A few years ago, Albert Courey was faced with a graduate student in the chemistry and biochemistry department who had sent threatening e-mails to his research mentor.
Courey, the department chair, brought the case up with the dean of students, and the graduate student was immediately asked to leave the chemistry program. The locks on laboratory doors were changed.
“The student left, and we didn’t have any further problem with him,” Courey said.
Such recourse was not taken against Damon Thompson, the 20-year-old UCLA senior who has been charged with attempted murder for allegedly stabbing a woman in his chemistry 30CL lab class on Oct. 8.
According to Courey, the university was unable to act on concerns about Thompson because Thompson never directly threatened anyone.
“There was no threat (by Thompson) to retaliate in any way, certainly not in any violent way,” Courey said. “Based on the fact that (Thompson) was complaining, there was no basis for immediately barring him from the history class.”
Elizabeth Gong-Guy, the director of Counseling and Psychological Services, said violence is generally difficult to predict.
“People can behave in a disturbed way and not be violent,” Gong-Guy said.
In such cases, administrators can recommend a student see counseling services but cannot force them to go. Confidentiality laws also do not allow administrators to know if a student is presently seeing or has ever seen a psychologist, or if a student has been diagnosed with or is taking medication for a mental disorder.
Students who are deemed an immediate threat to the community can be immediately taken into custody by police for up to 72 hours to receive psychiatric evaluation, said Bob Naples, the dean of students.
Students who do not pose an immediate risk but who have exhibited repeated disruptive behavior that violates the student code of conduct may, after an extensive process, be suspended or dismissed, Naples said.
Disruptive behavior is largely a subjective analysis but does not include acting erratically.
“We cannot act on a student’s physical or mental ability or disability, but we can act on their behaviors,” Naples said.
According to Naples, the university has made efforts to ensure students’ safety without stepping on individual rights.
“There are a number of mechanisms in place to ensure campus safety, and certain things happen that are reminders that we need to all be vigilant without being on witch-hunts,” Naples said.
About three years ago, UCLA created a Consultation and Response team to evaluate concerns about specific students. The team, which meets weekly, includes Naples and representatives from Student Psychological Services, university police, the Office of Residential Life, and the undergraduate community.
Since its inception, the response team has evaluated about 100 students, although most have had problems unrelated to behavior, Naples said. No list of these students is kept.
The university also began BruinAlert, a program to notify the UCLA community about disasters through electronic communication, in response to the Virginia Tech shootings in April 2007, Naples said.
“I think people are safe on campus,” he said. “But this is a large place where, at any given time, we’ve got (more than 40,000) people moving around. We ask that if you see something that makes you feel uncomfortable, let us know.”
Naples declined to comment about Thompson’s past history with the dean’s office. He said, however, that the administration takes all referrals regarding individual students seriously.