Over the fall break, two Northwest students from out of state were arrested and charged with felony and malicious mischief after vandalizing several buildings and vehicles on campus.
John Bivins, a freshman from Rivera Beach, Fla., and Jarrell Miller, a freshman from Richmond, Va. were arrested on Oct. 13 after allegedly spray-painting obscenities on the president’s home, 11 vehicles, the John Deere Agricultural Technology Building, and
on the structure underneath the visitor’s side of the football stadium.
The vandalism on the president’s home, which is currently under construction, was painted over a few days after the vandalism took place.
According to Northwest Chief of Police Al Dodson, it will be a while before the college knows how much the total damages will cost.
“We have to consider the cost of the paint to cover the vandalism, as well as the man hours that it will take to get the damages fixed,” he said.
Four of the vehicles painted on were those of students, and one of them belonged to staff member. The other six vehicles were Northwest vehicles. Dodson said that insurance companies usually cover damages such as vandalism on vehicles.
The two were arrested and charged with felony malicious mischief. If convicted, they face having to pay up to a $10,000 fine, as well as up to five years in prison. Dodson says that the two will also have to pay restitutions for the damages once the total cost for repairs is known.
Miller was a defensive lineman for the Northwest Rangers’ football team. Bivins was a red-shirted freshman on the football team, but had found a place on the Ranger’s Men’s basketball team.
In high school, Bivins was ranked as the number five recruit in the Palm Beach area in 2007, and was the region’s Defensive Player of the Year during the 2007 football season.
The vandalism that occurred over the fall break is the second major occurrence of vandalism on campus this semester. A few weeks prior to this occurrence, someone also vandalized a wall near Yalobusha Hall and at the Fine Arts Building. Dodson said that campus police believe the two acts of vandalism are unrelated, given the differences in the appearance of the images.
On Thursday, Oct. 30 Bivins and Miller went before the court for their preliminary hearing. The judge waived the preliminary hearing, so the trial will be bound over to the action of the grand jury.
While the District Attorney has not released it’s 2009 schedule yet, Chief Dodson says the grand jury will probably meet sometime in February.
Dodson said that the next step is to present the case to the grand jury in order to get an indictment.
Dodson reported that both of the young men did have attorneys with them at the preliminary hearing, and that the judge reduced their bond from $35,000 to $20,000.
“Northwest Community College has a zero tolerance policy for vandalism,” Dodson said. “This kind of activity will not be allowed, and the campus police will deal with all vandals the same. These two young men were arrested and jailed for their actions, and anyone else caught vandalizing school property will be punished the same way.” |
