Brown University is facing mounting questions over its campus security policies following Saturday's fatal shooting.
Emergency sirens never sounded and students waited nearly 20 minutes to receive an alert warning them of the danger, The Washington Free Beacon reported.
Campus police unions had already issued votes of no confidence in university leadership, raising concerns about emergency response capabilities, staffing levels, and morale within Brown's Department of Public Safety.
According to Providence fire officials, the shooting was reported at 4:05 p.m. when an officer observed students fleeing from an academic building.
Yet Brown students did not receive a campuswide alert until 4:22 p.m., according to the Rhode Island Current.
Rodney Chatman, Brown's director of public safety and emergency management, attributed the lack of sirens to the chaotic nature of the unfolding crisis, saying officers were focused on responding to the scene after recognizing the threat firsthand.
From there, the university sent a confusing series of alerts that were later revised or retracted.
At 4:51 p.m., Brown informed students that a suspect was in custody — a claim it walked back roughly 20 minutes later.
A 5:27 p.m. alert warned of a second shooting, but a follow-up message at 6:10 p.m. said that report was "unfounded."
Security experts say the situation highlights the difficult balance universities face when responding to emergencies.
Rob Kilfoyle, president of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators, said best practices generally recommend issuing an initial alert within five to 10 minutes of learning about a credible threat.
However, he noted that colleges have grown more cautious amid a rise in false shooter reports and "swatting" incidents this fall.
"The first priority is making sure law enforcement is aware and can get to the scene," Kilfoyle told The Washington Post.
Kilfoyle said campus safety leaders are constantly balancing security with the educational mission.
"That's probably one of the toughest things that we have to do in campus public safety — find that equilibrium between not wanting it to seem oppressive and too restrictive, but also providing sufficient security," he said.
Saturday's attack occurred during a final exam review session for an economics course, with roughly 60 students inside a lecture hall when a gunman opened fire.
Two people were killed and nine were injured. The suspect remains at large.
The shooting has renewed attention on internal tensions within Brown's public safety department. Chatman joined the university in 2021 after his predecessor resigned amid calls from student activists to abolish campus police.
In recent months, the department has faced repeated complaints from officers who say leadership failed to adequately disclose information about bomb and shooting threats on campus.
The Brown Daily Herald reported in April that officers felt their concerns were dismissed by department leadership.
In October, Brown's Security Patrolperson's Association became the second campus police union in as many months to issue a vote of no confidence in Chatman and Deputy Chief John Vinson.
In a statement, the union said the department's decision to reduce the number of field officers while expanding administrative roles "directly contributed to an all-time low in morale" and strained the department's ability to serve the university community.
Brown's campus remains largely open to the public, without fences or access barriers, unlike some other urban universities.
Schools such as Harvard and Columbia restricted campus access during recent protests tied to the Israel-Gaza war, but Brown chose to remain open.
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