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On December 13, Brown University was the scene of a brutal campus shooting that left two students dead and nine more wounded while they were preparing for final exams — a chilling reminder that no place, not even an Ivy League classroom, is safe anymore. The attack unfolded in the Barus & Holley engineering building and sent shockwaves through Providence as students hid in classrooms and parents scrambled for answers.
Local and federal law enforcement mounted an all-hands manhunt, with hundreds of officers, FBI and ATF agents swarming the area as officials scrambled to find the assailant and secure the campus. The rapid mobilization was necessary, but it could not erase the panic caused by the initial confusion and the hours students spent under shelter-in-place orders.
In a story that will only deepen public anger, authorities detained a man at a hotel early Sunday as a so-called “person of interest” and then abruptly released him after ballistics and evidence failed to link him to the scene. This kind of flip-flop from our institutions — arrest one day, release the next — does nothing to restore confidence; it fuels suspicion that investigative showmanship and pressure to produce a quick result are crowding out careful policing.
The university’s emergency communications were also a mess, with alerts that initially suggested a suspect was in custody and were later retracted, leaving students and families in limbo. That muddled messaging from campus authorities is unforgivable; when lives are at stake, clarity and competence should be non-negotiable, not optional.
Meanwhile, campus leaders and city officials tell us to grieve and wait as they “double down” on investigations — and yes, the community needs healing — but Americans also deserve blunt accountability. Too many colleges have prioritized optics, bureaucracy, and political posturing over tough security, common-sense preparedness, and real deterrence, and the results are predictable and tragic.
Hardworking families and students demand more than condolences: they want effective protection and leaders who will stop playing political games with public safety. It is past time to restore law and order on our campuses, prioritize practical security measures, and refuse to let ideological reflexes silence the clear truth —: punish the guilty swiftly, support the victims fully, and secure our communities now.
