The campus community deserved an Alert Carolina notification after shots were fired early in the morning on Nov. 25 outside of Time-Out Restaurant.
By the time Chapel Hill police arrived on the scene, witnesses said the person who had fired a weapon from a vehicle after a fight had already driven away in the direction of Durham, said Randy Young, spokesman for the UNC Department of Public Safety.
The department did not release a “timely warning” since the perpetrator was assumed to be going away from campus.
According to DPS, this type of alert, which is sent via text and email, is only employed when there is a continuing danger to the campus community.
With Granville Towers just yards away from where the shooting occurred, at least an “informational message” should have been sent to inform the community of the situation.
Informational messages are typically sent out to inform the public with the correct details of an event, as well to solicit possible information that would be useful to an investigation.
Critics have raised concerns that messages like these may cause unnecessary panic. Yet keeping the community informed sometimes warrants such a risk.
The purpose of Alert Carolina is to support the University’s efforts to communicate information about situations affecting the safety and health of the campus community.
When a gun is fired close to a residence hall and right outside of a restaurant that students frequently visit late at night, the community should be informed, regardless of where witnesses thought the perpetrators might have been heading.
