Cauldron

Issue date: 2/19/08 Section: Front Page

Media Credit: Amber Chemam Former UST student, Justo Garcia, is hand-cuffed in front of Guinan Hall after being stopped by the campus constable on the evening of Feb. 13.

UST student Justo Garcia said he was unfairly detained late Feb. 13 by a Harris County constable working as a security guard for the University.

Garcia said he came to the campus with a friend to work out. He said he initially parked his vehicle in front of the "Rugby House," on the corner of Yupon and Branard streets, but moved his car when a constable drove by because he thought that it might be illegal to park there at night. Garcia said he then drove his car to Guinan Hall and was pulled over.

"The same officer hit the horseshoe in front of the security office and turned back towards me," Garcia said. "He pulled up beside me and flashed his lights at me. I knew I had an expired inspection sticker, so I thought it was because of that."

He said the officer began questioning him about why he was there and told Garcia that he seemed suspicious. Garcia said the officer then asked him to step out of the vehicle and that the officer handcuffed him and put him in the back of the police car.

"I had no idea why he needed to detain me," Garcia said. "I told him he could search my vehicle, if he needed to. At first, I took it as the cop doing his job, if I looked suspicious and needed to be detained, I understood. He called another constable, and they were both questioning me and my friend, who they had handcuffed and put in the back of the other cop car."

Garcia said the officers released his friend but continued to keep him detained for 30-45 minutes. "I felt he was harassing me, and when I told him my name, he very sarcastically said 'that figures,'" Garcia said.

Garcia said he was really embarrassed by the ordeal. "The cop had my window rolled up and the light on inside, so it made it look like I was about to be carried away to jail," he said. "I don't want to call it racial profiling, but that's exactly what it was. This whole thing was just really embarrassing and unfair."

Garcia said the officer repeatedly told him that he was going to tell President Robert Ivany about the incident and that the officer said, "don't worry about coming back to the University next semester."

"I feel like it will affect my reputation at St. Thomas and my credibility," Garcia said. "People talk, and I don't want to have this reputation as someone caught up with the law because that is not me at all."

Garcia said he wanted people to know that he is not the type of person to use drugs and does not want people to think he is a poor student.

"I feel like these officers are here to protect the students and not antagonize us by telling us they are going to tell administrators that we are bad kids or something," Garcia said. "It seems like they should be doing the opposite and try to keep kids here rather than run them off."

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