On Monday, Oct. 24, the Wofford community received an email regarding an incident that happened in Greene Hall the day before. For most, this was the first they had heard of the incident.
“I’m more than disappointed in the lack of information on Wofford’s part,” says Emily Ledford, ’19. She noted that Campus Safety had not made use of the RAVE mobile safety system in place for the administration to quickly warn students about emergencies on campus.
In the Campus Union meeting that Monday, Allen Lollis, resident director for the first-year dorms, sat in for Dean of Students Roberta Bigger. While Campus Safety refused to comment on the incident, Lollis admitted that the college should have handled the incident differently, although he did note that in his opinion “Campus Safety had the situation under control” and that “the officers recognized that no other students than those involved were in any present danger.”
The biggest concern for students seems to be the details of the case, as the email was vague.
“This weekend, Wofford Campus Safety officers arrested a non-student for kidnapping, carrying a weapon on campus, trespass after warning and simple possession of marijuana,” the email read. “The charges stem from an incident in Greene Residence Hall that involved several students. No one was injured during the incident.”
So what exactly happened and who is Carell Kewan Ellis, the man arrested for the crime?
After cross-checking facts with students and the official incident report, it seems the problem stemmed from Ellis’ relationship with a female student on-campus. The two had allegedly been in multiple arguments that had gotten physical according to a student that asked to remain anonymous.
Regardless of the reason, Ellis, who is college-aged and looks like he could be a Wofford students, found his way into the residence hall. He began banging on his girlfriend’s door, and when he finally got in, those inside the room began to exit. All but two did: Ellis’ girlfriend and the student who would eventually end up pressing charges.
The incident report better explains what happened in the room as Ellis locked the door and threatened the two women inside with a handgun. He hid the gun along with a bit of marijuana. The police and Campus Safety arrived after multiple calls from the adjacent rooms. Ellis was arrested and his girlfriend, a student at Wofford, was kicked off campus.
The lack of details in the email from Campus Safety certainly led to a lot more fear in the student body. Avery Jucksch ’19 expressed her concerns on Facebook. “The fact that all we received from the school about the event was a simple email the day after this happened is concerning. I would have appreciated a text message letting us know what was happening and how it was being taken care of as soon as it was reported, especially since he was in a residence hall with a gun.” She added that she was glad no one was harmed during the incident.
As the investigation continues, Campus Safety has promised, in another email, that they will increase security patrols and partner with the Spartanburg Police. Even with that reassurance, it seems this incident has exposed a few key issues in Wofford’s security protocol.
