new application process was imple- The Winona Police Department periodi- and time of the party. mented to curb the unlawful use of these cally sends decoys into house parties that facilities. Once an application is made to advertise all the beer and/or alcohol you University Actions the City of Winona for the use of a facil- can drink. Violators are arrested along with As indicated Winona State University is a ity a copy is immediately sent to the po- minors within the residence. dry campus. Students violating the alco- lice department. Persons and organizations A recent case involved a younger look- hol policy are subject to discipline by that have violated city policies concern- ing officer who entered a house party. Residence Life Staff or the campus Judi- ing the use these facilities are prohibited Unfortunately, the officer was about a half- cial Officer. Generally, two alcohol viola- from applying again. hour early. The organizer of the party told tions will result in the student's expulsion The application process must include the undercover officer that he was early from the residence halls. the name(s) of party organizers, organi- and they wouldn't be serving for another Continued on page 22
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2002 / 21 Drinking on College Campuses Continued from page 21
Campus Security also maintains a zero Liquor Store Surveillance Proposed Projects alcohol tolerance. Security will refer all The police will periodically make random The community is always searching for cases they come in contact with to the surveillance checks of off-sale liquor stores ways to reduce problems associated with appropriate university authority. for potential violations. alcohol and binge drinking. Some items Some activities that encouraged or re- that are currently being dealt with are drink sulted in binge drinking at off-campus fa- Miscellaneous Laws and specials at liquor establishments, continu- cilities were abolished. Ordinances ing the moratorium on downtown liquor Several other ordinances that are currently establishments, increase in fines and jail Alcohol and Drug Counselor in place prohibit loud music after 10:00 time for alcohol-related offenses, to name Winona State University recently hired p.m. All occupants of a liquor establish- a few. one full-time person to deal specifically ment are required to have a valid identi- with alcohol and drug related problems fication in their possession at all times. Conclusion on campus. Education Winona's approach involves much more Transportation University students who violate local li- than enforcement. A sustained coopera- With the use of student fees, bus trans- quor laws are generally required to at- tive effort by all agencies is required. Prob- portation will be made available to stu- tend Alcohol 101 as part of their punish- lems still exist; however, positive results dents frequenting the downtown area. ment. In addition to this the university can be seen. Dealing with a problem that This will hopefully reduce the number of offers a number of programs and services has festered for years is hard work. It in- incidents from intoxicated students walk- designed to reduce binge drinking. volves dedication, commitment, leader- ing back to campus through residential The university is also taking steps to ship and persistence by all agencies in- neighborhoods. organize and offer more activities for stu- volved. Communities throughout the dents on campus to reduce binge drinking United States are unique. Solutions in one Alcohol Prohibition in Parks — and other problems associated with it. area don't necessarily work in others. Certain Times Many universities on one hand attempt Due to the number of parties and alco- Alcohol Task Force to deal with problems associated with al- hol-related offenses, the possession of al- The City of Winona also developed an cohol and at the same time invite adver- cohol in city parks after 10:00 p.m. is pro- alcohol task force to identify the prob- tisements that encourage the use of alco- hibited. Possession of alcohol within cer- lem and provide possible solutions to al- hol. This type of approach is counterpro- tain distances of select buildings in Lake cohol-related issues. All agencies were ductive and sends mixed messages. Park is prohibited at all times. represented and provided positive sug- It is imperative that the entire com- gestions to Winona's problem. munity needs to be involved in dealing with binge drinking and negative effects associated with it. Cooperation, dedica- tion and persistence are required elements in combating this problem. Obviously, there is no one quick solution and com- munities must be motivated to tackle a problem that takes time, commitment, dedication and leadership.
About the Author Don Walski is the current Deputy Police Chief of the Winona Police Department and coordinates all activities for the Pa- trol Division. He is also the Director of Security with Winona State University. He has over 25 years of experience with law enforcement along with 7years' ex- perience with Campus Security opera- tions. He can be reached at: Winona State University, 8th & Johnson Street, Winona, MN'55987, [email protected]
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