The first of three candidates for the director of public safety position at Ball State shared her experiences and philosophies during two open forums, Tuesday morning. Topics such as salaries and benefits, national trends in crime, and leadership styles were discussed. However, she stopped short of naming specific goals for the University Police Department.
Linda Stump, chief of the Purdue University Police Department, told each audience of about 30 people that she wasn't familiar enough with the University Police Department to start setting any goals. She did describe the University Police Department, as she has found during the interview process, as a very dedicated staff; one that is ready to move forward from last year's controversies.
But because of pending litigation, Stump also refused to talk in detail about the sexual discrimination lawsuit at Purdue that, at one point, named her as a defendant. She was later cleared of the charges by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
"I have the full support of (Purdue's) administration," Stump said.
Stump did discuss concerns of hers, such as the need for less-lethal forms of weapons - such as rubber bullets - to give to officers as an option other than reaching straight for their gun.
She told audience members that the University Police's current position reminded her much of Purdue's a few years ago. In fact, some audience members questioned her about why she would leave Purdue to come to Ball State.
"I'm not afraid of messes," Stump said. "I'm not afraid of challenges. I love Ball State."
But her answer didn't satisfy everyone in attendance. After the forum, patrol officer Rebecca Baer continued to question Stump's motivation for leaving a larger school where things seem to be going right to come to Ball State.
"She didn't really answer the question," Baer said.
Stump, an alumna of Ball State, has been in the law enforcement field for more than 17 years. She was a trooper for the Indiana State Police for one year and served the Purdue University Police Department for eight years before becoming Purdue's chief of police. Besides attending Ball State, she has also trained at the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy, the F.B.I. National Academy and Purdue University.
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