WEEDING THROUGH THE DEBATE: The Orion grinds the cannabis controversy down to its seeds and stems online.
Chico State’s Independent Student News Source since 1975 OPINION:
NEWS »Competition: Model U.N. team receives top honors at national conference. A3
»Marijuana: Go online for a commentary package on weed and the debates that surrounds its use.
SPORTS »Virtual competition: Wildcats give us the scoop on video games they play. B4 FEATURES »No strings attached: 21-year-old local is the 2014 national yo-yo champion. B5 Trevor Ryan/The Orion
ARTS »Hip-hop flashback: Coolio brought his classics to Lost on Main on Saturday. B7
Theorion.com | Wednesday, April 22, 2015 | Vol. 74, Issue 13 | First copy free, additional copies 50¢
Police beating tape goes national
TMZ posts video of Chico officers clubbing a man during arrest Dylan de Wit
Staff Writer
Chico recently found itself in the national spotlight after a video showing police officers clubbing a DUI suspect with a baton was posted last week on the celebrity website TMZ. Sean Patrick Reardon was arrested on Feb. 18 following a hit-and-run attempt after crashing his vehicle into a parked black Lexus on the corner of Sixth Street and Normal Avenue. Reardon spent the next few days in intensive care at Enloe Medical Center because of the resulting injuries. Two months later, the incident took on new life after TMZ released a 20-second clip of Chico police officers using batons to subdue Reardon. “It looked like a murder scene,” said John Marshall, who lives near the location where Reardon’s arrest took place. “I understand cops need to think of their safety first, but it seemed excessive.” The TMZ video was just a brief portion of a struggle that lasted more than 10 minutes, Marshall said. He said that during that time, about seven or eight cars arrived on the scene. Onlookers had ample time to set up speakers on their porch, and began playing Inner Circle’s “Bad Boys,” the theme song for the television show “Cops.” “They were pretty relentless,” Marshall said. “They were beating him for a good 10 minutes.” Marshall has since been visited by a private investigator. Based on the questions being asked, Marshall and his roommates believe that the investigator may have been looking into a potential lawsuit against the city. Tyler Dennison, a student at Chico State, said he and a group of friends had seen four police vehicles turn onto Normal Avenue at a high speed and decided to walk toward the incident. “I wasn’t there to see if he (Reardon) resisted or threw punches right after he crashed,” Dennison said. He said that by the time he and his friends arrived to the corner of Sixth and Normal, “They had their knees on his head, holding his face down to the pavement.” “The dude just kept yelling, ‘Fuck you. I didn’t do anything. Let me see your badge,’” Dennison said. “It took seven officers to shackle him and arrest him.”
FRESH FACE FOR FALL LEADERSHIP
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The incoming A.S. president lays out her vision, passions and priorities for next year
EXPERIENCE INCLUDES:
By Kristina Martinez Staff Writer
Cross-Cultural Leadership Center
D
eanna Jarquin was named next year’s Chico State Associated Students president on Thursday by a margin of 170 votes. Jarquin is a senior double major in psychology and women’s studies. In the past, Jarquin has had experience interning at the Gender & Sexuality Equity Center and has worked at LeadCat and the CrossCultural Leadership Center. “I had done a lot of activities on this campus, and I had seen things I wanted to change,” Jarquin said. “I knew the perfect place for me to really represent the student voice. As the Associated Students president, you have such an amazing and powerful role to really represent that voice at the administrative level.” Jarquin became emotional when asked about who inspired her to run for the head of Chico State’s student government. “The students that I’ve worked
Gender & Sexuality Equity Center intern Vice President of Facilities and Services LeadCat
with,” she said. “Specifically, the ones who have been younger than me or maybe weren’t as experienced as me. And specifically, I think of a young woman who worked with me a lot on my campaign too.” Jarquin also gained inspiration from her time working at the CCLC. “I was working with diverse populations of people that had been told their entire lives that they weren’t a leader, they weren’t confident, and that they couldn’t represent student voice because they didn’t look like the rest of our student body,” Jarquin said. “And to watch them grow with that confidence and be able to mentor them, through inspiring them, I inspired myself to really be able to take on this role.” During her time as A.S. president, Jarquin plans to focus on increasing alternative late-night programming, as well as institutionalizing it. She plans on working with the University Police, the Chico Police
» please see PRESIDENT | A3
» please see VIDEO | A3
Fingerprint scans for potential faculty raise concerns Sharyn Abernatha, assistant vice president for staff human resources. Staff Writer Fingerprinting at Chico State has not always been the policy. Live Scan started When it comes time to hire new faculty in 2013 with only staff and management, members, departments do their best at Abernatha said. showing off Chico State as the best place Since then, it has expanded to include to teach during the candidates’ recruiting new faculty starting last school year, visits. and the hiring department is But with a recent change in responsible for paying the Live the background check policy, Scan fees. potential faculty members may Kathryn Silliman, department be put off by having to take a chair for nutrition food and scitrip to the University Police. ence, had five potential faculty According to the Chico State members scanned this year at a Faculty Recruitment Manual, all cost of $375. new employees offered permaSilliman understands the nent or temporary positions reasons for having criminal have to undergo a criminal background checks, she said, background check through Live KATHRYN especially for campus positions Scan technology. It is up to each SILLIMAN Department chair, that include dealing with money department to decide if it wants nutrition and food or children. to check all candidates or just scence Having just paid for five the finalists. background checks, Silliman With Live Scan, University said that even though her department is Police can scan someone’s fingerprints smaller than others, the fingerprint scan and send them directly to the Department costs still have an impact on her departof Justice in minutes at a cost of $75, said
Michael Arias
ment’s operating expenses. However, people that have had DUIs may “We have to abide by it whether we like get accepted as long as their position does it or not,” Silliman said. not including driving, she said. The purpose of the scans is to to ensure Most accept the fact that having backprotection for the people and important ground checks done on prospective faculty records, Abernatha said. is important. However, it does impose an “It is preventive,” Abernatha said. “We issue for presentation, said Robert Tinkler, want to make sure that we don’t hire the a Chico State history professor. wrong people.” “My concern was that we have In cases where red flags candidates for faculty positions pop up during the Live Scan who are coming all the way to process, University Police Chico,” Tinkler said, “and we contacts human resources, and like to have a nice appearance.” the background verification Having to take the candidates committee comes together to to the the University Police to decide whether or not to hire the get fingerprinted on the same candidate. visit makes their time at Chico The committee’s evaluation State not as appealing, Tinkler ROBERT focuses on: the seriousness of said. TINKLER the crime, the type of crime, the “I understand why it is imporHistory professor age of the candidate at the time tant,” he said. “But the chances of the violation and the relaof a person applying to be a factionship between the job position and the ulty member with a criminal background crime that was committed. is not likely.” It is unlikely that the candidate will be Michael Arias can be reached at considered if their convictions include newseditor@theorion.com or violence or sexual assault, Abernatha said. @theorion_news on Twitter.
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