Crazy Weekend On and Off the Field

With the first few weeks of the semester behind us, things were bound for a change this weekend. Tests started around this time for students on campus, the football team began the meat of its season against opponents with functional offenses, and the Notre Dame community gots raided Saturday nite. As I'm sure you all have heard, junior Will Yeatman and freshman Mike Golic Jr. were arrested on Saturday nite while at an off campus party held at a lacrosse house. This is both an isolated incident and a recurring one in my time at Notre Dame, and I want to set the record straight about what is going on, what has happened in the past, and what can be done about it. Pops and I took time away from our studies last nite to read up on news reports and message boards, as well as discussing our experiences with this matter.

Reports are still coming in about what happened (including the alleged use of the K-9 unit), but this is what we know so far... there was a party at a lacrosse house, at around 2:30, a group of students were outside of the house waiting for a cab when multiple police cars came to the scene and arrested 41 underage students. It is not exactly known if there was a specific complaint or call which brought about the activity, or how the police entered the home. Multiple authorities were on the scene including SBPD, and state excise police. In a related story, a large number of the popular south bend bars and nightclubs were raided by state excise police searching for underage drinkers. These are facts reported through the news sources.

This is my personal experience with the Saturday nite activities... a few friends and I went to CJ's bar and grill at around 11:30 after everyone returned from the MSU game, immediately there were rumblings that a number of other bars have already been raided that night and if underage we should leave. At this time, a number of the football players came into the bar as normally does on the weekends at CJs. Tensions calmed down until, the bartender went around to every group in the bar and told anybody who is underage or with anyone underage should leave. Soon after, the aforementioned group of football players quickly left even though they were of age, as far as we could see. While in the parking lot calling a cab, I saw a marked NDSP police car roll into the parking lot with its lights off, pause for 30 seconds and then pull out towards campus waiting awhile before turning its headlights on. A number of our group then went over to the Linebacker. While waiting in line to get in, 3 black vans and a number of marked cars rolled in front of the bar. Excise police jumped out of the vans in a manner which was described, "as if a swat team was entering a bank robbery". Everyone's ID was checked and one student was arrested. At the Michigan game, local law enforcement promised to step up efforts to curb underage drinking and unruly behavior at tailgates before the game. Also that nite, off-campus students were warned from their renters not to have parties at nite because police were searching to shut them down and ticket those involved.

There is always a silent agreement between local police and students in a college town. Most students understand that when the cops come, it means to end the party, get everyone inside who you want to, make those you dont get a cab, turn down the music, and make sure they dont come again. If the cops are brought back a second time, it is understandable how there would be trouble. The cops want students to have a good time, but all within reason. If someone acts up, talks back, or makes themselves known as visibly drunk, they are of course liable to be ticketed. But as normally happens on a saturday night, ND students go out, have a good time, stay within means, and if the cops come, they shut it down.

It is perfectly within their right for the state excise police to check the local bars and make sure that they are policing themselves and not letting in underage students. Anyone stepping into a bar realizes the danger and risk they are taking by possessing a fake id. Going to a party off campus is another story. Judging from the 41 arrests at a sports house, it was not a large party. I suspect it is the type of thing where if it were another weekend, the arrests wouldnt have happened, the party would have been dispersed, and nothing would be out of the ordinary. But to raid a house party as it was winding down and arrest the individuals involved instead of ticketing them, is out of line.

The raids of the bars, the heightened presence at the Michigan game, and the arrests at the house party are all tactics used by law enforcement to "flex their muscles" and make sure the students know they dont have free run of the area. There is nothing wrong in doing this, but there are better ways to do it. By arresting students instead of ticketing or deferring them to ResLife, they simply created an angry student body and angered alumni instead of solving any of the problems. It is understandable how neighbors to these student houses do not appreciate music at 2 in the morning on a Sunday, and are within means to ask the police to put an end to it. But at the same time, they live next to a house which is rented to students and need to understand that there are certain considerations which need to be taken. There are ways to help with who lives next door, especially if they change every 9 months. Others say that there should be no underage drinking in SB and Notre Dame, due to the heightened risk of DUI. The vast majority of students who go to off campus parties take cabs or if they drove, plan to stay over or nearby. With regards to tailgates, I do believe more police presence is a good thing when coming to dealing with unruly fans, students and alumni. There are plenty of older fans in the parking lots who are belligerent and a disturbance to others around them, but the feeling is that law enforcement and excise police target students even if they dont stand out. At the Air Force game last year, I was having a beer in a solo cup around 12 with my family and my roommates. I was on my second beer, but when I saw police coming up the aisle, I placed down my beer on a nearby table. Soon after I was tapped on the shoulder by a undercover excise officer in a hooded sweatshirt and large glasses demanding to see my ID. I obliged and after the incident, the officer, my family, and I were all embarassed from the situation. I felt targeted by law enforcement over the obviously drunk and loud tailgaters next to us because I looked like an underage student.

A special response to a quote which Pops and I saw (paraphrased), "the entire Notre Dame community should be to blame for allowing underage drinking at a party, especially with football players. This is not something which Lou Holtz would have had under his watch."

Honestly, if you mean to tell me that Lou ruled over his players and what they did outside of football with an iron fist, and the student body didn't have a few celebratory brews in 1988, then you are lying to yourself.

In closing, I just hope that these are isolated incidents which dont start reappearing in the next couple months, or all the good work that has been done to increase relations between school and city would be washed away.