Males worry for female friends
By James Gaddy, Staff Writer
Many in the male population on campus generally agreed they face a difficult situation. Most described themselves as concerned, but powerless. Men do not fear the serial killer, but they voiced concerns for their female friends who are on campus or who live alone.
Students were not asked for last names to ensure anonymity and security.
Friends Brent, Wes and Scott, during a meal at the Union McDonald’s, said they were not concerned with campus safety. Women know not to walk alone to their cars, and there are usually people around campus who will escort them to their cars, they said.
Guys are not particularly worried about the serial killer because he is targeting women, they said. Their main concern regarded women’s safety at home.
“Women are not being abducted from campus, but from their homes,” Wes said.
The friends expressed reservations about the usefulness of Mace, stun guns and other self-defense weapons. The serial killer attacks women in vulnerable situations in which these weapons are rendered useless, they said. “The times you think you’re safe is when you’re most vulnerable,” Brent said.
All three said there was not much they could do, except remind female students the killer is still out there when the heightened awareness dies down.
Brent suggested he could look for the killer himself, but that would make him look suspicious as well. Until the serial killer is caught, students are not going to feel safe, he said.
Wes and Louis, male students studying in the library, encouraged female students to be aware.
The only way to stop it is to be fully aware that it could happen to you, Wes said.
Louis agreed, saying there is too much of the ‘it can’t happen to me’ attitude.
Wes said it is not so much an LSU problem as it is a community problem. More lighting on campus may not help that much.
“Lighting would make people feel more safe,” Wes said. “But I don’t want people going home thinking they’re safe when they’re not.”
Other students reiterated this idea of safety and awareness at all times as their only solution.
Another student named Dustin said he hopes people will travel in groups, which would reduce the serial killer’s opportunity.
Students refrained from overtly criticizing the Baton Rouge police force on the case, although some expressed frustration.
Will and Kyle in the library said they had not noticed any additional patrols in the area, but Dustin said he saw the bike patrol for the first time.
Back at McDonald’s, the three friends said they do not discuss the issue except while watching the news. Even then, they said it mostly concerns how ridiculous it is that the killer has not been caught yet.
They expressed hope, however.
“He’s getting more careless,” they said. “Somebody’s going to get away.”
Some women say they still ‘feel safe’
By Kayla Gagnet, News Editor
They think about him as they cross parking lots to their cars, as they cautiously walk around corners at night, as they chat on their cell phones while unlocking their apartment doors.
Or maybe they don’t.
Maybe they jog around the lakes at night alone, or maybe they never bought pepper spray. They feel safe, and they won’t let him keep them from living their lives.
Many women on campus changed their habits last fall after coming to campus to news of a serial killer in Baton Rouge. Some admit they are not as careful as they used to be. That was before Carrie Yoder.
“It’s hitting really close to home,” said Enjoli, a biological sciences freshman. “She lived close to campus; she knew how to be safe.”
Enjoli and other women are being identified only by their first names because of concerns about their safety.
In the Quad on Wednesday, Enjoli and her friend, kinesiology freshman Ceara, discussed their fears of the man who has killed at least five women in the past 18 months — most recently Yoder, a biological sciences graduate student.
Enjoli said she has become more paranoid in the last week. She works in a lab in the Life Sciences Annex, the same building Yoder worked in. She has stopped opening the lab door for strangers.
“It could be anybody,” she said.
Ceara is not as cautious. She said she does not want to live in fear.
“I’m little, but I feel like I can defend myself,” she said.
Enjoli has noticed women’s increased efforts to stay safe, but doubts the effectiveness of defense classes, pepper spray and even locked doors.
“That’s not going to help if he is someone you think you can trust,” she said.
Both women said they are concerned because they do not see police officers patrolling campus often enough.
On the Parade Ground, Veronica and Carrie have reacted differently to the news of a fifth serial killer victim.
“I’m pretty much paranoid,” said Carrie, an English freshman.
Veronica, an industrial engineering freshman, said fears for her safety are not part of her daily life. She still runs at night and walks around campus by herself.
Across campus on the patio between East and West Laville Halls, Leigh and Katrina fear that once the serial killer has begun stalking a woman, there is not much she can do to protect herself.
Studio art sophomore Katrina is a commuter and walks by herself to her car at night. She carries Mace, but only for her own peace of mind.
Leigh, a psychology freshman, said because she lives in a residence hall, she does not think she could be a target.
“My mom keeps saying, ‘The only thing that keeps me sane is knowing you are on campus,'” she said.