Drinking
continued from page 8B
goodness you’re here.” Your guests
still face MIP citations, but at that
point, you have to fall into damage
control mode. Announce that the
cops are coming and let them fend
for themselves.
In order to enter a residence, the
police need two things, according to
Gilliam.
“We have to have exigent circum
stances [reason to believe that an
immediate response is necessary]
and we have to have probable
cause,” he said. “Probable cause
means more likely than not, some
body’s committing a crime. That’s
not good enough. If we see a minor
in possession inside a house
through a window, we can’t just
{ { There’s not a lot of
room to argue that the of
ficers shouldn’t be in
there. Don’t debate or
banter. Things like 7 know
my rights’and ‘My father’s
a lawyer’are like fighting
words for the Eugene po
lice. They seem to like to
punish people for stuff like
that.
Ilona Koleszar
attorney with
ASUO Legal Services
rush in and grab the person.”
Koleszar said that her interpreta
tion of when police are allowed to
enter a private residence differs
from that of the EPD. Eugene police
have maintained that a party where
alcohol is being served to apparent
minors constitutes exigent circum
stances, and allows them to enter
the premises. Municipal courts gen
erally side with the EPD on this is
sue.
“There’s not a lot of room to argue
that the officers shouldn’t be in
there,” Koleszar said. “Don’t debate
or banter. Things "like ‘I know my
rights’ and ‘My father’s a lawyer’ are
like fighting words for the Eugene
police. They seem to like to punish
people for stuff like that. ”
Try as best you can to keep other
guests from engaging with the offi
cers. It only takes one loose mouth
to escalate the situation.
The police will find a reason to
enter the house, and they are al
lowed to do so through force, if nec
essary. Koleszar recommends that
you lock up tight if the police arrive.
“I always recommend that you
don’t open the door, and get away
from the door because it could come
flying back at you,” she said.
Koleszar said that police will pre
fer to enter in a way as to imply the
consent of the residents. If the door
is open, front or back, they will walk
in. They can later claim that it was
an “open party” and that they felt
free to come in. They can attempt to
coerce a guest into inviting them in,
through either threats or offers of le
niency. They can force their wav
through the door when it is opened
to allow a guest to leave. A door
hanging off the hinges trumps all
claims of consent.
“It eliminates that ‘yes he did/no I
didn’t’ kind of argument, which the
officer will generally win in court,"
she said.
This won’t get you off the hook,
but it will force the police to justify
the need for the forced entry, which
could play in your favor.
So, there you are: locked in a
smoke-filled house with blankets
over the windows and the music off,
waiting for the cops to bust down
your door. Some party.
“I’ve heard stories about some of
the younger officers and the things
that they did in their youth and be
fore they got out of college,”
Koleszar said. “Now they’re out
there enforcing the rules that cer
tainly some of them broke. I’m not
suggesting that because they got
away with it, they should let some
one else get away with it. I would
just hope that they could recall their
youth and keep things in perspec
tive.”
Gilliam, when asked the age at
which he had his first taste of beer,
said “Aw, man. I don’t want to an
swer that question. You’re putting
me on the spot.”
Gilliam also said that there is a
high degree of alcohol abuse among
many police departments, but said
that he has arrested too many peo
ple for DUII and seen too many fa
talities involving alcohol while on
the job.
“Let’s just say that I no longer
drink.”
Tenant rights
continued from page 6B
lowed.
When it came to signing her new
lease, Stedman was prepared. “I
read the OSPIRG Renters’ Rights
Handbook,” she said.
After reading her rights Stedman
said she felt more secure about not be
ing taken advantage of in the future.
“There are so many rights I did
n’t know I had — everyone should
know this stuff,” she said.
Jordan Bennett, a pre-business
major, encountered problems with
a rental company but stood her
ground. “I signed a lease and paid
my fees but two months later they
started adding fees to my lease that
I had already signed,” she said.
Bennett, however, knew her
rights and refused to pay. “I let
them know that what they were do
ing was wrong and they dropped
the fees,” Bennett said. “They just
wanted to scam me.”
Miani said students can avoid al
most all conflicts by knowing their
rights and recommended that all
students get the Renters’ Rights
Handbook. OSPIRG can be contact
ed at 346-4377.
“I get the feeling, sometimes
landlords are counting on students
not putting up a fight,” Miani said.
Student tips on how
to avoid problems
while renting
“Take pictures of everything when
you move in and when you move
out.”
—Judy Kratochvil, undeclared
“Pick a reliable roommate and sign
separate leases to avoid roommate
problems.”
—Glen Phillips, physics
“Make sure your parents will give
you money to pay for any repairs.”
—Grace Foreman, psychology
“ Read your lease and keep your pa
pers and make copies of every
thing.”
— Meghann McKinley, journalism
"If you’re going to move into a
place, write down everything that’s
wrong and have the landlords sign
the paper as proof. ”
— Chris Demaske, Ph.D.
“Go with a smaller company and do
your research.”
—Jordan Bennett, pre-business
“Don’t get elected house manager
and don’t put your name on any of
the bills, then nothing is your fault.”
— Becca Richards, communications
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