‘We are not the enemy,’ police say

Six months have passed since hundreds of students rioted for the first time in a college generation after the Terrapin men's basketball team beat Duke last March. And, although the dust has cleared, the fallout is far from over.

As six students began to serve their semester- or year-long suspensions for riot-related activities (although one is seeking an appeal), University and Prince George's County Police teamed up yesterday to begin to mend a ubiquitous tension between police and students that took a turn for the worse in the early hours of March 4.

Last night, dozens of uniformed officers ran demonstrations and chatted with students, who took turns on a machine that simulated a car accident without a seatbelt and drove golf carts wearing beer goggles, a fan favorite at the event. Despite the carefree atmosphere, police had a distinct purpose — to break down barriers and make amends.

But the 300-pound gorilla in the room was this: Last March, county police pepper-sprayed dozens of students, mounted officers herded and cornered exuberant Terps fans shouting "Let's go Maryland" and "F--- Duke!" in the middle of Route 1, and 28 students were arrested. The story made national headlines.

The next day, students alleged county police used excessive force. One month later, largely due to a student's video account of the event that he posted on YouTube, four county police officers were suspended and their department was facing scrutiny from the FBI.

As more questions arose about police conduct, students' charges began to drop. To date, no convictions have been made against students arrested that night and most cases failed to ever see trial.

Only one of the four officers, Officer Sean McAleavey, has returned to work. McAleavey signed charging documents that made false allegations against senior John McKenna, who was featured in a widely circulated video being beaten by uniformed officers.

Although no one has been convicted for violating any state or local laws, the six facing university sanctions were charged with riot-related activity and starting fires on the campus.

"It's important for the community to understand the gravity of this," said Office of Student Conduct Director John Zacker. "It's important to see that we have responded aggressively to this misconduct and that riotous behavior will be punished."

But yesterday, police weren't looking to punish. They were looking to forge a new rapport with students.

Those students made their way to downtown College Park in small groups between 5 and 8 p.m. But instead of finding police waiting in full riot gear, they found police waiting to share a couple laughs.

Most attendees said they appreciated the opportunity to reconnect.

"I wanted to meet the police officers who patrol these streets," junior history and government and politics major Jill Moss said. "It's important to me to feel safe around the campus. They're not bad guys, you know? They're just trying to do their job."

But some noted the road to redemption is a long one.

"I think it's a good start," junior elementary education major Maggie Yelencsics said of the event. "I don't know how effective it will be, but it's a step in the right direction."

Junior operations management major Kishan Thadikonda agreed.

"Things like this? I'm all for it," he said. "It's good to interact with police on a social level — not how we normally see them."

Thadikonda, who said his apartment has been burglarized twice, added police were helpful both times he's had to call 911.

"I think people went nuts after the riot and said things they didn't mean," he said. "I've never really had a problem."

Other students at the event were less willing to forgive and forget.

"We get to meet the people who beat us down in March," sophomore business major Casey Engle said.

Police officials said they understood the severity of the event but hoped students wouldn't ascribe to all police officers the negative images brought out by last semester's riot.

"Any law enforcement agency suffers when something negative happens," University Police spokesman Capt. Marc Limansky said. "Hopefully all the students understand the police are here to help."

"Give us a chance," said Maj. Robert Liberati, the new commander for Prince George's County Police's District 1, which encompasses College Park. "We want you to have a successful college career. And we want you to celebrate when the time's appropriate."

"We're not the enemy," he added.

New University Police Chief David Mitchell emphasized safety and added rebuilding trust will be a top priority for police.

Amongst dozens of his colleagues, Mitchell called yesterday's event an "opportunity to meet and talk to the students in a non-enforcement type of environment."

"We're human like everybody," he said. "Let's go to know one another."

Mitchell knows the transformation won't take place overnight.

"We recognize that, after the last Duke game, it wasn't the police at their best," Mitchell said. "There's a lot of doubt about the police right now."

He called Liberati and Prince George's County Police Chief Roberto Hylton "outreach specialists."

"We're making up for what we lost in the way of credibility and what we lost in the way of faith in our ability to protect," he added. "We want to be who you run to when you're in trouble, not who you run from."

present at umdbk dot com