Editorial: Dear UM: I shouldn’t be afraid to do laundry anymore

Winner of the 2024 Sam Reynolds Editorial Writing Award

First appeared in the Nov. 16, 2023 edition of the Montana Kaimin

For two years, I’ve praised the Lewis and Clark Villages as an underrated living option. It has cheaper rent than other student living apartments, prime access to the UDASH buses and clean facilities that feel like home after hanging up some string lights.

But two weeks ago, I received the campus-wide Clery Act email about a reported assault at Cinnabar Court in the University Villages, practically kitty-corner to my apartment and only separated by the golf course. This is the first time I’ve been afraid to live where I do, and the University of Montana Police Department telling the Kaimin it is increasing the number of times officers drive through the area at night does little to comfort me.

UMPD’s email detailed the assault, where an unknown male ran out of the Dornblaser complex next to the apartments and grabbed a female while she was carrying laundry back to her apartment. UMPD later told the Kaimin the woman used a bag of canned goods to hit the suspect and scare him away.

As of last Thursday, campus police hadn’t found any video record of the incident from security cameras in the area. Officers said they’d keep the case open for a while, but with no leads, they’ll probably have to close it.

I’m no detective, and while I can imagine working a case like this is hard, it’s frustrating as someone living in a University-owned apartment complex that one of UMPD’s recommendations after the incident is simply to “avoid walking alone.” In my complex, where tenants have no other option but to leave their apartments for the short walk to the laundry room, what am I supposed to do? Call a friend every time I need to do laundry? Ask GrizWalk, a campus ride service, to escort me the 50-feet from my apartment door to the laundry room?

I know UMPD offers good, baseline advice to keep people safe. But as a young woman who’s lived in campus facilities for nearly four years, I’m sick and tired of hearing “don’t walk alone” and “be aware of your surroundings.” My twin brother, who lives in the dorms at Montana State University, doesn’t have to think as critically about where he goes at night.

I need reassurance before I’m the next one to get attacked while doing laundry, that there’s more campus police can do than increasing its drive-throughs of the area from once a night to three or four times and staying in that area for a longer period of time to look around.

UMPD Police Chief Brad Giffin said he’s looking to get more security tech for the campus and University apartments, but security cameras are several thousand dollars and require annual fees. He wants UMPD to streamline its security video feeds and expand its reach, but it sounds like campus safety simply doesn’t have enough money to make that a viable option right now.

Additionally, Clery Act notifications are helpful, but they’re not as helpful when they are delayed by several hours. The assault at Cinnabar Court was reported at 7:15 p.m., but the campus email notification is time-stamped at 8:10 p.m. That’s plenty of time for students living in the area, like me, to continue doing laundry with an assault suspect on the loose. In my case, the email push notification didn’t pop up on my phone screen until 10:30 p.m. These notifications have clear glitches and delays, so maybe it’s time to consider a more reliable option.

Campus police have considered texting services instead of email, but again, there are no concrete plans to make that a reality.

The University needs to provide more support to UMPD and commit to state-of-the-art security resources if it wants its students to feel safe, especially when many of its students are paying thousands of dollars on top of their tuition and fees to live in its apartment complexes.

When the notification did finally ping my phone, I immediately screen shot the message and sent it to my mom, who has been begging me to stop doing my laundry at night for years. My message was clear: You won, Sheri.

I’m not naive about the realities of living in an apartment complex as a woman; I earned my black belt in martial arts when I was 13, I box in my free time, I take weekly jiu-jitsu classes and occasionally drop in at Muay Thai — I can defend myself. But I’d prefer to know the University is doing more to invest in my safety instead of closing case after case with no leads. In the meantime, I’ll keep looking over one shoulder with my laundry slung over the other.

Additional reporting by Claire Bernard