Some critics of the city’s role, or lack thereof, in controlling the incident involving a public sex act Uptown are confused as to why no police officer witnessed the event.
Athens Police Chief Tom Pyle said the department can have up to eight officers patrolling during a high-activity weekend, such as Homecoming, compared to only four or five officers otherwise.
“I don’t want people to draw a false sense of security because we’re putting out a foot patrol,” Pyle said. “Police officers aren’t omnipresent and we can’t be omnipresent.”
Pyle added that situations such as the public sex act on Oct. 12 in front of an Uptown bank are reasons why he’s keen on promoting a local crime watch.
The national media attention surrounding an Ohio University student performing oral sex on another OU student in front of Chase Bank, 2 S. Court St., has sparked some new conversations about those relations.
“I know we interact regularly with the students on several levels, whether it’s the safety teams or Halloween,” Mayor Paul Wiehl said. “You don’t really want to play parent. They are grown ups themselves. For day-to-day operations and day-to-day interaction, you can only do so much.”
That type of interaction between the police, the city and students falls into an overarching idea of better relations between the three entities.
With this incident in particular, Pyle said there are numerous facets involving the department’s relations with students.
“Certainly at some point there is going to be time for dialogue and open discussion and some honest answers,” he said. “And maybe some groups coming together and working together to make improvements. I can certainly see that it’s necessary.”
He added that this incident and similar ones have propelled a years-long conversation forward.
“We’ve heard through the media mostly of these different groups and how we would improve relations with those groups remains to be seen,” Pyle said. “The point in all of that discussion is to say that maybe the police department can play a role in bringing the groups together.”
OU Police Chief Andrew Powers, who spent four years of his career as a community relations officer for the department before he became chief, said police must find effective ways to communicate with citizens.
“It’s a two-way street,” Powers said. “We go to meetings with different constituents’ groups and hear what their concerns are and we find ways to address them. Where we focus our attention and where we put our priorities is driven by the community.”
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