Guns have arrived: Public Safety officers are armed
By Abby Thompson
Contributing Writer
Public Safety officers began carrying firearms this semester while patrolling campus after administrators debated the decision for more than a year.
Since the officers received 20 firearms Aug. 12, no use of force has yet been required, Chief of Public Safety Jason Friedberg said.
“[Public Safety] maintains the same authority and jurisdiction it did prior to becoming an armed department,” he said.
The discussion to arm Public Safety began in April 2007 after the Virginia Tech shootings. In January 2008, the Board of Trustees decided it was in the University’s best interest to arm Public Safety.
Public Safety officers are authorized to act as police officers would in any other jurisdiction and are allowed to arrest any lawbreaker on or off campus.
“All officers have attended a six- or eight-month police academy. It’s a fully sworn police department,” Friedberg said.
While all officers are approved to carry firearms, Public Safety officers went through additional training before bringing guns on campus.
“There were requirements we thought would be necessary to ensure Bucknell that firearms would not need to be used,” Friedberg said. “In addition to state training, officers are required to do dynamic situation training and night training.”
A new department called Professional Standards was created when officers were armed. All officers participated in professional standards and cultural sensitivity training. Officers also underwent physical, mental and physiological testing before becoming armed, Friedberg said.
“We spent a month this summer just training,” he said. “The training is on-going. [Officers] have to go through retraining every year.”
Not everyone at the University is aware that officers now carry firearms.
Joey Martin ’12 said he was not aware Public Safety carried guns, but was “pleasantly surprised” when he was told they were armed.
“[The arming of Public Safety] does make me feel safer,” Martin said. “It makes me look at them … as more effective protectors of the campus community.”
Friedberg said he agrees that the addition of firearms on campus makes the community safer.
“It’s not just the guns, it’s the ability to respond to anything. We can respond immediately,” Friedberg said.
Prior to carrying guns, Public Safety officers waited for the Lewisburg or East Buffalo Police Departments to respond to emergencies.
Currently the response time of Public Safety personnel is under one minute, Friedberg said.
“[The arming] has not changed the way we interact with people,” Friedberg said.
Adding firearms to the Public Safety force is part of the overall safety changes taking place on campus.
Another aspect is the cell phone alert system, a mandatory program to be tested in the coming weeks.
Friedberg said he couldn’t thank the students enough.
“The trust the students had in us enabled us to get to where we are today,” he said.
