By
Kevin Clerici
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Campus much quieter for university police
Tucson police arrested 17 people in the Fourth Avenue area Monday night, seven of whom are currently enrolled at the University of Arizona, the dean of students office confirmed yesterday.
Whether the university will take legal action is still up in the air.
"Our office will connect with chief legal counsel (today)," dean Melissa Vito said. "Tucson Police is conducting the investigations so we will have to attain more information from them."
University police will not press subsequent charges.
"It has nothing to do with us," said Sgt. Mike Smith, UAPD spokesman.
Ten of the 17 were listed in the student directory or on the university's online phone book. Three did not enroll this spring, Vito said.
"Our general jurisdiction doesn't extend beyond campus, but this is a unique situation," she said. "It's really hard to extend code of conduct violations beyond campus boundaries."
Ages for those arrested ranged from 20 to 33 years old. Charges included disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, unlawful assembly, criminal damage and assault.
A crowd of rioters destroyed at least five vehicles, torched a trailer and ignited a nearby bar around 10 p.m. Monday following Arizona's 82-72 loss to Duke in the NCAA basketball title game.
Tucson police advanced on the rioters at about 10:15 p.m. after ordering the crowd to disperse. Several fans remained in the streets, some sitting or laying down.
Two males and a female were admitted to University Medical Center for non-life threatening injuries that occurred during the riot, while seven others were treated and released for minor injuries, UMC spokesperson Pila Martinez said. She would not say if any were Arizona students.
Martinez could not disclose the extent of the injuries but said that all three people were in their late teens or early 20s. One male was in fair condition while the other two people were listed as good condition.
During Monday night's riots, a young male's face was heavily bandaged before Tucson Fire Department escorted him to the hospital. He has reportedly lost an eye, although Martinez would neither confirm nor deny it.
In a preliminary damage report, Tucson police reported 43 incidents that occurred during the post-game celebrations along North Fourth Avenue. There were several reports of damage to city property, such as street signs and street lights being damaged and trash containers being damaged or turned over.
There were also multiple reports of damage to private property - mostly broken windows to vehicles and businesses, overturned or broken planters, and damage to privately-owned business signs.
Prior to the game, 17 vehicles were towed because they were parked in a blocked-off area.
Meanwhile, on campus, university police responded to numerous acts of malicious mischief - mostly tipped trash cans and signs pulled down, Smith said.
"Students just messed things up," he said. "We didn't have anything that extreme. They didn't break anything. It just wasn't left the way they found it."
Two males were also arrested for separate incidents.
One allegedly punched a mirror at Kaibab-Huachuca Residence Hall, 922 E. 4th St., and injured himself in the process. The other was arrested for lighting fireworks on the UA Mall, Smith said.
Smith could not elaborate on campus damage because most of the department's staff spent yesterday securing the welcome-back rally for the basketball team.
Officers responded twice to the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity house, 1509 E. 2nd St., where one person was reportedly hit in the head with a baseball bat. The case remains under investigation, Smith said.
The Tucson police log shows UAPD responded at 10:19 p.m. to a man firing a gun on campus, but Smith said that report was false.
"It was actually the echo from Fourth Avenue," he said.
No incidents, however, were reported at McKale Center where thousands of fans watch the game.
"What saddens me a little bit is that most students celebrated in a positive way," Vito said. "There were a lot of things that our students did that I am proud of."
