Two students arrested on campus, cited
USU student Matthew Lewis, 18, and Samuel Poulter, 19, were arrested on campus Friday under suspicion of underage drinking, according to Capt. Steve Milne of the USU Police. Lewis was also issued a citation for possession of a controlled substance, Milne said.
Milne said police were called after a resident assistant tried to revive Poulter, who was unconscious at the time.
“When the RA’s came across him he was unresponsive, so they called us and we summoned medical attention,” Milne said. “Prior to medical getting there Mr. Poulter got up and fled the area. He was seen later that night over at the Living Learning Center.”
Arresting officer Travis Robson said Lewis was issued a citation for underage drinking. Robson left for another call at the LLC when he spotted Poulter, who he recognized as a person of interest from a previous encounter in that building.
“I saw him walk out of a building,” Robson said. “Initially, he noticed that I was there and attempted to leave the area — I was able to get a hold of him and arrest him for, also, minor in possession of alcohol by consumption.”
Poulter was also implicated for giving false information to a police officer, Milne said, because he gave the officer a false name when Robson caught up with him.
According to Robson, Poulter said he had been drinking with Lewis in Lewis’s car. Robson said he received a search warrant for Lewis’s car and discovered marijuana upon searching the vehicle.
Robson said he then went back and arrested Lewis for possession of a controlled substance. He said he took both students to the Cache County Jail on separate charges. Both men were later released on bail.
When the USU Police receive a call about alcohol misuse, Milne said their first priority is a person’s safety.
“If they’re passed out and that intoxicated, there may be a life concern for them, and we need to get them medical attention,” he said, adding that students should notify the police immediately if they suspect alcohol poisoning.
Ryan Barfuss, prevention specialist for the Student Wellness Center, said students should try to arouse someone who is unconscious before calling the police.
“Don’t double guess yourself by thinking they’ll sleep it off — they’ll be all right in the morning, because we’ve had instances here on campus where they thought that and the student wasn’t alright in the morning,” Barfuss said.
Barfuss said there are several symptoms of alcohol poisoning. He said people suffering from alcohol poisoning will usually smell like alcohol and possibly vomit, be passed out, have slurred speech and be cold and clammy.
South Campus Residence Director Matthew Colpitts said Housing officials are not at liberty to discuss specific students living in Housing facilities.
“We follow the USU policy,” Colpitts said. “However, drinking does occur on campus from time to time. Housing students are both accountable to both the student code as well as the housing rules, in addition of course to the law.”
Colpitts said students under 21 receive harsher consequences than a student legally old enough to drink alcohol. He said policy is to educate students on alcohol consumption, not necessarily to punish them.
“An underage student has an automatic required referral to the Student Wellness Center to do an alcohol and drug assessment,” Colpitts said. “Also, they are required to follow up on any recommendations that that office makes.”
Students old enough to drink legally may also have to complete some educational sanctioning to stay in good standing with housing, but they aren’t always required to go through a drug and alcohol screening, Colpitts said. He said other circumstances are considered, including how much alcohol was consumed and whether or not the individual was driving while drunk.
– chris.w.lee@aggiemail.usu.edu