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Introduction

The Department of Public Safety (DPS) at Syracuse University is a police force meant to maintain the security of the University campus and other University-owned properties in the city. DPS currently consists of 64 sworn public safety officers and 15 supporting community service officers who are responsible for the health and safety of all students, faculty, and staff who live on or utilize the campus resources. DPS also commands Fire and Life Safety services for residence halls and academic buildings on campus, which includes fire system maintenance, emergency management and response, and planning procedures. Due to the extensive list of responsibilities, DPS operates 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, even when the University is not in session.

All DPS officers undergo a 24-week training program that tests physical, academic, and practical performance, followed by a 12-week field training program where aspiring officers ride alongside active officers, and a 13-week evaluation period where aspiring officers are evaluated whilst riding alongside active officers. This is the time at which the officer receives a certificate of graduation from the police academy and is free to pursue a job in the police force in the city of Syracuse. However, to become a DPS officer, another 12-week training program is required to learn about the needs of the university community. After successful completion of this training course and a certificate from officer candidate school, an officer is eligible for a job in the Department of Public Safety at Syracuse University. Additional training includes firearm proficiency training, which officers are required to complete twice per year to be equipped with a semi-automatic firearm while on active duty. The Department of Safety and the University have faced criticism in recent years due to the conduct of the officers, questions about the effectiveness of the department as a whole, and calls for reform to the department polices and guidelines. An independent review into the department was held and concluded this year which evaluated the departments performance and policies as a result of the criticism and controversy the department found itself in. This essay will detail the differences between DPS and the Syracuse Police department, highlight the crime statistics found in the Syracuse area, elaborate on the controversy which has surrounded the University and DPS in recent years, explore the relationship DPS has had with various student protestors, and look at how DPS has changed in recent years based upon the feedback and criticism which has been directed towards the department.

DPS Versus Department of Public Safety

https://www.google.com/search?q=syracuse+dps&sxsrf=AOaemvLFDQr4mS3VNPYkkTHOLJ9xrWmYjg:1636947923767&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiozIucupn0AhXqdd8KHWxfA8sQ_AUoA3oECAEQBQ&biw=1440&bih=708&dpr=2#imgrc=mVzQaqyl2hY-hM

The Department of Public Safety and the Syracuse Police Department have the same duties, which is to maintain law and order and protect the people of the Syracuse area. The jurisdiction of the two departments is what separates them from one another. DPS has jurisdiction on Main Campus, South Campus, and other university properties. The Department of Public Safety officers are the ones who patrol and monitor the Syracuse Campus every day.

Within these areas, members of DPS are permitted to exercise their law enforcement authority while on duty. Anywhere DPS has jurisdiction inside the city of Syracuse, the Syracuse Police Department also has jurisdiction. Syracuse Police Departments jurisdiction and patrol has recently had an alteration to it. The police department has three patrol zones in the Syracuse area in which the officers are to. patrol. These zones are the north district, south east district, and southwest district. Areas included in the North District are, Eastwood, Sedgwick, the "North Side", Tipperary Hill, and the Inner Harbor. The area defined as the southeast district is downtown, Syracuse University, surrounding neighborhoods of Syracuse University, Meadowbrook, and the south side south Colvin Street. Included in the Southwest district is Strathmore, Near West Side, and South West side west of I-81. These zone changes were implemented in 2019.

DPS Mission Statement reads, "The Department of Public Safety is dedicated to maintaining a safe and secure living, learning and working environment in partnership with those it serves by respectfully employing the highest professional standards and providing exceptional service to the Syracuse University community”

DPS also has a public vision statement to share their goals for Syracuse University's campus, "The Department of Public Safety’s vision is to lead in all areas of professional campus law enforcement practices, to effectively address the safety and security needs of its community and to uphold the mission of the University by supporting an environment in which diverse social, culture, and academic values are free to develop and prosper.”.

As the Department of Public Safety is aimed to protect and serve the Syracuse University community and its students, they do not handle incidents or disputes that occur in an area considered to be "off campus”. An example of what would be considered "off campus” is Marshall Street. An incident occurred on Marshall Street in which a group of men were attacking another man. When this incident occurred, DPS stated that they could intervene to provide assistance and to maintain order because Marshall Street is not a part of the Syracuse Campus and is therefore outside of their jurisdiction. As a result, the Syracuse Police would have to resolve the dispute. DPS stayed on the seen as a precaution until Syracuse Police Officers arrived.

The Syracuse Police Department was created in 1848 when the villages Salina and the city of Syracuse merged into one. As for Syracuse Police, they deal with crime that happens every day in Syracuse. Between Syracuse Police and DPS, they routinely engage in joint crime and patrols on and off campus. The mission statement of the Syracuse Police Department have for the states “It is the mission of the Syracuse Police Department to prevent crime, enforce the laws, and understand the needs of the community, while providing professional service with ethical treatment for everyone.” The Syracuse Police work together with DPS but have an understanding of responsibilities for investigating crimes and offenses around the University.  

The two departments have a “Memorandum of Understanding” that goes into depth about how both parties will work together to keep the Syracuse University community safe. This document has 28 parts to understand and achieve the goals that both departments have. While they are both separate and different, they both have the same goals in protecting and serving.

Crime in the City of Syracuse: Why Does Syracuse Need DPS?

From an outside perspective, Syracuse University seems like a safe campus with little need for a large police force. However, upon further inspection of the University, there are several criminal acts and illegalities that arise rather often and justify the need for the Department of Public Safety at Syracuse University.  

Before analyzing the minuscule region of Syracuse University, the entire city of Syracuse will be compared to the crime rates of the nation and New York State. Using the simple graph, the violent crime rate for the city of Syracuse is significantly higher than the crime rates of New York State and the United States during the last two decades. In earlier years, the violent crime rate of Syracuse was nearly double that of the national violent crime rate, in which violent crime rate includes murder, rape, robbery, assault, property crime, burglary, larceny, or automobile theft. Additionally, the map provided highlights the most dangerous areas in the city of Syracuse. It may be unsettling to see that the main campus of Syracuse University is rated “F”, or one of the most dangerous areas on the scale. The South Campus, denoted by the name “Skytop” on the map, is also among the most dangerous areas in terms of crime rate in Syracuse. The highest amount of crime is concentrated in the most developed regions of the city, which endangers all who live, learn, and work in affiliation with the University. The only area of Syracuse more dangerous than the University’s campuses is the Carrier Circle, in the district closest to the Syracuse airport and hospital, very close to the New York State Thruway.  

Early into the Fall 2021 semester, on August 28th, a parked vehicle was stolen from behind a home on Ackerman Avenue, less than 1.5 miles from the University’s campus. The proximity of this criminal act permitted DPS to respond to the scene. The owner of this vehicle had mistakenly left the keys inside of the vehicle, allowing for three males (no other description provided) to enter the vehicle. The suspects collided with the houses on either side of the driveway before speeding away, and the car has yet to be located.

A second major criminal act was reported slightly over two weeks later, on September 19th, where several apartments on the University’s South Campus faced attempts at break-ins. The suspects, teenagers, were reported to be armed with a weapon that was fired at least once during the attempt. One suspect, a 17-year-old with no affiliation to the University, fled from the scene in a stolen vehicle and was later arrested by DPS. The suspect is also believed to be connected with other burglaries in the area and will face various charges for multiple criminal acts.

A high crime rate in the city concentrated in the most developed areas warrants a need for DPS on the campus of Syracuse University and the surrounding region. Two major crimes only a few weeks into the Fall 2021 semester provides supporting evidence that DPS is a necessary addition to the security of the University and plays an important role in protecting students from violence and theft

Controversy

The effectiveness of DPS and their ability to solve and prevent crime has been called into question by the student body as it is felt by students that DPS has been unable to solve and identify cases of misconduct and racial bias found at Syracuse University. Of the 41 incidents of racial misconduct and bias available on the Bias Incident Tracker, 36 cases remain open, unsolved, and with no leads.

Additionally, there is a feeling held amongst members of the student body that DPS does a poor job addressing the rising crime found in the Syracuse University area. This was reported in the Daily Orange this past month. According to the article, there has been a 1500% increase in burglaries in 2020 compared to 2019, and this has caused students to call for the reforming of DPS. The tension between the Syracuse University Student Body and DPS reached its highest point in 2019. This is the time in which #NotAgainSU began in direct response to the incidences of racial hate, racist graffiti, and anti semitic slurs appearing around campus. The organizers of the protests main objective was to improve the campus climate for students of color as they felt that the environment on campus was one in which racial bias and racists remarks were not only prevalent, but tolerated by the administration. They demanded that this change. Sit-ins in The Barnes Center for the Arch were held and organizers of the movement occupied Crouse-Hinds hall for a total of 31 days. During this time of protest, the student body had numerous interactions with DPS. DPS was heavily criticized by the campus community as a whole because videos surfaced which showed the Deputy Chief of DPS reaching for his holstered weapon when a physical altercation between the protestors and DPS took place.

Due to this incident, the University launched an external review of DPS as a whole. The review was conducted by the Former United States Attorney General Loretta Lynch. The review has provided Syracuse University with framework for a new review board of DPS. In this review board students and employees at Syracuse University are able to recommend disciplinary actions for any DPS officers who have been accused of misconduct as well as allow the students and employees to review the DPS polices in regard to these matters.

As a result of the physical altercations which took place between student protestors and DPS, the organizers of #NotAgainSU demanded that the University Disarm the DPS officers and for the University to Issue a statement which would acknowledge the university and DPS role in white supremacy. These demands were not met. The University did however meet 16 demands of the student leaders. Some of these included: reform SEM100, mandatory diversity training for faculty and increase in staff and faculty diversity, open forum opportunity for students to voice their experiences which would be held twice a semester, hiring of diverse counselors, and for their to be no negative repercussions or consequences directed towards the protesters who partook in the various sit ins and demonstrations.

DPS Relationship to Syracuse University and the Protestors

Following the murder of George Floyd, and many other people of color, peaceful and passionate protests have taken the world by storm, but unfortunately with that comes navigating a new dynamic between police and security, and the protestors. A dynamic that has led to violence and injustice. A dynamic that is also relevant to student protestors and campus police.

Police brutality in the United States, as defined by Britannica, is “the unwarranted or excessive and often illegal use of force against civilians by U.S. police officers”. These civilians are almost always people of color. In the figure from PNAS we can see that African American men are the group that is most likely to be killed by the police. This has led to the widely held belief that police brutality is often, an act of racism and discrimination, which has led individuals to protest these racially motivated killings of people of color.

The Black Lives Matter protests only further contributed to police violence; the violence not only remained on people of color but began against peaceful protesters of all identities. According to data collected by Bellingcat and Forensic Architecture, at least 950 instances of police brutality against anti-racism protestors between May 24th, 2020, and August 8th, 2020, the time to be considered the height of the Black Lives Matter Movement. Police used tactics of intimidation and sometimes would hide their identity as police. They would also use tear gas, pepper spray, physical assault, arrest, and kettling to exert their power over protestors. So how is this all relevant to Syracuse University and its students? Student activism is alive and well at Syracuse University and will continue on campus for hopefully a long time. It’s important to understand the dynamic of authority figures with protestors so we can better understand the student's own relationship with the police and the Department of Public Safety (DPS). While the Syracuse Police do play a large role in our protection in the city and on campus, DPS holds the responsibility of protecting the students. DPS is the first call to respond to campus incidents which includes incidents with student protesters.

There has been a lot of controversy surrounding DPS, and many individuals of different backgrounds hold a variety of views on the department as a whole. A big controversy around DPS came from incidents during the #NotAgainSu protest, where students occupied Crouse-Hinds Hall after submitting a list of 19 demands for the University to meet in response to various hate crimes and bias-related incidents. In response to the sit-in, DPS closed off anything from entering Crouse-Hinds Hall, including food, medicine, and other supplies. However, students were given meals by the University who also allowed and encouraged students to leave the building if they needed.

Regarding interactions between DPS and students, there were several that were reported in connection to the #NotAgainSu protests. One was a video that spread on social media which showed a DPS officer getting physical with students. A member of the administration spoke out about this and brought attention to the fact that it is difficult to understand the entire situation from one video, and that ultimately, the officer was doing their job. It's important to note that their job not only includes the protection of students but the protection of campus property and facilities. Other altercations included rude and dismissive remarks from DPS to the protestors. According to the Daily Orange’s article, “‘Blatantly wrong’: #NotAgainSU protesters explain interactions with DPS” a student shared that “interactions with DPS officers during this protest have made me feel like they are actively invested in causing harm to people that look like me." However on the contrary there are many students who feel the presence of DPS officers makes them feel safer.

While students remain skeptical of DPS, especially after the attack on Marshall Street and the multiple incidents that have occured on Euclid Avenue, it would be unfair to discredit all the work DPS does for our campus. At the end of the day, we must continue to amplify both sides of the story and work to better understand this dynamic between DPS and students so we can help build and maintain a healthier relationship to create a safe campus environment for everyone.

Changes to DPS

Over the years DPS and Syracuse University have sought to add new initiatives, protocols, and practices to improve the patrol and protection of the Syracuse University community. In 2019, three new initiatives were implemented. The first being, an improved late night point to point safety shuttle service. As a result of this initiative, Syracuse University will be providing two new and fully accessible point to point shuttle vans. The vans will operate every day during the academic year between the hours of 9 P.M and 7 A.M. These vans are available for anyone with an SU ID within the Syracuse Campus area.

https://www.syracuse.edu/assets/documents/Report-on-Department-of-Public-Safety.pdf

The second initiative which has been implemented is the new neighborhood walking safety escort program. This program is available Thursday through Saturday nights between the hours of 10:30 p.m. and 3:30 am. The walking safety escorts will consists of five uniformed, licensed and trained security guards hired by DPS. The security guards will walk students, faculty and staff to and from the on and near campus locations they need to get to during the late hours of the weekend. It is noted by DPS that the way to spot these guards if a student, staff member, or faculty member needs to find one is by their bright orange vests and jackets. The guards will be placed along Euclid Avenue, Walnut Park, and Marshal Street. The guards are to remain in contact with DPS Emergency Communication Center. They are instructed to proactively approach and offer to assist and escort individuals traveling alone at night who are apart of the Syracuse University Community. The third initiative from 2019 was the Neighborhood Video Security Enhancements. This initiative has allowed for the installation of additional video cameras in campus neighborhoods. This technological undertaking was done by DPS and the Syracuse Police Department. The two departments collaborated to purchase and install the video cameras. As stated in the "Controversy" Tab, an independent investigation of DPS was held after the #NotAgainSU protests, and in it, suggestions for how the department can improve are outlined. Below are some of the points made by Former United States Attorney General Loretta Lynch and her team.

Of DPS' 160 Standard Operating Procedures, the independent investigation provided feedback for improvement on 26 of these procedures. The most notable Standard Operating Procedures called into question by the review were: Hate Crime and Racial Bias Incidents, Large Events/ Campus Unrest/ Assembly & Protests, Disciplinary Procedures, Use of Force, and Sexual Assault Investigations.

The review suggested that Syracuse University update its list of protected characteristics throughout the DPS policy to ensure that the policies align with the New York Penal Law. This law defines hate crimes as those which are committed because of the perceived race, nationality, gender and gender expression, religion, sexual orientation, disability, age of the victim. The review felt that DPS policies and procedures did not reflect the most update to date practices and under New York Law.

In regard to Large Events/Campus Unrest/Assembly and Protests, the review suggests that DPS revise this policy in order to remove subjection from the decision making process. The review also stated that DPS should focus solely on public safety to remove the belief that DPS would be making decision for the purposes of lowering negative media coverage. By removing subjective standards in the protocol, trust can be established between the student body and DPS.

The Disciplinary Procedures of DPS were reviewed and the feedback provided was that DPS should review this Standard Operating Procedure in particular because the review felt that this SOP needed better issuance of discipline. The review felt that discipline should be observed routinely to ensure that favoritism would not play a role in following along with the policies and procedures of DPS.

The First Recommendation made by the independent review in regard to improving use of force was that DPS needs to make it clear that de-escalating is required when the circumstances allow for de-escalation. The second recommendation was to modify the language of Use of Force to include the point that DPS officer have the duty to intervene in times where it is practical and when the officer observes the use of excessive force by another officer. The officers also must report any excessive use of force they observe from another officer to a superior.

Two recommendations were made to improve DPS sexual assault investigation process. The first being that DPS rephrase the policy so that the language clearly states that the victim of sexual assault will not be viewed in a suspicious lens in the preliminary portion of an investigation. It should be an officers priority to document the reported crime and gather evidence. It is not the job of the officer to judge the credibility of the victims and witnesses.

The second recommendation is to have DPS be trained in trauma informed sexual assault investigation procedures. This will allow the officers to appropriately respond to victims of sexual assault. The review concluded with the notion that It is the the duty of FPS to provide effective response to victims of sexual assault.

The review has allowed the University to see the exact areas the department can improve to best protect and serve those in the campus community.