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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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THURSDAY, AUG. 27, 2015 | VOLUME 130 ISSUE 3
NEWS ROUNDUP >> YOU NEED TO KNOW
TIANA DOCKERY a senior volleyball player, plays the game to honor the memory of her best friend, who was killed in 2011. Sports >> PAGE 16
A GUIDE TO PARKING CHANGES Read about changes to yellow lot locations and a new license recognition system. News >> PAGE 02
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
"KILL BILL... MURRAY" is a series of paintings depicting the actor in iconic pop culture scenes.
Arts & Culture >> PAGE 3
A beer can rests beside the sidewalk in front of a residence on Ohio Street. The LPD added about nine additional officers last Friday and Saturday.
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CALLS FOR TRANSFERRENCY
A student group of 10 or more must present to the group leader the details of the transfer, including the name of the student group and a date. The group will be asked to submit the information by 8:30am on Friday, November 26th.
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"THE END OF TOUR"The biopic dives into the life of the novelist David Foster Wallace, played by Jason Segal (above). > Kansan.com/ features
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With students returning to town, the Lawrence Police Department is increasing the number of officers patrolling on weekend nights.
As part of what the LPD calls its fall safety initiative, eight to nine additional Lawrence police officers were sent out to monitor alcohol-related incidents the Friday and Saturday before school started.
McKinley said the main purpose of this extra detail is to prevent situations where an intoxicated person's safety is compromised.
"In the past, individuals often target people who are intoxicated and rob them as they are walking home from parties or from bars." McKinley said, "We are trying to reduce those numbers of robberies."
"By having those officers there, we are trying to be proactive," McKinley said. "If we can get to them within the first minute, we can reduce any injuries."
The police will also try to cut down on cases of alcohol-related batteries. McKinley said that in the past they've seen altercations in bars and houses turn violent quickly.
This past Saturday the Lawrence Police Department issued 150 citations, according to a report issued by the Lawrence Municipal Court. There were three accounts of operating a vehicle under the influence, six for public liquor possession and seven reports of minors in possession of alcohol.
McKinley said that the initial exposure to a college atmosphere could be dangerous for freshman because of the ease of access to alcohol and drugs.
"Individuals that feel a newfound sense of freedom and are away from home and supervision may elect to consider it a free-for-all and may go out and experience alcohol and drugs, and they don't know how to handle that," McKinley said.
McKinley said bystanders are often reluctant to seek help for friends who are affected by alcohol poisoning for fear of getting in trouble.
McKinley said over the past weekend, the police received several calls for alcohol poisoning, a major issue among underclassmen.
"Many of them are younger and might not have consumed alcohol much in their life, so when they get more freedom and access to alcohol and they over-consume and get to a place that's medically dangerous for them," McKinley said.
"The hospital has had people who dump off friends outside the hospital to avoid getting in trouble," McKinley said. "At that point, we have no idea who they are, what they've been drinking or what drugs are in their system."
When it comes to working with the police, McKinley said cooperation is key. If a person sees another who is dangerously intoxicated, the best thing they can do is call 911.
"I don't care about trying to arrest anyone at that point," McKinley said. "What I care about is being able to tell the doctor which drugs and alcohol they've been consuming. There are plenty of narcotics that can be easily solved by an injection."
The University has an amnesty policy in place for situations like the one McKinley described. Instituted in 2009 by the Department of Student Affairs, the policy states that students seeking immediate medical assistance on behalf of people experiencing alcohol-related emergencies will not be sanctioned by the University or by Housing for violations of KU's alcohol policy.
SEE LPD PAGE 8
Lawrence police officers gave out
44
alcohol-related citations between the hours of 9 p.m. and 1:30 a.m. on Saturday, Aug.22
~85%
of KU students reported they drank the last time they socialized
52% of KU students reported binge-drinking habits
74%
of KU students reported they had drank within the last 30 days
Source: 2013 National College Assessment study and Trent McKinley of the Lawrence Police Department
Meet Brooks Brown: 17-year-old songwriter drops album
VICKY DIAZ-CAMACHO
@vickyd_c
He's a multi-instrumentalist who plays drums, bass and guitar. He's also a producer, musician and songwriter who has collaborated with about 15 other songwriters from Kansas to California.
This summer, he dropped his first album — and he's only 17. Brooks Brown, a high school student at Blue Valley North in Overland Park, said he first learned how to play guitar from his grandpa at nine years old, which spurred Brooks' interest in playing and creating music. Since then, his dream was to become a "rock star," he said.
But after his dad died of complications from back surgery in 2009, music became more than a dream; it became his motivation.
"After that happened, I had to man up and take a leadership role," he said. "I always wonder what my father would think of
what I'm doing today."
When Brooks was younger, his parents, Rob and Ashley Brown, blared "any genre of music" and he'd bob his head along, his mom said. Brooks and his dad shared a love for music, airplanes, legos, machines, technology, skateboards, rockets, space and history. Hed spend hours on end with his dad and his grandpa.
His mom, Ashley, said she always noticed he was "wise beyond his years," and his maturity showed especially in his reaction to his father's death. Brooks had just finished fifth grade and was starting middle school the summer his dad died.
"Brooks and Rob were best buddies," his mom said. "I think Brooks thought his dad would live forever ..."
"After we realized Rob was gone, Brooks said, 'Well at least he is not in pain anymore, mommy'. Pretty deep stuff for an 11-year-old." Ashley said.
Despite his dad's death, the
"I feel like the past six years, my work ethic has increased because I've been motivated by that, pushed to chase [that dream]."
"Even though I was 11, my mind was widened a little bit," he said. "Those things happen and you have to take it full force."
teen musician didn't stop playing or writing music. Instead he buried himself in it.
Ashley said Brooks told her hed DJ to earn money, so she bought him the equipment he needed and the calls kept coming in. She said that small idea blossomed into a business that is still going today.
Brooks is soft-spoken and said he was reserved as a child. He also said he'd consider himself observant.
The teen still has other priorities, such as balancing high school and being a DJ, but his music was the best way he could provide for his brother and mom, he said.
"I'm the kind of kid whol sleepwalk," he said. "I have an active mind, always thinking of what to do [and] what I need to accomplish. I talk less, listen more."
MIRANDA OSBORNE/KANSAN
MIRANDA OSBORNE/KANSAN Brooks Brown began playing the guitar at nine years old. Brown was close to his grandpa, also a musician.
"Brooks is very similar [to
his dad] in the way that he approaches life with a tempered, thoughtful perspective," Ashley said.
SEE BROOKS PAGE 7
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