On Monday, Aug. 15, the Georgia State Police Department (GSUPD) sent out a campus broadcast with all their cool features and upgrades.
The e-mail offers a brief description on the Campus Crime Stoppers service, encouraging students to submit a tip when witnessing a crime, as well as offers the option of the LiveSafe Mobile app. Through the app, students can immediately get in contact with Crime Stoppers, Georgia State map and information, and the GSUPD Communications Center.
“We have had several requests over the years to add a safety app, and LiveSafe is our attempt to meet a request from our community,” Acting Chief of Georgia State Police, Carlton Mullis, said.
Not missing from GSUPD’s email is the confirmation that the library’s security updates are nearly complete, with almost all security cameras installed. Increased officer presence will continue to remain at the building’s entrance until the “biometric entry construction is completed”, the e-mail reads. According to Mullis, the biometric entry should be complete and operational by late fall semester.
GSUPD has also begun a five-year process of recruiting new officers, for a total of 75 by the end of the time frame, as well as begun experimenting with body cameras.
Shifting their attention to unwanted substances, the university’s police department is taking preventive measures towards use of prescription drugs. Officers will soon have Naloxone injection devices, used to reverse effects of narcotic overdoses, available to them after they undergo training. Mullis said that the injectors are at a great demand but will not be in use until GSUPD holds a sufficient supply.
Students will also be given the option to get rid of expired or unused Rx and OTC drugs, by dropping them off in drug drop boxes, located in all Georgia State Police offices at each campus. The drug drop boxes are in accordance with the Georgia Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention Initiative (GPDAPI), which created over 180 drop boxes around the state.
Francesca Jean-Baptiste, a political science major said that such an e-mail makes her feel safer on campus.
“Georgia State’s police initiatives for the new school year is what all schools need in order for [the student body] to feel safe,” she said. “I’m really proud of their efforts.”
