UNK officers armed on campus, making policing consistent

After years of deescalating situations with just their words and brawn, the police department at the University of Nebraska at Kearney are back to being armed on campus.

It has been just over a month that officers have been carrying and officials say it is for the safety of everyone at the university, including the officers.

The decided weapon among UNL, UNO and UNK police is a 40 caliber glock.

It has been 45 years since the last time UNK officers were armed on campus and some students said they feel safer knowing an armed officer is around in case of an emergency.

“It’s just nice to actually feel safe now, just hearing about all of the crazy stuff that happens around the U.S.,” said UNK Junior Kenna Storrs.

“I think it also makes parents more at ease about their kids going to college here,” said UNK Sophomore Morgan Area.

UNK Police Chief, Jim Davis, said this decision is about keeping students safe but it is also about keeping officers safe.

He said UNK officers now feel more comfortable approaching dangerous situations.

“We feel a lot more comfortable now if we go and help Kearney Police Department, if we help Buffalo County and vice–versa, when they come on campus to help us they know that we’re armed and they don’t have to worry about our safety as much,” said Davis.

Chief Davis said UNL, UNO and UNK decided they wanted to be able to work more closely and have consistent policing in all the schools.

“If you go to school here or if you go to school in Lincoln or if you go to school at UNO that you can expect the same law enforcement response and there’s absolutely no difference across the board,” said Davis.

Jim Davis also said that the only time officers are to use a firearm is when they have the means, the opportunity and jeopardy.

Means is when a subject has a weapon, opportunity is how close the subject and the weapon are and jeopardy is the threat and intended bodily harm that could be present.

UNK officers go through a weapons training three times a year and the next qualifying session will be this November.

Courtesy: NTV