SPORTS: No. 4 Softball hits the road for California (ONLINE) The University of Oklahoma’s independent student voice since 1916
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Norman PD to use body cameras Video recording will protect officers as well as civilians MIKE BRESTOVANSKY Assistant News Editor @BrestovanskyM
The Norman City Council approved a budget of $750,000 to equip all Norman police officers
with body cameras during Tu e s d a y ’s c i t y c o u n c i l meeting. The cameras will be implemented six to eight weeks from now, said Tom E a s l e y , No r ma n Po l i c e Department spokesperson. “The camera never lies,” Easley said. “[The cameras] will not only help protect citizens, but also protect officers from different
kinds of allegation.” Daniel Holland, a member of the Student Government Association’s external affairs committee, said that the city council greeted the plan with nearly universal support. “After the Ferguson and Er i c Ga r n e r ca s e s, t h i s can prevent officers from doing anything morally reprehensible or illegal,”
Holland said. Holland, constitutional studies freshman, said the cameras will be worn by animal control officers and any officer who will interact with civilians. Easley called the camera system a “grand experiment,” saying not every officer will be issued a camera at first. Instead, the plan will be implemented
gradually as the police department grows more accustomed to the devices. The department already has policies in place for recording, storing and accessing the data, Easley said. While the cameras will not be active at all times, officers will be required to activate them during enforcement actions. “It’s not as simple as just
turning on a cell phone camera,” Easley said. Videos captured by the cameras will be open to the public under the Oklahoma Open Records Act, Easley said. Mike Brestovansky mcbrestov@gmail.com
Second provost applicant to speak today
BOUNCING BACK
Candidate to talk about background, hopes for OU MIKE BRESTOVANSKY Assistant News Editor @BrestovanskyM
BRADY VARDEMAN/THE DAILY
Rachel Wolansky (left) and Lucy Gauthier, members of the OU Equestrian Team, ride horses Friday at Takeoff Farms in Washington, Oklahoma.
Fire can’t stop equestrian team BRADY VARDEMAN • ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR
O
klahoma Equestrian coach Amanda Eggleson was awakened by the sound of her dogs barking early in the morning on Jan. 14. She peered out the window to discover two sheriffs’ cruisers in her driveway, and she heard banging on the door. Just yards from the house, her barn was on fire. “It’s not what you would expect when you open your door at four in the morning,” she said. By that point the fire had already engulfed most of the barn, and the officers would not let Eggleson out of her house. Nonetheless, she screamed for the officers to let her near the barn-her horses were inside.
Abby and Jimmy, died of smoke inhalation before the barn collapsed. The barn fire left OU’s fledgling Equestrian Team without most of its equipment less than two weeks before its next show. Despite the hardship, the team worked together and competed better than ever before. A month after the fire the team is making strides to find their “new normal,” Eggleson said.
After the fire
Although the emotional toll from the fire was hefty, the financial hit loomed, as well. Each lost horse was valued near $50,000. Then there were the destroyed “I think they were politely trying to let me know riding saddles and other tack. that it was too late,” she said. “There was nothing The equestrian community quickly that could be done.” jumped in with donations, Eggleson Eggleson lost thousands of dollars in the fire, said. from riding saddles—which can cost anywhere from a few hundred to well over $1,000— and SEE HORSES PAGE 2 other tack, to horses themselves. Horses Lovie,
Lectures give students view of Western frontier “Teach-in” to show glimpse of past education in U.S. DAISY CREAGER News Reporter @daisycreager
for the American Constitutional Heritage, the event will consist of a series of lectures by the authors and historians in the Paul F. Sharp Concert Hall of Catlett Music Center. Here’s a schedule of events:
Two Pulitzer Prize• 9:30 a.m. — “The winning authors and four historians will speak March Great Coincidence: The 9 at the day-long “Teach-In California Gold Rush and the Re-Making of America.” on the Western Frontier.” Hosted by the Institute
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• 10:30 a.m. — “Water in • 4 p.m. — “The Frontier, the West” The American Dream and the Role of Public Higher • No o n — “ T h e Wo r s t Education in the Future” Hard Time”in Oklahoma panel discussion Memorial Union’s Molly Shi Boren Ballroom • 5 p.m. — “The Frontier, The American Dream and • 2 p.m. — “Oklahoma, the Role of Public Higher the West and the World” Education in the Future” panel discussion • 3 p.m. — “American West” • 6:30 p.m. — “Fear, War and American Expansion,
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1803-1821” A question and answer period will follow each presentation, according to the website. The event is open to the public, but attendees must RSVP on the Teach-in website for each lecture they would like to attend. Daisy Creager Daisy.C.Creager-1@ou.edu
The second candidate for senior vice president and provost will hold his open forum for OU students and faculty tomorrow morning at the Sandy Bell Gallery at Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art. The candidate, John Wiencek, is currently the interim provost and vice president for academic affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University. Wiencek said he will discuss why his background makes him well-suited for the position of provost, and about how he hopes to improve the OU community if he is appointed. "I've spent most of my career working at [Association of American Universities] universities," Wiencek said. "So I'm looking for an opportunity to lead at a fine university like [OU]." The Association of American Universities is an organization composed of the top 60 research universities in the nation, including some of the best universities in California, as well as Ivy League institutions, Wiencek said. Wi e n c e k s a i d h e w a s drawn to OU because of its broad range of available majors and its medical campus. "Oklahoma could do a better job bragging about itself," Wiencek said. Wiencek said that, if he is appointed, he hopes to work at developing a shared vision among departments and students at OU. Wiencek's open forum will take place at 9 a.m. tomorrow at the Sandy Bell Gallery in the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art. The free event is open to all students, staff and faculty. Mike Brestovansky mcbrestov@gmail.com
CORRECTION In Wednesday’s story “Provost candidate forums continue,” the forum with John Wiencek actually takes place today.
OU YAK OF THE DAY “Don’t forget to use the promo code ‘Netflix’ to get 30% off your next midterm.”
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