University of Washington Riot
 

More negative publicity.

Associated Press
September 29, 2003

Greek Row parties degenerate into ruckus involving hundreds

SEATTLE --Weekend parties on Fraternity Row near the University of
Washington degenerated into bottle- and rock-throwing involving hundreds of
people. One person was arrested and police said more arrests were likely.

A car was overturned, a mattress was burned and a police car windshield was
smashed early Sunday morning by a crowd estimated by witnesses at 300 to
500 people.

"I felt like I was watching reality TV, like it was something you know
you're not supposed to watch," said Matt Toothman, 23. "It was a lot of
people watching a few people doing bad things. They started burning boxes,
and then it just all accelerated from there."

No injuries were reported. Property damage, including damage to two other
police cars, was estimated at $6,000.

Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske blamed the rampage on drinking, daytime
temperatures in the 80s and partying on the last weekend before the start
of university classes. He said he would meet with officials from the school
and the mayor's office Monday afternoon.

"I know the vast majority of students are not like this. This incident
represents a small number who were involved," Kerlikowske said.

One person was arrested for investigation of damaging a police car, and
police hoped to arrest others after interviewing witnesses and reviewing
videotapes made by residents and cameras mounted on patrol cars.

"Officers spoke with some very good witnesses that provided some very good
information that will hopefully lead to arrests," officer Scott Moss said.

University spokesman Bob Roseth said it was the biggest case of student
disorders he could recall in his 25 years at the school.

"We're obviously anxious and eager to prevent something like that from
happening again," Roseth said. "We'll all work together to try to see what
we can do."

Calls to the campus Inter-Fraternity Council rang unanswered Monday morning.

Students living nearby said there were parties Saturday night at several
Greek houses and at private rental buildings, eventually attracting others
from outside the area and spilling onto the street.

A number of witnesses said many of those in the street did not appear to be
university students.

Kerlikowske said officers broke up some large, noisy parties about 11 p.m.

As many as 75 officers from the city and campus police and the Washington
State Patrol, along with a King County sheriff's helicopter, were
dispatched after crowds began blocking an intersection about 1:30 a.m. Sunday.

One person was hit in the head with a bottle, the windshield of a police
car was broken and a civilian Volvo was overturned by revelers who began
jumping on it. Some threw bonfire embers onto the car, but it did not catch
fire and later was towed away, Anderson said.

The crowd dispersed about 3:45 a.m. as officers clad in riot gear advanced.

By then, Kerlikowske said, all 63 on-duty city police officers were at the
scene.

"When you end up depleting police on the streets like this, it puts the
other parts of the city at risk," he said. "We are going to increase our
patrols to make sure something like this is stopped earlier."

Chris Jones of Issaquah, a fifth-year senior majoring in jazz who is taking
a year off to play bass on a cruise ship, said he was hanging out with
friends at Alpha Sigma Phi when people started gathering outside.

Trouble began after the mattress was set afire at an intersection, although
such fires are not uncommon in the neighborhood, Jones said.

"Everybody was totally drunk," he said. "Everybody all had a pretty good
buzz on. They were throwing bottles at cop cars."

About 5 percent were involved in hooliganism and the rest "just wanted a
spectacle," Jones said. "There were people trying to stop it, but they
ended up getting bottles thrown at them."

Some in the crowd were saying, "'Hey, the cops aren't doing anything. You
mean they won't stop me if I throw this bottle?' So they did," he said.

"I think the cops handled it really well," Jones added. "Nobody tear gassed
the crowd. I didn't see cops do anything except tell people to return to
their homes."

Drunkenness on Greek Row has drawn other complaints in recent years.

Two women recently sued the university, claiming they were raped after
attending fraternity parties and asserting that school oversight of the
off-campus organizations was inadequate.

Last spring Don and Janice Jensen sued Pi Kappa Phi over the death of their
19-year-old son, Brett, who fell 30 feet at the group's frat house after a
party game that involved downing 100 shots of beer in 100 minutes.

"As long as they continue to make alcohol the center of the fraternity
functions, these kinds of things are going to occur," said the couple's
lawyer, Mark Johnson.

(c) 2003 The Associated Press.