On Monday, all charges against Patrick Hanlin in last week's Oasis bomb scare were dropped. Ohio University has made the right decision in recognizing the unique nature of this situation, as well as Hanlin's ultimate innocence.
Although the situation was strange, and it was probably expensive to call in the Columbus Fire Department bomb squad, it would have been excessive for OU to force Hanlin to cover the costs incurred when emergency officials responded to the problem. It was disheartening to hear the university was even considering the move, which would have penalized Hanlin for an honest mistake.
Instead, OU had the wisdom to acknowledge the incident is the very definition of extenuating circumstances. Some might continue to scoff at this outrageous sequence of events, but it would be a true horror story if the university were to press charges against Hanlin. Furthermore, Hanlin is a graduate assistant, who has supported such causes as the fight against sexual assault, and is clearly no menace to society, as was implied by the charges.
It is commendable that OU has chosen to mitigate the severity of this bizarre situation by recognizing Hanlin's lack of guilt. One student's unthreatening mistake coupled with one officer's vigilance has resulted in a rather embarrassing situation. OU's decision to drop charges ensures that this bad situation will not get worse.
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Dropping charges is the right decision
