October 22, 2013 | The Miami Student

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The Miami Student Oldest university newspaper in the United States, established 1826

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2013

VOLUME 141 NO. 15

MIAMI UNIVERSITY OXFORD, OHIO

TODAY IN MIAMI HISTORY In 1948, The Miami Student announced the homecoming king and queen to be Mary Riley and Paul Brinkman. It was the first time in the event’s history the results of the campus-wide vote were released early to ensure press photographers a chance to capture a shot of the royalty on the day of their reign.

Unders identify ways to fake-out the legal system BY REIS THEBAULT CAMPUS EDITOR

TAYLOR WOOD, KATIE TAYLOR, DAMIEN WATSON THE MIAMI STUDENT

THE HAWKS GO MARCHING IN Miami Activities Planning (MAP) holds an array of school spirit events to welcome home alumni during the 2013 homecoming week.

Miami University sophomore *Jerry George walks down High Street, stopping to let his glassy eyes linger on The Wood’s bar. Bombastic bass leaks out and drifts down the street, creating the soundtrack for a typical Saturday night out. As he approaches, two lines confront Graham. He confidently chooses the left and presents his driver’s license to a burly bouncer who nods, returns the ID and sends him through to a second bouncer who outfits his right arm with a bright blue wristband. Graham is in. What those two bouncers do not realize is that Graham’s Illinois driver’s license, listing his birth year 1991, is off by two years. The 19-year-old just used a fake ID. Researchers working with the University of Missouri and the Midwest Alcoholism Research Center (MARC) found in a study published in 2010 that Graham is far from alone. Of the 1098 college students surveyed, 21 percent admitted to having a fake ID of some kind. Furthermore, the study read that one in three of those students are caught using them. Police officers and bar bouncers, as well as students, report a drastic improvement in the authenticity of fake driver’s licenses. Miami University’s prominent bar scene compels underage students to look past the consequences of being caught with a fake ID. At most bars Uptown, under 21-year-olds are charged a $5 cover fee, while those 21-andup get in for free. “It saves time and money,” Graham said. “I looked at [getting a fake ID] as an investment and I thought to myself, ‘$70 up front [for the ID] would save me $5 every time I go out, so that would pay itself off really quickly.’ And it’s more convenient and allows you to buy alcohol without having to ask someone else to do it for you.” To Graham, the risk-reward ratio tips heavily in his favor. “I use it every time I go out, so three times a week on average,” Graham said. “It works every time.”

Getting Them The same survey, “Methods of fake ID obtainment and use in underage college students” breaks down how those 230 underage students obtained their fake IDs. According to the survey, only 36 percent of students buy their fake ID, while the rest get them from a relative or friend. The difference is that a purchased ID, typically from a website or some other dealer, is not a valid license. A relative’s or friend’s old ID is valid and comes complete with a valid license number that matches the license’s information, something that not even the best fake IDs can accomplish. Graham chose to have a fake ID made, saying that one with his actual picture would be more effective at the bars. Sergeant Gregory Moore of Oxford Police Department (OPD) said finding a way to obtain a fake ID is not difficult. “Just like being 19 years old and trying to get yourself a 30pack of Natty Light, it’s just as easy nowadays to get a fake ID,” Moore said. “If you don’t know somebody, you probably know somebody who knows somebody.” Graham followed that exact path to obtain his fake ID. “I got it from a friend of a friend who goes to [Ohio University],” Graham said. “I never met him before and I took a pretty big

risk. I sent money in a birthday card to his dorm address, and I paid $70 for one ID and had to provide my picture and information and he shipped it to me.” The Miami University Police Department (MUPD) works with the Department of Homeland Security to monitor packages coming to and leaving the Campus, according to MUPD Detective Walt Schneider who works with Homeland Security to limit fake ID use. “Homeland Security is constantly monitoring those things,” Schneider said. “I had one package that had 28 IDs in it and we ended up arresting the kid that ordered them.” ID Chief, a foreign website, was a popular source for these shipped IDs. “ID Chief is based out of China and it’s an American citizen that’s running the company and he’s made millions of dollars selling IDs and getting people arrested,” Schneider said. The website, however, is no longer active, forcing underage students to seek other ID manufacturers as Graham has. Using Them The same survey, “Methods of fake ID obtainment and use in underage college students” depicts the ways in which the 21 percent of students use their fake IDs.

FAKE ID,

SEE PAGE 8

*Name changed to protect source from legal or employment ramifications.

JAKE BRENNAN MANAGING EDITOR

Data taken from a 2010 study by the University of Missouri and the Midwest Alcoholism Research Center.

Oxford residents lament as student rentals take over Mile Square BY CHRIS CURME COMMUNITY EDITOR

“We got surrounded.” This is how Oxford resident Warren Mandrell described his family’s situation on Oberlin Court in 2006 as the neighboring homes, once family dwellings, became Miami University student rental properties. They were nearly the last to leave. “It used to be, when we first moved there [in 1995], the entire little neighborhood was pretty much families,” Mandrell said of the small neighborhood off Main Street. “Wooster, Oberlin Court, Rose and unconnected Poplar

were all regular people.” According to Mandrell, when the first house on the edge of the neighborhood was sold and became a student rental, the rest fell like dominoes. “The guy that owned it just up and sold it as a student rental, which was a disappointment,” Mandrell said, adding he believed the owner could have easily sold to a family. “Everyone in the neighborhood had said to everyone else, ‘if you want to move, let us know, because we know people who want to buy a house in the neighborhood, because it was close to campus, nice and quaint.”

The new, young neighbors made their presence quickly known. “The people that lived next to them all of a sudden had people parking in their yard,” Mandrell said. “They had people throwing beer cans in their yard and had people driving 40 miles per hour down this little tiny street with their daughter trying to ride her bike.” This was enough for some, Mandrell said, and families quickly began pulling out. “You know, with parties next door, they get pissed off; they move,” Mandrell said. “The

resident of the neighboring house had her windshield broken out twice. And she got mad and then she moved. It was a domino effect, and the next people would get mad and pull out.” The problems quickly crept into the heart of the neighborhood, according to Mandrell, which once was a playground for at least nine kids. “The people next to us kept getting mad because the people across on Main Street would have these really, extraordinarily loud music parties until four or five in the morning,” Mandrell said. “She kept calling the police,

and they never really did anything. Finally they got pissed off and they left.” Mandrell said as the years went by and the students got nearer, the vandalism got worse. Throughout the final three years, he said the family was actively looking for a new place to live. “We had a fence around the backyard and they would kick in the fence,” Mandrell said. “It was like a weekly thing, repairing the fence. I don’t know why, but they would just kick the fence down,

RENTALS, SEE PAGE 3


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