CO U R I ER Pasadena City College
Serving PCC Since 1915
October 1, 2015 VOLUME 112 ISSUE 04
ONLINE EXCLUSIVES AT PCCCOURIER.COM
Keely Damara/Courier Jett Even (left) and Nate Degraffinreaidt run a play during Lancers football practice on Tuesday evening, Sept. 29 at Pasadena City College’s Robinson Stadium.
Lancers football players arrested, accused of robbery and assault Kristen Luna Editor-in-Chief
Two Lancers football players are back on the field after being arrested before Saturday’s game on suspicion of assaulting and robbing a local Pasadena man. Quarterback Jett Even, 19, and wide receiver Nathaniel Degraffinreaidt, 20, were taken into custody and booked along with Pasadena resident Taije Glenn-Ackles, 25, on suspicion
of armed robbery and assault, police said. According to Ricardo Santiago, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, prosecutors intend to charge Degraffinreaidt but those charges have not yet been filed. Citing insufficient evidence, Santiago said that Even and Glen-Ackles will not be charged. The alleged incident took place on Sept. 14 in the 300 block of South Sierra Madre Boulevard where police responded to a report
of a 20-year-old assault victim, Pasadena Police Lt. Mark Goodman said. The victim was transported to the hospital and questioned by detectives, who learned he had also been robbed. Citing an ongoing investigation, coaches and administrators would not say whether Even or Degraffinreaidt would face any discipline related to the arrests. They were each seen on the field practicing Tuesday afternoon.
“As a result of an ongoing Pasadena Police Department investigation, the college can not comment on this matter,” said Superintendent-President Rajen Vurdien in a statement. Degraffinreaidt, Even and football coach Thom Kaumeyer all declined to comment. According to sheriff ’s booking records, Even posted $50,000 bond and was released late Saturday while Degraffinreaidt posted bond and was released Sunday night. Glen-Ackles is still in custody.
PCC’s hit-and-run problem PCC ranks Rachel Ho Staff Writer
“How to be Brave”
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English professor invites students to join her for book launch at Vroman’s
Chocolate, CHOCTAL!
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Pasadena-based ice cream pays homage to indigenous cultures
Men’s soccer lose again PAGE 8 Lancers lose seventh game in a row, this time failing to Mt. SAC
At least nine cases of hit-and-run have been reported in PCC parking lots since the beginning of the fall 2015 semester, according to Campus Police blotters, although it is likely that there have been many more of such incidents that have gone unreported. The first two weeks of school are typically when most hit-and-runs occur, after which students tend to become more acquainted and “familiarized with the traffic in the parking structures, thus lowering [the frequency of] these types of incidents,” said Steven Matchan, Interim Chief and Director of PCC Police and Safety Services. Such was the case for Kimseang Chea, who has already been rendered a victim of hit-and-run twice by the third week of school this semester. These incidents left a dent and scraped a significant portion of paint off his car. He was unable to claim insurance as he did not have any information about who the culprit was, and the car remains unrepaired to this date. Judging from hearsay, he didn’t file a report with Campus Police because he did not believe that it would help matters. “I don’t feel okay at all,” Chea said. “The car is not new, but you just park your car and someone hits you…” How does Campus Police handle hit-and-run reports? “We will gather and document the victim’s name, vehicle information, insurance information
and the location of the vehicle when it was struck,” Matchan said. “We will ensure this information is documented in the dispatch log and review video of the area. If we are unable to identify a suspect and if there is no video, we will [still] document that information in the dispatch log.” If information about the suspect is provided when the report is filed or if a suspect is found via investigation, Matchan added that video footage from surveillance cameras in the area would be reviewed, saved as evidence and shown to the victim. “Once we have identified a suspect, we will complete a report and pursue a criminal filing,” he said. Whether a victim is allowed to view video footage of the hit-and-run is subject to video availability. Penalties for hit-and-run culprits may include receiving a misdemeanor citation, paying fines, paying for the victim’s damages, and in more severe cases, going to court. Khuong Nguyen had his car hit twice in Parking Lot 5 earlier this spring in another case of hit-andrun. The car, which he had owned for less than a year, was hit once in the “front of the driver’s side” and once in the “rear of the passenger’s side.” A large area of one of the back wheels was also damaged. Although he did not report the case to Campus Police as he was in a rush to attend an appointment, Nguyen believes that they would have solved the case because they have access to security camera footage in the parking structures. Given the prevalence of hit-and-runs at PCC and the ramifications it can have on the victims,
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number one in AA degrees Keely Damara Managing Editor
Pasadena City College ranks as the number one community college in the state for awarding associate’s degrees, according to a recent report. In a Community College Week analysis of data collected by the U.S. Department of Education, PCC ranks at the top of 113 state community colleges and 22nd in the nation in the number of associate’s degrees awarded. PCC awarded 2,589 associate’s degrees in 2013-2014, a 57 percent increase from the 1,646 degrees awarded in 2012-2013. “I think that it shows the commitment of our faculty to ensuring that students are successful and learning the things they need to learn in their classes,” said Kathy Scott, associate dean of academic affairs. In addition, PCC ranks first in the state and 7th in the nation in awarding associate’s degrees to minorities. Cynthia Olivo, associate vice president of student services, said that the significant increase in both the number of degrees awarded
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