Published Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2017 | 3:01 p.m.
Updated Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2017 | 7:35 p.m.
North Las Vegas Police are blaming poor communication for motorcycle officers circling around a pedestrian area at UNLV without notice Tuesday night following a poetry reading partly sponsored by a Black Lives Matter group.
The police department said Wednesday that it has an informal agreement with the university to use its grounds for training purposes, but a UNLV spokesman Wednesday night contested that. Metro Police has written agreements with the university, but “there is no formal or informal agreement with NLVPD,” he said.
The student group said it interpreted the police presence as an “attempt to intimidate” organizers of the event. But police said the officers were merely conducting a routine training ride and weren’t aware of the poetry reading.
The incident was captured on a 56-second video posted by event organizers on Facebook. It shows seven motorcycle officers circling tables outside the Student Union. No civilians could be seen in the video.
After consulting with North Las Vegas officials, the university learned the officers were taking part in an unrelated training exercise, according to a letter to students and staff from university President Len Jessup.
“However, we expressed our deep concerns about the timing and nature of the incident on campus. The actions of these officers were unacceptable. Further, we have asked the North Las Vegas Police Department for an explanation and an apology,” Jessup said.
North Las Vegas Police spokesman Eric Leavitt said the agency has had an informal agreement with UNLV for about 10 years to use the campus for motorcycle training. Officers specifically use the area around the Student Union to practice riding around benches and in tight spaces, he said. When asked for comment on the university’s position Wednesday evening, he maintained the agency’s stance from earlier.
The incident occurred about 10 p.m., and trainers weren’t aware of the student event, Leavitt said. “The failure on our part was not communicating the day of to let them know we were going to be there,” he said.
Police have vowed to better communicate to prevent similar issues, Leavitt said.
The “I Imagine” poetry event was organized by the UNLV Center for Social Justice, Black Lives Matter UNLV, and Students Organizing Diversity Activities. It was part of the university’s Awareness Week.
“The police officers swarmed like sharks in the parking lot behind the SU Courtyard and then entered the SU Courtyard where motor vehicles are usually not allowed (not even golf carts),” according to a statement posted on the Black Lives Matter group’s Facebook page.
“They didn’t say anything to us, we didn’t say anything to them. We stared at them while they stared at us. In an attempt to intimidate the coalition of student organizations at UNLV, their presence has made a statement, however, we are not intimidated. We’ll be meeting with several entities at our university to discuss further action,” the statement said.
Jessup said “a top priority for UNLV is to provide a safe and supportive environment for every member of its campus. We will not tolerate any activity that disrupts the safety and security of our students, faculty, staff, or impacts university operations.”
