Criminal, Violent, or Suspicious Activity, and Emergency Lockdown Guidelines

Criminal, Violent, or Suspicious Activity

1. DO NOT ATTEMPT to apprehend or interfere with a criminal or interfere in a violent incident except in cases of self-protection.

2. Everyone is asked to assist in making the campus a safe place. If you witness a criminal act or you notice suspicious persons or situations on campus, immediately notify Campus Safety (ext.7777) and provide them the information outlined on the following page. Be alert to any of the following:

• People monitoring areas, buildings or entrances.
• People conducting illegitimate business.
• Unauthorized people in restricted or sensitive areas.
• People requesting information with no apparent need for that information
• People wearing clothing not consistent with the weather conditions or events (bulky coat on hot day, etc.) Individuals attempting to access utility locations
• Abandoned parcels or items in unusual locations or high traffic areas
• Vehicles parked in inappropriate places
• Unexpected/unfamiliar delivery trucks
• Unfamiliar vehicles parked for long periods
• Vehicles containing unusual/suspicious parcels or material
• Suspicious vehicles arriving and being left behind

3. If you are the victim of, or are involved in, any on-campus violation of the law such as assault, robbery, theft, etc., call Campus Safety ext. 7777. Calls can also be made from any blue light emergency telephone on campus. 

4. If you are confronted by a violent person:

Avoid confrontation or arguments.

• If you are in a non-secure area, consider leaving immediately and advise others to do the same. Use your best judgment and take necessary steps to ensure your personal safety by remaining in place under cover, fleeing the area, or entering a secure building and locking doors to prevent that person’s access.
• Call Campus Safety at ext. 7777 or call 911 with as much information as you can provide regarding the person. Description should include sex, race, age, height, weight, hair color/length, facial hair, glasses, clothing, weapons (if applicable), vehicle description, including color and license plate information, and direction of travel.
• Communicate your concerns to other building/campus personnel as appropriate.
• If you are in a secure location, keep communication channels open and remain there until instructed otherwise by Campus Safety or other emergency personnel.
• Calls can also be made from any of the blue light emergency telephones located on campus. 

Emergency Lockdown

If an emergency situation arises (e.g., armed hostile intruder), and you assess that an EMERGENCY LOCKDOWN should be conducted or are given the order to following emergency lockdown procedures, DO NOT HESITATE. Do the following:

1. Even though Emergency Team Leaders (ETLs) are tasked with securing the lock down devices on many exterior doors, if you are in position to do so, and you know how to operate the exterior doors’ lock down devices, secure the doors so they cannot be opened from the outside. Carefully consider whether reopening exterior doors for others may be hazardous to all inside.

2. Proceed to the nearest room preferably one with a telephone and door lock. If your room does not have a door lock, try to improvise a barricade.

3. Individuals in hallways or outdoor areas should immediately seek cover. If you are outside and are able to access a building that can be secured, quickly make your way to that location, advising others to do the same. Persons finding themselves in an unsecured location, who are unable to gain access to a secure area, need to take all necessary steps to ensure their own personal safety-either by fleeing the immediate area to a more secure location, or by remaining in place, under cover, until the immediate danger has passed, and then seeking a secure location.

4. DO NOT sound the fire alarm.

5. Every effort should be made to lock access doors and close windows and window coverings in your area without compromising personal safety.

6. Turn off lights. Remain quiet, silence cell phones and pagers, and turn off radios and other electronics that might alert the intruder to your presence.

7. At your earliest opportunity, while trying not to attract the intruder’s attention, call 911 and provide as much information as possible regarding the current situation, including description of the intruder and direction of travel. Curtail all other telephone usage so that systems are not overloaded, and calls can reach emergency responders.

8. Should the fire alarm sound, do not evacuate the building unless:

• You have first hand knowledge that there is a fire in the building, or
• You have been advised by Campus Safety or other emergency personnel to evacuate, or
• There is imminent danger in the immediate area.

9. Conceal yourself as much as possible. Crouch down in areas that are out of sight from doors and windows. Do not huddle together in case the intruder makes entry into your area. Try to stay calm and make a plan of action, including the possibility of confronting the intruder if you have no other options. 

10. Wait for further instructions from police or other emergency personnel. Do not open the door until emergency personnel declare all clear or direct an evacuation. If the police make contact with you, do exactly as they tell you. Do not make any quick movements, and show them that you have no weapons in your hands.

Hostage Situation

If an armed intruder situation presents itself and circumstances cause you to be taken hostage, conventional wisdom suggests that you:

• Remain calm and be patient
• Follow directions
• Wait for the police to resolve the situation

While the application of conventional wisdom may be appropriate in most situations, you must take direct responsibility for your personal safety, deciding which steps are necessary.