Police gave student the run around for days. Now she is dead

[Takket]

https://amp.si.com/track-and-field/2018/12/26/university-utah-track-athlete-lauren-mccluskey-911-calls-shooting?__twitter_impression=true

Lauren McCluskey, a 21-year-old University of Utah senior and track athlete, was killed in an on-campus shooting outside of a dormitory on October 23. The shooter was 37-year-old Melvin Rowland, a convicted sex offender who had been harassing McCluskey.

McCluskey feared that police at the University of Utah were not doing enough to stop the harrassment, according to a 911 call that she placed on Oct. 19– just four days before her death– that was obtained by CNN.

The senior was involved in a brief relationship with Rowland which ended on Oct. 9, before the harrassment started. Over the next two weeks, McCluskey called campus police multiple times to report harassing messages as well as an attempted extortion. When she did not hear back in a timely manner, McCluskey called Salt Lake City Police.

[atreides1]

1. It's not their job

Courts have ruled that the police are not obligated to do much of anything, like serve and protect!!!

[DFW]

2. I'd charge a few of the cops who took the calls with accessory to muder

They might not get a conviction, but the girl won't have died in vain if these cops get the message that their (in-)actions cause people to die, and their public knows it, and a few lose their jobs in disgrace.

[LonePirate]

3. Exactly. A progressive district attorney for the city should bring charges against the police.

She did everything she was supposed to do and the system still failed her. The system needs to be arraigned for death much like the actual murderer.

[BadgerMom]

7. Salt Lake is more liberal than the suburbs, for sure.

Last edited Thu Dec 27, 2018, 02:36 PM - Edit history (1)

Still, though, “progressive” and “<Salt Lake> city” in the same sentence jar me a bit.

[Kaleva]

13. It's not up to the police to get a conviction. That'd be the local DA's job.

As it appears the man was hell bent on destroying her and then himself, I doubt the police could have done much as the guy would have succeeded in his twisted mission sooner or later.

[DFW]

17. It IS, however, the responsibility of the police to take such a cry for help seriously

Especially when the stalker has such a violent history and is armed. They just shrugged her calls off. She dies, and they are on coffee breaks. Something is wrong with this picture.

[Wellstone ruled]

4. This story folks is just the tip

of a really ugly iceberg. After working with college students in a retail environment in Utah,it gets real ugly real fast. Temple Square runs the Town and there is the underlying problem.

[Stuart G]

5. This something that shouldn't have happened..Never..So what is the penalty

for total incompetence?...Let's say everything was exactly the same, except for one detail. That the lady who was harassed happened to be the police chief's daughter..............................................


.......Now, do you suppose this would have ended like this?....

[IronLionZion]

6. University of Utah police sound dangerously incompetent

or dangerously indifferent to this woman who repeatedly asked for protection.

Part of this problem is the university cops and the city cops playing hot potato with this case instead of working together. "not my job" can get people killed.

[leftyladyfrommo]

8. When I was at UofU the police weren't the best if the best.

That was years ago but it is just a small police force. Serious police officers wouldn't be looking for work there.

[Ilsa]

9. I have no doubt she would have been charged

with murder if she had defended herself with extreme prejudice.

[lapislzi]

10. Men are afraid women will reject them.

Women are afraid men will kill them (Margaret Atwood)

I went through this just last week with my daughter. She had barricaded herself in her own office while her angry co-worker that she'd dated for awhile screamed threats at her. I learned that this had been going on for months, and was escalating--as these things always do.

When she didn't answer her phone an hour later, I was certain he'd followed her to the parking lot and murdered her. That is where a mother's mind goes. I called every mutual contact until someone was able to reassure me that she had left the building safely and was on her way to Grandma's where current boyfriend and cousins waited.

Disciplinary action is being filed against co-worker, and order of protection is being sought. While none of these ensures the safety of anybody, it's better than nothing. I predict that the day co-worker gets fired is going to be a very dangerous day, and I've warned my daughter to be far away from the workplace in an undisclosed location when that happens.

if he tries any shit with any other family member, he will rue the day.

[PatrickforO]

11. This is a very difficult thing for law enforcement.

They literally cannot do anything until a crime is committed.

This is sometimes disastrous for the victim, as for Lauren here, but the Bill of Rights is quite clear about unreasonable search and seizure, and we have long traditions of legal precedent demanding there to be actionable evidence in order to detain someone or charge them with a crime. The cops, unfortunately for Lauren, could not just go pick Rowland up because he hadn't broken the law.

The attempted extortion might have been different - if Lauren did have evidence of that, it is possible the police could have acted and detained him briefly. But as soon as he could obtain bond or make bail, he'd be out of jail anyway pending trial.

The sad thing here is that we all hate it when a stalker ends up killing someone, but to allow the police to pick up the stalker before a crime has been committed would undermine our entire criminal law system. Yeah, I know it's pretty corrupt and cash oriented, but still, everyone is supposed to be innocent until proven guilty and the Bill of Rights gives us all the right to a fair and speedy trial. Due process cannot be taken away even though it sometimes opens the door for tragedies such as that which befell Lauren.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

15. Stalking/Harassment isn't a crime in UT (and if so, why not)?

esp. since he was a convicted sex offender

[Adrahil]

12. But a black guy in the lobby?

We’ll be right there! Guns drawn!!!

[Proud Liberal Dem]

16. IKR?

[cwydro]

19. The guy was black.

Read the story.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

21. Yeah I know

That's why I was mad about it.

[cwydro]

18. Um, this guy WAS a black man.

So...

[Kaleva]

14. Guys such as Melvin Rowland are like suicide bombers.

They have one goal and that is to destroy their target(s) and themselves.

[Demovictory9]

20. super sad story