Although, the Tempe Police would respond to an emergency on campus, they do not take calls for service or enforce laws at ASU (a state reservation). I am glad you reported those problems to the Tempe Police.

I'm not certain that either the Tempe Police or the ASU Police have any real control as to where their stations are built. That decision is usually made at higher levels of goverment. I agree that quick response is always important; thus the comments on carrying equipment with them, in patrol cars, as opposed to “at the station”.

I'm not certain why my age matters, but I am over 50. I do not work for a police department, but did once upon a time in the Chicago area. I have my doctorate. I do work with the various police agencies in the valley and I have found the ASU Police to be a dedicated, professional and highly trained agency. I feel safe at ASU and you should too.

Although, the Tempe Police would respond to an emergency on campus, they do not take calls for service or enforce laws at ASU (a state reservation). I am glad you reported those problems to the Tempe Police.

I'm not certain that either the Tempe Police or the ASU Police have any real control as to where their stations are built. That decision is usually made at higher levels of goverment. I agree that quick response is always important; thus the comments on carrying equipment with them, in patrol cars, as opposed to “at the station”.

I'm not certain why my age matters, but I am over 50. I do not work for a police department, but did once upon a time in the Chicago area. I have my doctorate. I do work with the various police agencies in the valley and I have found the ASU Police to be a dedicated, professional and highly trained agency. I feel safe at ASU and you should too.

Further, my respect for the Tempe Police depart has continued to be shattered by their actions. I too would be curious to see Tempe and ASU's use of force stats respectively.

I can think of at least 2 incidents at least since this post was last written where the actions of the Tempe PD have put myself or those with me in potentially direct physical harm. One of which nearly was the cause OF a small riot and did result in my reporting the incident. After which I did notice several changes in policy go into effect.

As I mentioned please provide links to the stats. I'd like to see them. Either way, however, I trust my personal experience far more than I trust the story the statistics may tell. When I feel threatened, am threatened or feel as though I've been put in jeopardy something is wrong.

I don't even have so much as a speeding ticket.

BTW which police force do you work for? Given your e-mail i'm going to assume you're under the age of 26?

Alex, – are you talking about the Tempe Police or the ASU Police? They are two completely different agencies. I've worked with several PD's in differing states and ASU cops are about the friendliest I've run across. Many of them are students themselves.

FYI – many officers DO carry riot gear in their patrol cars. Why? For the same reason the assault rifles will be in there- fast deployment of that tool. It is the same reason the shotgun is in the car, the same reason their PPE (personal protective equipment) is in there, the same reason the first aid kits and AED's are in there – faster deployement and response. Seconds save lives – whether it be deploying a trauma dressing, or a rifle.

“…he laughed about the reputation one of the Campus Officers had for excessive Tazering.” I'm pretty sure that the ASU Police TASER usage is very low – check their use of force stats, they are public record. I just might go and check for myself out of curiousity

A patrol officer's effectiveness lies in his ability to respond quickly. Should an active shooter event occur, a lot of time would be spent going to the police department, unlocking a gun locker, loading a rifle and responding to the scene. Having the rifle in the squad car is the only option that makes sense.
~Sam

P.S. If you have such negative interactions with the police, why not report it? There are several options to report abuse of authority inside and outside the police department. Or is it easier to just whine on a blog?

At issue isn’t the officers training. It’s their behavior in general, and how the assault rifles are being distributed. As i believe i mentioned in the post – the PD coverage of ASU’s campus is very thorough. Putting assault rifles in the police vehicles is like putting a full suit of riot gear in every police car’s trunk.

To be direct, I suppose part of the issue is that it IS the Tempe/ASU police department. I really don’t have any respect left for them. I want to be clear, that i’m not talking about the greater valley’s police departments, but Tempe specifically. It may just be a few bad apples, but the quality of the individuals working for Tempe/ASU are suspect. Just in the past month I’ve been witness to two more negative experiences. Both were pointless, uncalled for and put the health and well being of the citizens involved in danger.

I appreciate the fact that Tempe based officers have to deal with college students and a lot of crap. That said, the quality of the individual’s I’ve seen is sub-grade and the argument is garbage. It’s like a zoo keeper who hates animals and then acts shocked/complains about having to work with them.

I agree completely with your statements. Apparently we need top security on campus, but as a friendly border patrol agent recently informed me, a voter registration card will not get you across the border because /anyone can obtain one/!

these kind of progressions in America can only be described with on word: Fascism.