Several people accused LSUPD of racial profiling in an email sent out to the student body on Thursday, Feb. 13.
LSUPD asked students to help identify a suspect accused of theft at the Barnes and Nobles on campus.
“Pictured below is the suspect of a felony theft that occurred at the LSU Bookstore on Feb. 12, 2020, at 3:17 p.m,” the email read. “If you know the identity of the subject, please contact Investigator Stephenson.”
Several Twitter users including @_preetysidhu said they were confused how theft at a bookstore could result in a felony.
“Yeah, what is even a felony at the bookstore?” the user wrote. “Did he steal a diamond studded LSU tie clip or something?”
LSU Media Relations Director Ernie Ballard said the information was provided by the employee who reported the theft. The investigation is still ongoing.
“Upon arrival, officers were told an unknown male subject stole four gold graduation rings,” Ballard said.
User @exploitedgrad expressed his concern on Twitter.
“Another day another @LSUPD racial profiling email,” the user wrote.
User @daddienova was upset by the lack of information provided. She felt the situation escalated due to the suspect’s race.
“At Loyno [Loyola University New Orleans] we’d get BOLOs [be on the lookouts] for people who were actively targeting and robbing students in the area,” the user wrote. “At LSU we get BOLOs for ‘suspicious persons’ and ‘felonies’ with no details on what they did or were suspected of doing but large photos asking us to help turn them in.”
Biological engineering sophomore Aidan Lynch said he believed the LSUPD had good intentions, but he can see how the email could come across to some as racial profiling.
“A majority of the time, either the images are unrecognizable or they are too brief to really understand what’s going on,” Lynch said. “It would have been nice for them to add more about the incident because it did initially look like profiling until I saw that the graduation rings were stolen.”
The flyer lists the case number, which Ballard said people can use to get more information on any police department call received. All cases are listed on the LSU Police website on the daily crime log.
“Sometimes the people pictured are wanted for more information about a crime,” Ballard said.
A similar event occurred on campus in 2015 when students accused LSUPD of racial profiling when police described a suspect as a “black male wearing a dark hoodie,” according to the Reveille.
Students gathered in the Quad wearing dark hoodies and signs with their physical descriptions. It was referred to as a “Suspect: Vague” demonstration, according to the article.
Students said the vague description potentially put many students matching the description in danger.
Ballard said the flyers are the same as those sent out through Crime Stoppers.
“We are consistent with the way the flyers are distributed regardless of the person’s race or sex,” Ballard said.
Barnes & Nobles LSU was not available for comment.
