The resolution passed unanimously in a 19-0-0 vote, and placed several demands on the mayor, city council, and police department of Troy. The resolution also called for the Dean of Students Office, President Shirley Ann Jackson, and the entire administration to act as advocates on behalf of students by publicly acknowledging students’ rights.

While the meeting was open to the public and attended by Mayor Mark Pattison and Troy’s Public Safety Commissioner Mark Whitman, the meeting was not widely publicized by the Institute or the Senate.

In his opening remarks Smith, stated confusion over the exact demands made by the Senate on the Dean of Students Office, “I don’t know exactly which student rights are being violated.” He went on to say the meeting would give student leaders a chance to address the issue.

Smith and the Institute’s legal counsel stressed that any student rights that RPI students enjoy do not supersede ordinances passed by the city whether they are on or off the campus.

Vice President of Student Life Eddie Knowles, representing President Jackson, touched on the breakdown in the relationship between students and their neighbors.

“There is a problem when it has reached the point where the neighbors feel they need to call the police on students. For the first time [in the] 26 years that I have been here, we have had our students arrested. I am concerned not about the law but what I am concerned about is what we are doing in managing positive relationships.”

Pattison expressed a willingness to work with students, but before the meeting added, “The Senate did not have to pass this resolution to get our attention.” City Council President Harry Tatunjian also extended an invitation to the Senate but said it was obvious that the Resolution was passed without anyone contacting any officials in City Hall.

Grand Marshall Chris Mather disagreed with Pattison’s assessment at this week’s Senate meeting. “There is consensus from the outside that passing the resolution caused some fire, but by passing the Resolution we forced this issue to be addressed.”

Knowles expressed embarrassment and anger at the Senate’s action.

“I am embarrassed to sit here tonight. The Senate has made a resolution without [the Institute’s] knowledge. This issue concerns violations of the law. The senate and the Institute should be one on this issue,” said Knowles.

Although representatives from Troy and the Institute were asked to keep their initial opening remarks under two minutes, the time limit was often exceeded. City and Institute representatives also touched on the effects an arrest could have on future employment prospects. Several student leaders expressed frustration at not knowing how to proceed following a noise complaint.

“The ordinance places responsibility on the individual. An organization can not be sent to court, therefore the leader of that organization is responsible for everything the organization does,” stated the Institute’s legal advisor.

The legal advisor also revealed that because of the way in which the noise ordinance was amended, the standard now applied to a noise violation is defined based upon the responding police officer’s judgment.

“Once the threshold is met, it is legal for the police to make an arrest. This could be based on the characteristic of the noise, its intensity, and the effect it has on neighbors in causing the annoyance. It is indeed a broad definition since ‘reasonable’ is interpreted differently by different people,” concluded the legal advisor.

Senators present at the meeting agreed that Troy representatives admitted that enforcement of the recently amended ordinance has been increased. Troy Public Safety Commissioner Whitman countered that the ordinance is not being discriminately applied to RPI students in areas near campus but across the city.

Whitman went on to express the views he has received from neighbors and police officers.

“Enough is enough—it has come to the time to clean up this mess. The police will respond when a complaint has been made. When the police come to a house, the house will get a point. When there’s litter, a point will be taken. Same goes for alcohol and weapons—points will be taken. A ticket means more than a ticket.”

In one its longest meetings of the year the Senate, this week, considered passing another resolution, calling on students to behave more responsibly. Senator Michael Dillon, author of the previous resolution, opposed the move. While the resolution had significant support, the Senate lost quorum before the resolution came to a vote.

The noise ordinance was amended in the past year after the Republican party gained control of the City Council. According to Council President Tatunjian, a Republican, the Council felt police officers needed more effective tools in responding to quality of life complaints. The Council has also pushed for the elimination of the Public Safety Commissioner position currently held by Whitman. The position was created by current Mayor Mark Pattison, a Democrat. The position oversees Troy’s fire and police departments.

A little over two years ago Pattison pushed the Nuisance Abatement ordinance through the Democratically controlled City

Council. The ordinance assesses points on properties for actions that are deemed “nuisances” and is part of a citywide quality of life initiative. The Nuisance Abatement

ordinance mirrors an ordinance adopted by the Rochester City Council.

The Council authorized enforcement action by the Mayor if 12 points or more are accumulated in less than six months or 18 points or more over the course of a year. Violations of criminal law carry eight points, property maintance and occupancy limits carry four points, and littering, noise, fighting, lewdness, and disorderly property carry three points.

Another quality of life initiative—inspired ordinance is the ordinance commonly called the “spitting ban.” The ban allows the Troy Police to arrest citizens for spitting in public. The “spitting ban” generated controversy when the NAACP discovered early this semester that five of the six citizens ever arrested for violating the ordinance were young African-American males.