Eugene police recovered a handgun and other weapons, including knives and metal knuckles, in the residence hall rooms of two University freshmen Monday night.
Brenden Duncan, 18, was charged with possession of a firearm in a public building and possession of cocaine after police found a handgun in his room and a small tin containing white residue in his pocket. Duncan was lodged at Lane County Jail
Ian Galvin, 19, was charged with possession of a dangerous weapon in a public building and cocaine possession after police found knives and metal knuckles in his room. He was cited and released, according to police.
Eugene Police Department and Department of Public Safety officers responded to an anonymous call regarding two students having firearms, knives and controlled substances in the Living Learning Center residence hall around 10:15 p.m. Monday. The Emerald also received an anonymous call at around the same time and relayed the information to police.
Both students were residents of LLC South and lived across the hall from each other on the second floor, according to other residents.
Some who knew the residents said the two were not dangerous and probably weren’t thinking when they decided to keep weapons in their rooms.
“I don’t think (Duncan) would use it,” said Erica Palmer, a freshman who lives on the fourth floor. “I felt unsafe until I knew who it was.”
Still, other hall residents expressed some anxiety over the situation.
“People get drunk all the time … and people tend to do silly things when they’re drunk,” said Citta Lim, a pre-business major who lives in the adjacent residence hall complex. “It can’t be good with a gun around.”
Some indicated many hall residents were already rattled by the Virginia Tech shootings two weeks ago. This incident, they said, only put them more on edge.
“We’re worried,” said Claire Kapp, a freshman who lives in LLC North. “It makes me more nervous that students can have guns. You’re not as safe as you thought you were.”
Kapp added she was frustrated she hadn’t heard about the incident earlier, saying she wished someone had sent out an e-mail informing residents.
“At Virginia Tech, the communication was so bad and you think ‘Oh my god, how could something like this happen?’” she said. “But obviously, it just happened.”
An e-mail, containing information about the incident and the University’s official response, was sent out Tuesday afternoon around 2:30, according the Janice Langis, the executive assistant to the director of housing.
University officials praised the DPS and EPD for their cooperative efforts in the incident.
“The Department of Public Safety did its job properly and they worked with the Eugene Police and they were able to address the situation immediately and appropriately,” said Phil Weiler, a spokesman for the University.
But Weiler acknowledged it is difficult to keep guns out of the residence halls.
“Short of having metal detectors at the door or conducting searches of students coming and going from the residence halls, there’s no good way to guarantee that someone would not be bringing something inappropriate into the residence halls,” he said.
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