Troubles with my friend and college. Need educated advice.

AngellicLulu

AngellicLulu

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This is a long story so please bare with me. And this story may be biased because it is my friend telling me about it, though he has no reason to lie to me.
Last year I was a member of a club on campus (USF) that rented out a room Tuesday nights and my friend was also a member. My friend was not a USF student so he would park in the vistor's lot and purchase a one day pass each day. We wouldn't leave until about 12:30 or so.
Apparently the campus police suspected my friend of illegal acts and started investigating him unknowingly to us all. One day we started to head to his car, really late one evening, and we see a bunch of cops around his car barricading us from approaching the car. He gets really paranoid and wary so instead of going to his car he calls his girlfriend to pick us up, meanwhile we see his car towed. When he went to retrieve his car he had to talk to the campus police where they questioned him in a closed room.
They told him his car was towed because it was missing it's license plate (conviently). (Note: they also conviscated money and paychecks that were in his car, not to be given back until the case was closed) So they allow him to get the car out of impound but when he tried to report his license plate as stolen and get a new one he found out that the case was still open and he couldn't get a new plate. It took about 3-4 months for him to get the case closed after getting the brush off by the campus police who said they could not discuss the case with him.

Now here's the real problem, since I thought it was solved after that. He applied for USF this past semester. He has a clean record, he has never been suspended from school in high school, he's been going to community college for a couple years prior (he has a minor in Computer Science now), and he had really good SAT scores and grades. He was accepted but then a week before classes rejected from USF because he was reportedly a bad egg. They have no evidence to support this apparently bad eggedness, other than the campus police telling the administration so. They tell him to apply again next semester and maybe he'll get in. Since it was so late in telling him so he was forced to go to community college again and start another minor. Is there anyway, if he is rejected again, which I think he will be, to fight the rejection?

I usually don't make a thread like this, but I know there are more experienced individuals on here that can give me better responses than just my group of friends. I'm thinking they are going to try and use the Patriot Act against him, though.

Opinions, advice, comments? Thanks.
 
He should at least consult a lawyer.

But definitely fight the rejection.

I don't know how the law applies to rent-a-cops, but if real cops did that he could sue for emotional damages plus get compensation for the lost semester.

What they did is basically harassment and slander.
 
Yeah, suing solves everything!

If they don't want him, why doesn't he just apply to another college?

I wouldn't want to goto a school that does shit like that to me...
 
[quote name='Quackzilla']He should at least consult a lawyer.

But definitely fight the rejection.

I don't know how the law applies to rent-a-cops, but if real cops did that he could sue for emotional damages plus get compensation for the lost semester.[/QUOTE]

That's what I'd do.
 
[quote name='Quackzilla']He should at least consult a lawyer.

But definitely fight the rejection.

I don't know how the law applies to rent-a-cops, but if real cops did that he could sue for emotional damages plus get compensation for the lost semester.[/QUOTE]

90%+ of campus police agencies are chartered, which means they are "real cops".
 
He's gonna have a hard time fighting a rejection on any legal grounds if the college isn't a state school. Private institutions are allowed to reject you for whatever they feel, unless the media gets involved.

Your best bet would to be talk to someone on the school newspaper (if there is one). Institutions hate free speech, especially if they want to act like the gastappo.
 
WOW. There is just soooo many things the College could be sued for:

- they are *security* not police... no better than the local mall rent-a-guards.

- they have power to ask you to leave the school property, but NOT to impound your car.

- nor do they have power to lock you in a room & interrogate you (do their lapels say "SS" or "SA" on them?)



I would have left them take the car, and immediately contacted the REAL police. The REAL police would have the power to arrest the fake security people and/or force them to release your car.

If still no satisfaction, hire a lawyer to sue the college. In fact, I think you should sue the college anyway, for property damage/lost time at work/et cetera.


Your friend made the mistake of acting like a victim. He should have acted like HE was in control & refused to comply with the college rent-a-guards illegal/unlawful actions.


He applied for USF this past semester
Click to expand...
What the hell did he do that for? If a business (and that's what a college is) treats me like shit, I'm not going to give them my money. I'll go buy my degree someplace else.


Your best bet would to be talk to someone on the school newspaper (if there is one).
Click to expand...
Forget that. Contact the city paper. They love juicy stories about the little guys getting screwed by the establishment.
 
[quote name='electrictroy']WOW. There is just soooo many things the College could be sued for:

- they are *security* not police... no better than the local mall rent-a-guards.

- they have power to ask you to leave the school property, but NOT to impound your car.

- nor do they have power to lock you in a room & interrogate you

[/QUOTE]

Read my previous comment, most are NOT just security.
 
To make a long story short, you can try fighting it but you won't win. The University has the right to reject any applicant based on a variety of reasons. It's a privilege to go to college it's not a right so they can easily kick you out. I know a few kids that this has happened to not exactly the same story but similar circumstances. I feel sorry for your friend but until he fixes that little hiccup with he campus police the odds of him being reaccepted into the University are slim to non.
 
[quote name='Cornfedwb']Read my previous comment, most are NOT just security.[/QUOTE]
It depends. If it's a major university, then they might be police. But in my area, the colleges are small and just hire rent-a-guards. The guards have no power to do anything except dial 911 & call the real police.



If the USF security truly is a police unit, than you still have a right to NOT be locked in a room & interrogated. You have a right to keep your mouth shut until your lawyer arrives.

Did the USF security read him his Miranda rights prior to interrogation? If not, then the arrest/evidence/whatever must be stricken as inadmissable in a court.


Ya know, when I hear about cases like this, it makes me wish I was a lawyer. I love the idea of defending the little man from systematic abuse. Of course at this point, there's little he can do. He already made the mistake of cooperating w/ the interrogation. Instead, he should have kept his mouth shut.
 
[quote name='electrictroy']
- they have power to ask you to leave the school property, but NOT to impound your car.
[/QUOTE]

This is where you are wrong my friend. Schools have the right to impound your car at anytime especially if you don't have a parking tag. It has to do with something called private property so once you park your car in their parking lot they can ticket you or impound your car.

Cars get impounded all the time here at Rutgers University. My roommate who has a parking pass parked in the wrong parking lot overnight (the car was there for a 3 days I think) and his car was towed.
 
[quote name='electrictroy']It depends. If it's a major university, then they might be police. But in my area, the colleges are small and just hire rent-a-guards. The guards have no power to do anything except dial 911 & call the real police.



If the USF security truly is a police unit, than you still have a right to NOT be locked in a room & interrogated. You have a right to keep your mouth shut until your lawyer arrives.

Did the USF security read him his Miranda rights prior to interrogation? If not, then the arrest/evidence/whatever must be stricken as inadmissable in a court.


Ya know, when I hear about cases like this, it makes me wish I was a lawyer. I love the idea of defending the little man from systematic abuse. Of course at this point, there's little he can do. He already made the mistake of cooperating w/ the interrogation. Instead, he should have kept his mouth shut.[/QUOTE]

Since they aren't suing or charging him, I don't think it matters what's admissable in court. I'm also pretty sure that they do have the right to detain you for a reasonable time. It doesn't sound like he was cuffed/arrested.
 
Yeah they can *temporarily* remove the car, but they don't have the right to keep it. Especially since a college is defined as a "public accommodation" under the law & you have many of the same rights there, as on public property.

Taking someone's car, temporarily, is okay. But taking someone's car, permanently, with no plans to return it, is called theft. You can fight it in court & win.


Whatever. I'd still take it to court. Let the Judge/Law of the Land decide who's right & who's wrong. I suspect the Judge/Law would side with the young man & verbally reprimand the police for (again) over-stepping their authority.

troy
 
Speak to the admissions office. If you don't like what they have to say, send a letter to the University President. Even better: Write a letter to the school newspaper. Get in touch with an organization on campus that could help. For instance: If your friend is in a minority, contact the minority organization on campus and get them involved.

Publicity rules. Good luck.
 
The options I see

1) You can fight it, with the goal being a minor concession from the Man, and you will probably have to sign a hush-up agreement.

2) Apply somewhere else.

3) Become a mild-mannered software programmer by day, but by night become a nefarious hacker trying to expose people to the TRUTH lying just beneath their everyday world.
 
[quote name='electrictroy']
I'll go buy my degree someplace else.
[/QUOTE]

I don't know why, but I found this little snipett from your post interesting...you know, with that 140 IQ and all.
 
Wow, some people on here should do some research before giving out advice. Though I may hate to admit it, the university was more than likely within their rights in both rejecting his application and towing the car (if in fact it did not have a plate). My guess is him going to court will do him a crapload of good so forget that for now, plus there maybe some things we don't know. For instance was the car merely towed to a location or actually impounded. Believe it or not there's a difference, most universties will have cars towed off their property to a towing facility, then you have to pay for the towing, labor, and holding fees or that facility won't release your car. When your car is actually impounded by the police, especially if you're a suspect of somekind, you don't have alot of say on when you get the car back.

I'm sure there maybe some appeals process for the rejection, but I don't know what that would be obviously or how much good it do. As for the Patriot Act, no offense Lulu but that's being a bit paranoid. They apparently already have something to dispute his application apparently, so no need to dig up anything else and they can't criminally charge him with anything, so I highly doubt the Patriot Act will become invovled at all. It doesn't take too much to talk to admissions officers at most colleges. Plus, he can apply as many times as he'd like, but if it's not a free application, I'd say the best advice is maybe to apply to another school.
 
You do realize that this could have been avoided if he had just asked what was going on when he saw the car being blocked off before it got towed right? Something doesn't add up. I don't think we are getting the whole story here.
 
Me neither. The security was watching him for a reason (maybe he was a peeping tom spying on the sorority girls... ya never know).


And you're right. If he had taken a more pro-active approach (like call the REAL police and a lawyer), his car probably would have been released on the 2nd day.
 
[quote name='norkusa']What nationality is your friend? Seriously. If he's middle-eastern, that could explain a lot.[/QUOTE]
He's a pasty irish boy. :lol:

Other answers:
In regards to him applying to a place that treated him like shit: it's the closest college (has girlfriend going to USF, decent job in Tampa)
In regards to USF's school status, it is a state university with over 40000 students. In regards to legal council, my friend doesn't have much money and all the legal councils he went to refused to help for what he could offer.

He's considering going to another university but he finally got some roots down here. It's like he was finally getting his life straight and then shit hits the fan again. I think if USF rejects him this time, (hopefully on time), then he will consider USF unfeasible. If they really think he's a bad egg then there's nothing going to change that.

It's just funny to see them stereotype him so when he is probably one of the most respectable individuals I know.
 
[quote name='AngellicLulu']It's just funny to see them stereotype him so when he is probably one of the most respectable individuals I know.[/QUOTE]

Police are not intelligent (they actually make you take a test, and applicants are turned away for being too smart) and they generally don't care about justice. Once they make up their mind about somebody, it's basically game over as any arguing will just be seen as disrespecting thier "authority" which will cause them to push back harder.
 
[quote name='camoor']Police are not intelligent (they actually make you take a test, and applicants are turned away for being too smart) and they generally don't care about justice. Once they make up their mind about somebody, it's basically game over as any arguing will just be seen as disrespecting thier "authority" which will cause them to push back harder.[/QUOTE]


That may be but I seriously doubt that they are picking on this ONE person out of 40000 students that go to this school. There is more to this story than the friend is telling.
 
[quote name='niceguyshawne']That may be but I seriously doubt that they are picking on this ONE person out of 40000 students that go to this school. There is more to this story than the friend is telling.[/QUOTE]
Well seeing that I was getting a ride from him to the campus, I, there is little to the story I was not a witness to. I know he had his license plate when we parked on campus that evening. I know he did not have anything suspicious in the car and I know my friend does not have a record with the police. What led them to believe he was suspicious was the fact he was the last car in the visitor's lot on Tuesdays. That's all.
Also as I said my friend has no reason to lie to me.
 
[quote name='niceguyshawne']That may be but I seriously doubt that they are picking on this ONE person out of 40000 students that go to this school. There is more to this story than the friend is telling.[/QUOTE]

I tend to agree with this. I mean, what motivation does the University have to mess with your friend? Perhaps, after they admitted him, they in fact discovered that he DID have a criminal record. Otherwise, it just doesn't make any sense that they would reject his money and refuse him enrollment. What motivation could they have to do that?

I am a lawyer, and I don't think your friend has much recourse in the legal system. The campus police are likely REAL police and, of course, do have the power to impound a car without a license plate that is parked on private property without permission.
 
(I know I shouldn't keep asking questions, but curiosity is getting the best of me)

Could you clarify something? He was definitely accepted? He got an acceptance letter? And when he was subsequently rejected, how was he notified? Did he get a letter? If so, what did the letter say?

Something's still not adding up for me, either. This is clearly a product of the liberal left wing and their communist cohorts.
 
[quote name='yeah-yeah'](I know I shouldn't keep asking questions, but curiosity is getting the best of me)

Could you clarify something? He was definitely accepted? He got an acceptance letter? And when he was subsequently rejected, how was he notified? Did he get a letter? If so, what did the letter say?

Something's still not adding up for me, either. This is clearly a product of the liberal left wing and their communist cohorts.[/QUOTE]
Hmm, I know he got an acceptance letter but I'm not positive on how he was notified that they reconsidered.
 
you probably will not like what I say, but I'll offer my opinion anyway.

The fact that your friend wouldn't go to his car when the cops were around it seems *very* suspicious to me. If he didn't have anything to hide, he wouldn't have acted that way.

If it was me, I would have approached the officers and asked what was wrong. Worst case scenario they'll "arrest" you and bring you in, but if you didn't do anything wrong it will all get straightened out.

Personally, I think your friend has a criminal record, which got him rejected from the college (and all the police activity), but he doesn't want to tell you.
 
[quote name='camoor']Police are not intelligent (they actually make you take a test, and applicants are turned away for being too smart) and they generally don't care about justice.[/QUOTE]

Just out of curiousity, could you post up the name of said test or what it entails? I'm not trying to be a jackass, I really want to know how they weed out people that are too smart.
 
[quote name='Haggar']you probably will not like what I say, but I'll offer my opinion anyway.

The fact that your friend wouldn't go to his car when the cops were around it seems *very* suspicious to me. If he didn't have anything to hide, he wouldn't have acted that way.

If it was me, I would have approached the officers and asked what was wrong. Worst case scenario they'll "arrest" you and bring you in, but if you didn't do anything wrong it will all get straightened out.

Personally, I think your friend has a criminal record, which got him rejected from the college (and all the police activity), but he doesn't want to tell you.[/QUOTE]
He was accepted to another state school straight out of high school and went to said school but his room-mate/girlfriend kicked him out before classes so he came back to Tampa and attended community college.
Yes, it was weird how he didn't want to approach the cops but I think he was trying to save me from the stress of having to deal with cops at one in the morning. It was a very scary situation when you leave school at 1AM to go to the car and there's a bunch of flashing lights. I tried to urge him to go over there, but he said he wanted to get me home first.
I'm telling you guys, my friend is a good kid, he doesn't get mixed up in the wrong stuff and I HIGHLY doubt he has any kind of criminal record.
If he had a criminal record they NEVER would have accepted him in the first place.
 
[quote name='AngellicLulu']Yes, it was weird how he didn't want to approach the cops but I think he was trying to save me from the stress of having to deal with cops at one in the morning. It was a very scary situation when you leave school at 1AM to go to the car and there's a bunch of flashing lights. [/QUOTE]

LOL, cops are not scary, unless you have something to hide. As I said before, I have nothing to hide so I would have approached the cops and asked what was wrong.

You asked for opinions and I offered mine. I honestly think he's a criminal, or at the very least has a criminal record. Best of luck to you.
 
[quote name='Haggar']LOL, cops are not scary, unless you have something to hide. As I said before, I have nothing to hide so I would have approached the cops and asked what was wrong.

You asked for opinions and I offered mine. I honestly think he's a criminal, or at the very least has a criminal record. Best of luck to you.[/QUOTE]
I meant the cops were scary to me. I don't have anything to hide, but I don't do well with confrontations.
I'm not rejecting your opinion, I'm just trying to make the sitituation more clear. I like hearing people's perspectives on the situation because it brings to light things I wouldn't think of.
But I must point out the fact that he was accepted to a state school prior and he was accepted by this university, but then the acception was withdrawn. I am doubtful they would neglect to find a criminal record the first go through and then go Whoops OUR bad. The stuff with his vehicle all happened prior to him applying, so if he had a criminal record then he would not have been accepted at first.
 
[quote name='AngellicLulu']I meant the cops were scary to me. I don't have anything to hide, but I don't do well with confrontations.
I'm not rejecting your opinion, I'm just trying to make the sitituation more clear. I like hearing people's perspectives on the situation because it brings to light things I wouldn't think of.
But I must point out the fact that he was accepted to a state school prior and he was accepted by this university, but then the acception was withdrawn. I am doubtful they would neglect to find a criminal record the first go through and then go Whoops OUR bad. The stuff with his vehicle all happened prior to him applying, so if he had a criminal record then he would not have been accepted at first.[/QUOTE]

So, if they didn't find anything in his record, what do you think led them to withdraw his acceptance? Why would they have a vendetta against him?
 
maybe someone hide a dead hooker in his car....... :)

I don't think you hear the whole story from him though..... apply to other school... as well.. sometime it's not worth to keep fighting the system without other alternatives..
 
[quote name='sgs89']So, if they didn't find anything in his record, what do you think led them to withdraw his acceptance? Why would they have a vindetta against him?[/QUOTE]
ALright, this is where it is completely what I heard from him: He said he went to the campus and spoke to someone about why his application was rejected. I just heard this story yesterday so I haven't gotten a chance to fully question him on it. But she apparently let it out of the bag that the campus police reported him as a "bad egg". When he went to talk to the campus police they told him that it could not be discussed with him.
I am confused, he's confused, we're all confused onto why there is a vendetta. But the only way I think he'll know the facts from them is if he gets a lawyer to write a letter of inquiry.
It's just one of those weird things you never expect to happen to anyone close to you.
 
[quote name='eshbums']Just out of curiousity, could you post up the name of said test or what it entails? I'm not trying to be a jackass, I really want to know how they weed out people that are too smart.[/QUOTE]

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_56314.html

http://www.lib.jjay.cuny.edu/len/2000/10.15/p&p.html (third article)

http://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/pm/articles/policecriticisedfortooeasy.htm?name=latest+headlines&type=section

I'm sure most police departments are at least saavy enough to come up with other excuses as to why they won't give smart applicants a job. Hey - at least New London was honest!
 
[quote name='Haggar']LOL, cops are not scary, unless you have something to hide. As I said before, I have nothing to hide so I would have approached the cops and asked what was wrong.

You asked for opinions and I offered mine. I honestly think he's a criminal, or at the very least has a criminal record. Best of luck to you.[/QUOTE]

Ahh yes, the same excellent reasoning that the government uses to push through the patriot act and erode our civil rights. "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear"

Tell that to this beaten 64 year-old man, who had the audacity to act "uppity" and ask the police about the city curfew:

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/10/09/taped.beatings.ap/

or how about this 45 year-old single mother, who was thrown in jail for having one (and only one) glass of wine, and then driving:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/11/AR2005101101968.html

I'm not saying AngelicLulu's friend is innocent, but everyone's willingness to assume that this guy is a bad egg on nothing but a cops say-so is just disgusting.
 
[quote name='camoor']Ahh yes, the same excellent reasoning that the government uses to push through the patriot act and erode our civil rights. "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear"

Tell that to this beaten 64 year-old man, who had the audacity to act "uppity" and ask the police about the city curfew:

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/10/09/taped.beatings.ap/

or how about this 45 year-old single mother, who was thrown in jail for having one (and only one) glass of wine, and then driving:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/11/AR2005101101968.html

I'm not saying AngelicLulu's friend is innocent, but everyone's willingness to assume that this guy is a bad egg on nothing but a cops say-so is just disgusting.[/QUOTE]

Oh noes! Here comes the activists! The police must be bad because the rappers on MTV told you they were!

Here's my links: millions, if not billions of crimes solved and people protected by the police. Sure, you're going to have a few bad apples- just like any group with millions of members. You're also going to have the media skewing and half-reporting for the sake of sensationism and ratings.

How about we save your protest for an appropriate time and place, Kanye, and stay on topic with the OP problem.
 
[quote name='yeah-yeah']This all sounds a bit...

[/QUOTE]
Crap....I keep pressing PLAY, but nothing happens. And I LOVE Fishy!
 
Sounds like a rough situation....unfortunately, guilty or not, the college doesn't have to do anything and will most likely just use the silent treatment and hope he stops complaining. That doesn't mean he should stop trying though. :)

His best bet would be in making connections with people involved with the club and at the same time, reassuring them that he is a good guy and will be an asset to the club, so when he goes to apply next semester, he'll have referrences. Networking is the best solution to working around beaurucratic bullshit, in my experience.


anyway, what's USF?
 
[quote name='Apossum']

anyway, what's USF?[/QUOTE]
University of South Florida... located in Tampa, St. Petersberg, Sarasota and Lakeland.
 
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