I have always believed that SMU Resident Advisors were people that you could turn to if you needed help or advice; I thought they were our friends. But I've recently been awakened to the idea that some of the RA's here may enjoy the extra power a little too much. I've been hearing stories from a friend (who I will call John) about his RA who, in essence, set up a sting operation on him and his room. The RA waited for John to leave his room and enter the elevator in the hall, during which he proceeded to call the police. He then ran down four flights of stairs, met John at the front of the building, and guided a police officer (telling the officer over the phone that John was the culprit) towards him. John was stopped before getting into his friends car and questioned in regards to the smell of marijuana emminating from the hallway around his room. In reality, there had been no stench, and there was no marijuana. The officer saw that everything was fine and proceeded on with his daily business. Now this is downright unconstitutional. Who is a RA to chase down a student, call the police on them, and then charge them with a crime that they have no evidence of ever happening? Isn't it true that in this country one is innocent until proven guilty? Whats with all the shady actions? I've been wondering though... What should he do about this problem? Should he talk to the school about his RA's behavior? Or should he confront him about it?
2 comments:
What a weirdo (the RA I mean)I think we may be talking about the same RA but maybe not. My friend had a similiar situation in which the RA told him he needed to talk to him. AFter a brief discussion with an understanding that nothing would happen there was a cop and the awesome RA at the door. At first I thought it was the cops with the issues because I have had several stop by my room as well as other random rooms just to say hey, I figured it was a power thing. I have also thoght that it maybe was a suitemate of the personwho this happend to that was getting the cops involved. However, it was the RA. Do they have some sort of quota to make by the end of the semester kind of like the cops do? I think the best thing to do would be to confront the RA. Unfortunatly the school would most likely shoot back at the person saying that there was reasonable cause and all that. See what the RA says and then go from there. Maybe he will tell you what was really going on, maybe?
I believe RAs should be available to help students, and that they shouldn't purposely be trying to get students in trouble. However, if someone is found breaking the law ( such as minors have alcohol in their room), then it is hard to expect them to just blow it off. They could get be held responsible themselves. I know some RAs will give warnings and tell the students to get rid of it. I'm fine with this approach, and it is probably one I would use myself if I were an RA. As long as people are keeping to themselves and not being too loud or destructive, I would more than likely not give them a violation. But, if I was caught with alcohol, I would expect to get a violation. After all, it is breaking a rule. However, I disagree that RAs should try to catch students going back to their rooms and give them a public intoxication. This only holds true if the student is not being loud, destructive, or effecting others. I also believe that is important for RAs to be disciplinary. They are there to help us out, but if we are breaking rules and making a scene about it, it is hard to expect them not to act upon it. Different RAs use different approaches, but they are the ones that will take a fall if the rules aren't enforced.
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