APD on scene 66 Pine Street 12:55 AM
Well okay, technically early Saturday morning. The late night "Bewitching Hours" between 10:00 PM and 2:00 AM when the Zombie herds start to stagger in a synchronous swarm:
Police and medical personnel responded quickly to 66 Pine Street, North Amherst around 12:35 AM for reports of a "stabbing to the neck." Although upon police arrival the victim claims to have suffered the injuries in a fall.
A police officer rode in the ambulance with the victim to Cooley Dickinson Hospital and patrol officers on the scene (five cruisers at one point) called for a memory card for the camera and a detective. Police also escorted two witnesses back to APD headquarters to give statements.
Upon arrival at CDH the severity of his injuries were such that he was quickly shipped off to Baystate Medical Trauma Center in Springfield. One of my sources used the term "multiple stab wounds," adding "He's lucky to be alive."
66 Pine Street, North Amherst
This morning neighbors report the house was blocked off by yellow crime scene tape as State Crime Lab investigators were on the scene.
While police were still investigating what happened at 66 Pine Street a report came in at 12:55 AM (from private security on site) for a fight involving up to 10 college aged youth at Townhouse Apartments a few hundred yards down the road. UMPD was called in to respond.
And at 1:35 AM Engine 4 (Call Force) and Engine 3 responded to Brandywine Apartments in North Amherst for a drunk 23-year-old male who had punched a wall injuring his hand, and was then talking about suicide.
Since all of our ambulances were tied up, Northampton Fire Department had to respond.
@amherstac wow, what is in the water in North Amherst tonight? Or—maybe it is alcohol rather than water at work
— CitizenWald (@CitizenWald) November 16, 2013
And then, about an hour ago, this news of the weird:
AFD en route Hamlin Dorm UMass for male student who thinks he awoke to a broken leg. Reports drinking heavily last night. Umm, yeah.
— Larry Kelley (@amherstac) November 16, 2013
10 comments:
It is clear that the town leaders need to get proactive on the behalf of the Amherst Police and Fire Departments. Those guys do so much with so little. They have great attitudes toward their jobs and a great respect for the people of Amherst. They show amazing restraint, patients, and respect to the students partying. They need better support.
It is time the Amherst School system stops wasting tax payer money and gives some back to the safety departments. The U-mass build up of students is not the only institution guilty in Amherst. For god sake Maria stop wasting tax payer money. You are going to be indirectly responsible for someone's death. It is bad enough your vision (whatever that is since no one can tell us) is hurting kids educations and futures. Do you have to rack up a body count too.
Enough is enough, the town manager and select board need to strap on a set, and demand a greater part of the overall town budget. Stop letting the schools whining put everyone at risk.
Yea good luck with that! Public safety, ha, ha, you are too funny. This town government does not support public safety!
I'm gonna ask this:
Memory cards are down to about $2/Gig -- the last ones I bought were about $1/Gb.
Exactly why wasn't there at least one extra memory card already with the camera? Tucked into the case, maybe duct taped to the bottom of the camera itself, but already there. Heaven forbid, but maybe an extra set of batteries as well in case those were needed.
I mean, like, you folk are police officers -- you don't know who is going to need to use your camera or for what -- and hence....
Did UMass re-admit Jason Vassell????
They show amazing restraint, patients (sic.), and respect to the students partying. They need better support.
I would disagree with the first sentence but not the second and my many critics may want to read all of this before responding.
APD/AFD are being asked to concurrently accomplish three very different missions and it isn't fair. They are first being asked to preserve the myth that Amherst is some buccholic academic enclave and not the city (with gritty city problems) that it is. Then they are asked to keep the college kids from bothering people, and *then* they are asked to keep the college kids from killing themselves and/or each other and those three missions are in direct conflict.
They have a university that has adopted a totally punitive role -- and on the basis of avoiding bad press and nothing else. It's been 20 years since UMass has done anything supportive for students on any significant scale, and the point I was trying to make with the redirect piece was that the UM students have social, cultural and developmental needs which aren't being met -- and THAT is why you are having all these problems from them.
I've recognized some of the students in various riot pictures and subsequently asked them essentially what the ---- they were doing there. "It was 'the social event of the season'" I was told -- "the place to be and to be seen."
Remember that these are 20-year-olds who are not only single but adrift in ways that most of you aren't. They have absolutely no idea where they (physically) will be in two years, or with whom -- most of you do. You have a stability they don't have -- you know that most of your friends and acquaintances will still be around -- they know that most of theirs will drift away.
You know who you are -- they don't. These parties are their attempt to meet developmental needs that aren't otherwise being met. The basic "who am I", "what is my place on this planet", and "who will love me" questions.
That is what you want to ask UMass to deal with because if they actually (genuinely) help their students answer those questions, you aren't going to have the problems you have now.
0ne other thing -- there is this:
The Undergraduate's Prayer:
Dear God, please don't let me say anything stupid or do anything embarrassing at the party/dance/whatever.
But God, if I do -- please don't let there be anyone there who knows me.
And God, if there is anyone there who knows me, please let them be too drunk to remember it.
I was told that by a student affairs guy at Mass Maritime, he was describing his cadets who are a whole lot more sure of themselves than most UMass students ever dreamed of being.
Think about it for a minute folks -- there may be social situations where you might feel awkward and/or unsure of yourself, but you don't get out of bed in the morning with this level of apprehension toward every human interaction you will have during the day.
These kids do, and it is developmentally "normal."
UMass used to address this stuff but most of that was eliminated in the various rounds of budget cuts and layoffs circa 1988-1993 and all they have now is social justice stuff.
Being nice to those different from yourself is a good thing, but something like half of the SATF (Student Govt Budget) goes to groups that explicitly identify themselves by race in the group's name. All the stuff for those students who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, questioning (and the other group I can't remember) is great for them -- but not helpful to the 90%-95%+ of the students who are heterosexual.
Think "redirect" -- think "controlled burn" -- there will be attempts to meet those social needs -- and until they are met in some other manner, the efforts to control parties is essentially bailing into the wind.
One other thing -- this is reflective of how UMass treats students and a true story although I am changing a couple of details to protect identity.
A female UM professor had a health plan where her daughter always went to UHS for routine medical stuff including sports physicals. She'd done this for years.
When daughter got to the age of 14-15, she started going there by herself, making her own appointments and the rest, and had been doing that for years.
She comes to UMass as a student and goes over there alone again -- just once. Same girl -- same personality, same medical needs/issues, the only difference now is that she is a UM student.
Her name immediately changes to "Professor ___'s daughter" and she refuses to set foot into the building ever again without her mother with her. Her mother had to make all her appointments, and had to be with her at all times or she wouldn't go -- this someone who had been doing all of this alone the prior spring when she was a high school student.
That's how students are treated on that campus -- and that is part of what you are dealing with.
DR. ED SAID...
UMass used to address this stuff but most of that was eliminated in the various rounds of budget cuts and layoffs circa 1988-1993 and all they have now is social justice stuff.
QUESTION
Ed -
I've only been in town since 2000, and my connection with local academic institutions has been pretty much limited to attending a few concerts at, and having served on town committees with folks from, them.
Could you tell me just what it was that UMass eliminated circa 1988-1993?
And do you think restoration of what was eliminated should be recommended as something that should be looked at by the consultant who is going to be hired by the Town Gown Steering Committee to carry out the joint Town/University planning study?
- Walter Wolnik
Suspect arrested !
Strange that it went out over APD radio that SECURITY for towne house had already taken care of the 10 person fight before APD and the UMPD units arrived.
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