When do Gustavus students have limited immunity when they booze?

Create a More Connected Minnesota

MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.

Ida Momennejad via Flickr

He's wasted and needs a doc. Who has immunity?

Gustavus Adolphus College is considering a rewrite of its policy on "limited immunity," which protects from prosecution students who "have been drinking or using drugs when they seek help from safety or health staff for themselves or others."

It's designed to let students get medical attention without fear of repercussions.

It sounds like a good idea, but apparently suffers from a lack of clarity about exactly whom it protects and under what circumstances.

Senior Communication Studies Major and Intern for the Dean of Students Office Lacey Squier tells The Gustavian Weekly student paper:

“There is definitely a continuum of interpretations, and we’re not on the same page. The policy just isn’t clear. Some people would say just the caller gets limited immunity. Some people would say the person who needs medical attention could get limited immunity. It’s hard to know what situation merits limited immunity."

(Note: Quote was incorrectly attributed to Associate Dean of Students Deirdre Rosenfeld. In any case, I've got a call in to the associate dean to get more info on what prompted the review. Concrete incidents? Complaints?)