Weekly DPS Criminal Report

Every week I will publish an analysis of the criminal activity committed by DPS as reported in the "DPS Reports" section in the Marquette Tribune. The first criminal action committed by DPS was on March 7 when they used surveillance cameras to track down a student who had committed vandalism. Since vandalism is a misdemeanor, and since DPS was not present at the scene of the crime it did not have the legal right to follow nor to detain the student. The next crime occurred on March 11, when DPS followed an individual who stole a car from a Marquette University parking lot. While DPS did have the legal right to detain the individual on Marquette University property, if the DPS officer saw the crime being committed. However, since the crime was observed through a video monitor, according to Circuit Court rulings in both Forgie-Buccioni vs. Hannaford Bros. and City of Everett v. Rhodes viewing criminal actions both on tape and live on video monitors does not constitute being present for the commission of a crime. As such, DPS was not present and its following of a suspect until it got a Mliwaukee Police officer to arrest the suspect, was an action which was outside of its legal bounds. On March 17 DPS stopped a car for driving through a red light, a municipal offense, then contacted MPD and had the driver arrested for OWI. While OWI is a serious enough offense to allow for citizens arrest in Wisconsin, DPS did not stop the driver for OWI, but rather for running a red light. Again DPS forgets its role as a private security force that has absolutely no legal jurisdiction and cannot under any circumstances act as a police force. A simple rule of thumb regarding DPS is that if an average citizen cannot act in any particular manner, then DPS cannot either. Since one cannot act as a one man police force, neither can DPS. Remember, do not fear DPS nor obey them, you are all free citizens and should never bow before private security forces and their supposed law enforcement actions.