A monument at Shadow Falls Park. A St. Thomas student was assaulted at the intersection of Summit Avenue and Mississippi River Boulevard in St. Paul, Minnesota. (TommieMedia file photo)
A St. Thomas student was assaulted at the intersection of Summit Avenue and Mississippi River Boulevard at Shadow Falls Park, St. Thomas Public Safety said in a campus-wide alert Saturday.
The incident was reported to Public Safety by the St. Paul Police Department at about 12:38 a.m. Saturday, the report said.
Two students were walking on a path in Shadow Falls Park when they encountered a large group blocking the path, one of whom appeared to be under the influence of a drug. One of the students offered him water, but that person then threatened to stab the student, lunged at him, hit him in the face and then put him in a chokehold, according to the report.
Two or three of the suspects, the report said, approached the student and dragged him as they hit him.
Though he managed to get free and run away, the student told Public Safety that he heard five to six gunshots as he ran. The suspects reportedly fled southbound down Mississippi River Boulevard.
The St. Paul Police Department was already on the scene when Public Safety was alerted.
The first suspect was described as a 6-foot tall male with tattoos on his shoulders and upper arms, wearing shorts and no shirt. Public Safety does not have a description of the other suspects.
In its campus-wide alert, Public Safety asked that those with information relevant to the incident contact Public Safety or the St. Paul Police Department.
Emily Haugen can be reached at haug7231@stthomas.edu.
“The first suspect was described as a 6-foot tall male with tattoos on his shoulders and upper arms, wearing shorts and no shirt.” Why describe the sex but not the race of the violator and “group”? What is to be gained by intentional omission? If the assault was by a group of whites on black students, I’m certain it would be reported as a “hate crime.”
Sociology and Criminal Justice Associate Professor and Department Chair, Tanya Gladney, supports the movement to “defund the police.” There are at least two articles mentioning this on Stthomas.edu.