W
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1911 2011
26, 2011 | V
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D A I L Y
MISSISSIPPIAN
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this week RESIDENTIAL COLLEGE
OLE MISS KARATE CLUB Beginners are welcome to join the Ole Miss Karate Club on Mondays and Wednesdays. Dues are $35.00 per semester, and previous martial arts experience is not necessary. 6 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. B A R N A R D O B S E R VAT O R Y
BROWN BAG LUNCH
ADDISON DENT | The Daily Mississippian
Officer Lagathia Pearson is one of University Police Department’s newest members. While arrests more than doubled from 2009 to 2010, some say the increase could partly be due to more students and police officers.
Campus drug and DUI arrests triple from ‘09 to ‘10
‘Poverty and the Rural South: Making a Difference’ Join Ben Guest, Program Manager of Mississippi Teacher Corps, and Mississippi Teacher Corps member Jennifer Lawrence of Rosa Fort High School in Tunica in the Tupelo Room for the event. 12:00 p.m.-1:00 p.m.
This is the first installment of a two-part series. In tomorrow’s edition, we will continue to look at crime on campus, including ways that the Ole Miss Police Department intends to lower crime on campus.
inside
BY CAIN MADDEN
NEW FOOTBALL JERSEYS FOR THE REBELS
Campus News Editor
Even though arrests were up in 2010, Campus Police Chief Calvin Sellers does not believe that crime was up. There were 111 drug charges compared to 33 in 2009, and DUIs were up from 20 to 71. “It means that we as a police department are doing a better job of apprehending the criminals,” said Sellers, who has been the police chief for two and a half years. “It does not mean that crime is up.” Sellers said the main reasoning for the upswing in arrests is staff stability. “Last year, we had four officers deployed overseas,” Sellers said. “Four may not seem like a lot, but when you think about it, four officers is 20 percent of our patrol staff.” The campus police department has also experienced a
high turnover rate in previous years. “This does not happen anymore,” Sellers said. “Officers are staying with us and they are getting more experience.” Another reason, Sellers said, was the campus police reaching out to the University community. “We have made an effort to reach out and get to know the community, and for the community to get to know us,” Sellers said. “If you know me, you are more likely to pick up the phone and report a crime to me.” Dean of Students Sparky Reardon said this was not just a University of Mississippi problem. “My colleagues from around the country express to me that they are experiencing the same trends,” Reardon said. “Numbers can vacillate because any number of factors that would
CJ Johnson, Mississippi’s most sought after football recruit, verbally committed to Ole Miss on Tuesday afternoon.
LIFESTYLES
GOTTA LOVE THE 90s
Mississippi’s top recruit switches to Ole Miss
SPORTS
BY PAUL KATOOL
LADY NETTERS TO BUILD ON 2010 SUCCESS
Sports Editor
PHOTO COURTESY NESHOBA DEMOCRAT
include increased enrollment, stands out. intensified enforcement, numMarijuana and ADHD-type ber of large events on campus medication, such as Adderall and other reasons.” or Ritalin, are the most comWhile the number of DUI mon drugs found on campus. arrests was a substantial in“We very seldom see crack crease, Sellers said Ole Miss on campus. We don’t see meth police officers are not trying to or any hard drug with the ocbe antagonistic. casional exception of ecstasy,” “We are not out there wait- Sellers said. “We don’t really ing in the bushes trying to get see any of the hard drugs — I people,” Sellers said. “What we think our students are smarter are trying to do, is get the dan- than that.” gerous drivers off the street, so Reardon and Sellers agreed they will not hurt themselves that a changing attitude toor others. We hope that is a ward drugs is the main reasonpositive thing and not a nega- ing behind increased use. tive thing.” “I think in general that stuReardon said he believed it is dents everywhere have a differindeed a positive thing. ent attitude toward marijuana “To me, this is the most dan- use than ever before,” Reardon gerous activity on any college said. “Also, I think that stucampus,” Reardon said. dents are developing drug use Sellers said approximately 20 patterns in high school.” percent of the DUIs on camSellers said when he went pus are not student-drivers, to a Mississippi high school and among the student drivers, no particular classification See CRIME, PAGE 4
OPINION
C.J. Johnson, the state’s top football recruit, says he’s going to be an Ole Miss Rebel. Johnson, a ball-hawking linebacker for Philadelphia, Miss., made a non-binding verbal commitment to Ole Miss Tuesday afternoon according to The Clarion-Ledger. The six-foot-two, 240 pound prospect – who had been committed to Mississippi State since the fall of 2009 – is considered a five-star prospect by
Rivals.com and the nation’s coach Houston Nutt and his No. 2 inside linebacker. Scout. coaching staff never wavered in com has Johnson ranked as a their pursuit of the Army Allfour-star prospect and the No. American. 4 middle linebacker in the Upon de-commiting from country. Mississippi State, Johnson said Johnson de-committed from that Ole Miss, MSU and LSU the Bulldogs earlier this month were the three finalists for his after former MSU defensive services among numerous ofcoordinator Manny Diaz – fers from across the country. a man Johnson had built a He had long been considered strong relationship with – took one of the state’s top prospects, the same position with one of but his recruiting stock skythe nation’s top programs with rocketed to national proporthe Texas Longhorns. tions after the MS/AL All-Star Even with Johnson committed to the Bulldogs, Ole Miss See RECRUIT, PAGE 11