It is no secret that violent crime has been escalating in the areas surrounding Old Dominion University. There is something very odd, however, when one decides to publicly declare intentions of mass-murder (generally, psychopaths don’t confess before they even act). What is it that makes relatively young and otherwise normal students lash out in anger? Furthermore, what are we doing to address the ever-growing number of young Americans who exhibit aberrant behaviors correlated with mental or psychological disorders? In recent years, there have been several threats of violence and “false-alarm” bomb threats at O.D.U., two of which we examine in this section. The incidents involving Brandi Barnes and Tyler Bergeron have been two of the more sensationalized cases at O.D.U. in the past year, but the media coverage was limited and many students have been left with bits and pieces of rumor. As such, we thought it would be good to revisit these two cases and report on any subsequent developments.

While the outcomes of these cases have yet to be decided in court, another case was recently settled as O.D.U. officially declared their strict no-gun policy. This was around the time Ken Cuccinelli decided that state universities must honor concealed carry permits. The issue is still being fought out in appeals, but this has not stopped O.D.U. and several other universities from renewing their safety policies to explicitly prohibit weapons. Given our nation’s recent escalation in mass-shootings– particularly on college campuses –we felt it appropriate to finish this section with an examination of the no-weapons policy at O.D.U. and the facts surrounding the concealed carry debate

Brandi Barnes Bomb-Threat

Tyler Bergeron Case

Gun Control and O.D.U. Policy