Should University Administrators be in the Law Enforcement Business?

[gthaustex]

I'm sure that self interest, whatever that means, is not an argument at all.

Our culture entrusts law enforcement to government. Private police forces have no power to arrest, etc.

University police departments do have the power to arrest, and their detectives are licensed peace officers. Like many police departments, they also have officers who are not licensed peace officers and do not have arrest powers. UTD's Chief is the former Chief of the Richardson Police Department.

What is a "licensed peace officer?" Can they act as peace officers if they are not employed by a government? This seems to be a matter of authority from the government, not of the individual. Example: when I was a lawyer, I could practice law anywhere in that state regardless of any employment, by a prosecutor, law firm, or anyone. The authority was mine, not derived by virtue of being employed by an entity which had authority. A peace officer isn't an independent contractor. The authority is derivative, not individual. He can't just go to work for Walmart and arrest people as a licensed officer.

I am questioning whether university police departments should have the powers of peace officers. Is it a good idea? The UT case is easier than the Baylor or SMU case, I think.

JALLEN, someone can be a licensed peace officer in Texas after the required amount of training (in specific areas) as set forth by TCOLE, the governing body for Texas. Once that is done, those individuals must have their commission carried by a law enforcement agency in order to maintain their licensing, to include a certain number of hours of in service training each year. Those peace officers are normally employed by a gov't agency or subdivision....the list is in Sec 2.12 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure and it is pretty long. That said, Sec. 51.212 of the Texas Education Code authorizes the employment of peace officers at private institutions of higher learning, etc.

http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/txstatutes/ ... 1/E/51.212

I'm not arguing for or against...just answering your question above about gov't employment being a pre-requisite in all cases.

[EEllis]

If it's a state school then the cops are full cops just like any other. If it is a private university then they are full cops only when working and on the school property unless they are off property but working under a mutual assistance agreement with another law enforcement dept. State schools can also commission private security officers (actually any govt subdivision can do so) and while they are on duty and on property they are legally considered peace officers.

[JALLEN]

I'm sure that self interest, whatever that means, is not an argument at all.

Our culture entrusts law enforcement to government. Private police forces have no power to arrest, etc.

University police departments do have the power to arrest, and their detectives are licensed peace officers. Like many police departments, they also have officers who are not licensed peace officers and do not have arrest powers. UTD's Chief is the former Chief of the Richardson Police Department.

What is a "licensed peace officer?" Can they act as peace officers if they are not employed by a government? This seems to be a matter of authority from the government, not of the individual. Example: when I was a lawyer, I could practice law anywhere in that state regardless of any employment, by a prosecutor, law firm, or anyone. The authority was mine, not derived by virtue of being employed by an entity which had authority. A peace officer isn't an independent contractor. The authority is derivative, not individual. He can't just go to work for Walmart and arrest people as a licensed officer.

I am questioning whether university police departments should have the powers of peace officers. Is it a good idea? The UT case is easier than the Baylor or SMU case, I think.

JALLEN, someone can be a licensed peace officer in Texas after the required amount of training (in specific areas) as set forth by TCOLE, the governing body for Texas. Once that is done, those individuals must have their commission carried by a law enforcement agency in order to maintain their licensing, to include a certain number of hours of in service training each year. Those peace officers are normally employed by a gov't agency or subdivision....the list is in Sec 2.12 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure and it is pretty long. That said, Sec. 51.212 of the Texas Education Code authorizes the employment of peace officers at private institutions of higher learning, etc.

http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/txstatutes/ ... 1/E/51.212

I'm not arguing for or against...just answering your question above about gov't employment being a pre-requisite in all cases.

I understand. I'm trying at the moment to formulate an opinion about this, and need to discover the details, in which is always found the devil.

If I were to sit and read all the various codes, I might find a bunch of them I thought were not a good idea. I know of a few already, and the Lege didn't ask me about them either.

It's only fair. There have been a couple of times when I thought the Lege wasn't a good idea, but after seeing the California Legislature in action for many years, I've taken back some of the bad things I thought about the Lege.

[gthaustex]

For what it's worth, in Baylor's case, and I would bet many private universities around the state, the Baylor PD officers are also listed as reserve officers for the McLennan county sheriff's office...so that takes care of off campus questions. Although that may not be their primary function, they can be off campus and still have jurisdiction for issues that arise, if need be.

[JALLEN]

I have misgivings. What is it about a college that it should be treated differently than any large business operation? Why is a college entitled to some sort of deference, and given its own quasi government functions?

Of course, given the way many local governments don't work, I can see why they would be anxious to assert control as much as possible. Maybe that is it in a nutshell.