A fight between students and young people in the community last Friday sent one student to the hospital, said Director of Public Safety Jerry Roderick.
Roderick said it was reported that on Oct. 23, a group of eight to ten high school to college-aged individuals came onto campus around 10:30 p.m. They went to the Western Shore dorms, he said, and then got into an altercation.
“It’s been alleged that the group attempted to gain entrance into a gathering of students in a suite,” said Roderick.
After the group was denied entry, another group of students exited an adjacent suite and reported that the group of young adults from the community was confrontational, said Roderick.
He said a female student then allegedly left the building and was shoved by one of the youths in the group, which led to several male students stepping in, at which point several people engaged in fighting.
Roderick said people then started calling public safety and 911.
“It was reported to me that the subjects had brass knuckles and another had some kind of knife,” said Roderick. He said one student suffered lacerations to the head and face from repeated blows by one of the subjects. Roderick said he was taken to the hospital and released later that night and no other injuries were reported to Public Safety that required treatment.
Roderick said the group is not suspected to be a gang, and he looks at it as an isolated incident. He said it is difficult to know what motivated the incident, but nothing indicates that they were here to target any specific group or person.
Chief of Police Robert Edler said the people were likely motivated by ignorance.
“We are in the beginning stages of the follow-up investigation,” said Roderick, adding that the suspects were not caught by Public Safety or the Chestertown Police Department.
Edler said these boys have likely been in trouble before, either locked up or dealt with in some way, and one or more of the CPD officers can probably identify some of them if they are from the community.
Roderick said he and Edler are working together to compare evidence and continue with the investigation jointly. They said the victims of the crime will become witnesses to the case.
Roderick said they are trying to find out which way the subjects traveled on campus to see if any images were captured of them.
“I don’t know if we’ll be able to see faces [on camera footage],” said Roderick. He added that making sure they find the correct images from the cameras is a lengthy process. “We’re hopeful, but there’s no guarantee that we have what we need for this particular incident.”
Edler said their goal is to make an arrest but they will need proof. The suspects will not admit to the crime, so they need positive identification from those who witnessed the event in order to have a case. He said this is important so they can prevent further crime and see the investigation through successfully.
Edler said they could be charged with trespassing, several counts of assault, and disorderly conduct.
Roderick said the situation has similarities to what happened last year in Dorchester when a group of males from the community came on campus looking for a party then got into a fight with students. He said the event happened in August of 2008 but did not go to court until May 2009.
Roderick said if students see suspicious activity, they should immediately report it. Once an incident has started he said there is no guarantee Public Safety or CPD can get to the scene immediately.
Roderick and other officers are working on the case and following any leads they can get, and said anyone who witnessed the event should call Public Safety.
“It’s much more proactive to investigate why people are here before something happens,” said Roderick.
Edler said whoever kicked them out of their suite did the right thing. He said sometimes off-campus parties let people from town into their parties so they expect to get in all of the time, which is not good.
Edler said crime rates are down in the Chestertown community, reporting they are 20-30 percent lower than last year, and the percentage of assaults may be down even more. He said CPD is planning on making more rounds on campus in the next couple of weeks to try to alleviate what happened.
“If they’re smart, they won’t try it again, but we’re not dealing with intelligent people,” said Edler.
Editors Note: According to a crime alert e-mail by Director of Public Safety Jerry Roderick on Oct. 28, a female student was approached and assaulted by a male on Kudner bridge that night. The student escaped after personal property was taken. Chestertown Police and Public Safety officers are also investigating that case.
300 Washington Avenue, Chestertown, Maryland 21620 | 410-778-2800 | 800-422-1782