ALCOHOL POLICY

LSUHS seeks to encourage and sustain an academic environment that both respects individual freedom and promotes the health, safety, and welfare of all members of its community.  In keeping with these objectives, LSUHS has established a policy governing the possession, sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages on LSUHS property which conforms to Louisiana State Law.  The university does authorize alcoholic beverages on campus for sanctioned events complying with state law.   

LSUHS complies with all federal and state laws which regulate the sale and use of alcohol.  The university neither condones nor shields from prosecution any individual found in violation of the Louisiana Alcoholic Beverage Control laws.  Possession or consumption of alcoholic beverages on property owned or controlled by LSUHS is prohibited.  Underage possession and/or consumption of alcoholic beverages on property owned or controlled by LSUHS is prohibited. Intentionally or knowingly selling or intentionally or knowingly "furnishing" alcoholic beverages to persons under the age of 21 or to persons obviously inebriated is not permitted on property owned or controlled by LSUHS. 

LSUHS UPD is authorized to enforce liquor law violations as police officers deem appropriate.  In dealing with violators, police officers are authorized to:

DRUG POLICY

LSUHS complies with all federal and state laws which prohibit the use, possession, and sale of illegal drugs.  The university is a drug-free zone under Louisiana law and will not shield any student, employee or visitor from action by civil authorities.  Any person known to be possessing, using, or distributing such illegal drugs is subject to disciplinary action and possible arrest, imprisonment or fine according to Louisiana State Law.

LSUHS UPD is authorized to enforce drug violations as police officers deem appropriate.  In dealing with violators, police officers are authorized to:

WEAPONS POLICY

The use of weapons by UPD personnel is governed by state law and departmental regulation. In compliance with Louisiana State Law, the introduction of a weapon on the grounds or in the facilities owned or controlled by LSUHS and Ochsner LSU Health Shreveport is prohibited and the following statues apply on campus and hospital grounds:

Louisiana Law Revised Statute 14:95.2(A) Carrying a firearm or dangerous weapon by a student or non-student on school property, at school-sponsored functions, or in a firearm-free zone is unlawful and shall be defined as possession of any firearm or dangerous weapon, on one’s person, at any time while on a school campus, on school transportation, or at any school-sponsored function in a specific designated area including but not limited to athletic competitions, dances, parties, or any extracurricular activities, or within one thousand feet of any school campus.  A firearm is defined as any pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun, machine gun, submachine gun, or assault rifle, which is designed to fire or is capable of firing fixed cartridge ammunition or from which a shot or projectile is discharged by an explosive.  A dangerous weapon is defined as any gas, liquid or other substance.

Louisiana Law Revised Statute 14:402.1(A) Taking of contraband to hospitals unlawful; penalty.  It shall be unlawful for any person to introduce or attempt to introduce into or upon the grounds or buildings of any hospital or related facility, except through regular channels as authorized by the administrator of the hospital, any of the following articles which are hereby declared contraband for the purposes of this Section, namely: Any intoxicating beverage or beverage which causes or may cause an intoxicating effect, any controlled dangerous substance that has not been prescribed or recommended in accordance with the Uniform Controlled Dangerous Substances Law at R.S. 40:961 et seq., and any firearm or other instrumentality customarily considered a dangerous weapon possessed by a person who is prohibited from possessing the firearm or instrumentality pursuant to state or federal law.

LSUHS UPD is authorized to enforce weapon violations as police officers deem appropriate.  In dealing with violators, police officers are authorized to:

The Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act of 2000 (CSCPA), signed into Law October 28, 2000, amends the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act. 

CSCPA provides special requirements relating to registration and community notification for sex offenders who are enrolled in or work at institutions of higher education. In addition to Wetterling, the Act also amended the Clery Act and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974.

As provided in the Wetterling Act, any person required to register under a state sex offender registration program must notify the state as to whether the person is a student or works at an institution of higher education, identify each institution of higher education in that State at which the person is employed, carries on a vocation, or is a student and must also alert the state of any change in enrollment or employment status.

Louisiana State Police maintains the Louisiana Sex Offender and Child Predator Registry (SOCPR) for the State of Louisiana and is responsible for the enforcement of the applicable sections of law cited above. Information about any individual affiliated with LSU Health Shreveport in regards to this matter may be found at the public SOCPR website: http://www.lsp.org/socpr/default.html.

LSU Health Shreveport University Police receives notification emails from Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office any time a new offender moves in within 1 mile of the campus.

Domestic Violence

Domestic Violence includes felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence committed by a current or former spouse or intimate partner of the victim, by a person with whom the victim shares a child in common, by a person who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse or intimate partner, by a person similarly situated to a spouse of the victim under the domestic or family violence laws of the state of Texas, or by any other person against an adult or youth victim who is protected from that person’s acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the state of Texas.

It can happen to couples who are married, living together or who are dating. Domestic violence affects people of all socioeconomic backgrounds and education levels.

Abuse is a repetitive pattern of behaviors to maintain power and control over an intimate partner. These are behaviors that physically harm, arouse fear, prevent a partner from doing what they wish or force them to behave in ways they do not want. Abuse includes the use of physical and sexual violence, threats and intimidation, emotional abuse and economic deprivation. Many of these different forms of abuse can be going on at any one time.

Domestic violence can happen to people of all ages, races, ethnicity, and religions. It occurs in both heterosexual and homosexual relationships. While it is important to remember that we all have different cultural practices, beliefs, and experiences that shape our view of what intimate relationships look like, everyone deserves to feel safe and respected.

No one deserves to be abused. Abuse is never the victim's fault! If you have been the victim of dating or domestic violence, you are not alone. Help is available.

Dating Violence

Violence committed by a person who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim. The existence of such a relationship shall be determined by the victim with consideration of the following factors:

1. The length of the relationship;
2. The type of relationship; and
3. The frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship

Dating violence includes, but is not limited to, sexual or physical abuse or the threat of such abuse.  It does not include acts covered under the definition of domestic violence.

Controlling behavior may include:

• Not letting you hang out with your friends
• Calling or texting you frequently to find out where you are, whom you're with, and what you're doing
• Telling you what to wear
• Having to be with you all the time
• Waiting outside of your classes to see what you’re doing and with whom you are talking

Verbal and emotional abuse may include:

• Calling you names
• Jealousy
• Belittling you (cutting you down)
• Threatening to hurt you, someone in your family, or himself or herself if you don't do what he or she wants.

Physical abuse may include:

• Shoving
• Punching
• Slapping
• Pinching
• Hitting
• Kicking
• Hair pulling
• Strangling

Anyone can be a victim of dating violence. Both men and women are victims, but males and females often abuse their partners in different ways. Females are more likely to yell, threaten to hurt themselves, pinch, slap, scratch, or kick. Males injure their partners more and are more likely to punch their partner and force them to participate in unwanted sexual activity.

If You Are a Victim of Dating Violence, You Might…

• Think it's your fault.
• Feel angry, sad, lonely, depressed, or confused.
• Feel helpless to stop the abuse.
• Feel threatened or humiliated.
• Feel anxious.
• Not know what might happen next.
• Feel like you can't talk to family and friends.
• Be afraid of getting hurt more seriously.
• Feel protective of your boyfriend or girlfriend.

Sexual Assault

 An offense that meets the definition of rape, fondling, incest, or statutory rape: 

-Rape:   the penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.

 -Fondling:  The touching of the private body parts of another person for the purpose of sexual gratification, without the consent of the victim, including instances where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of age or because of temporary or permanent mental incapacity.

-Incest:  Sexual intercourse between persons who are related to each other within the degrees wherein marriage is prohibited by law.

-Statutory Rape:  Sexual intercourse with a person who is under the statutory age of consent.

While sexual assault can be perpetrated by a stranger, it is more commonly committed by someone the victim knows, such as a friend, boyfriend/girlfriend/partner, or acquaintance.

Sexual assault is always the fault of the perpetrator and not the fault of the victim! Whether or not the victim has been drinking is irrelevant. The victim’s previous sexual activities, behaviors, actions, and/or dress is also irrelevant. No one deserves to be the victim of sexual assault.

If you have been victimized, you are not alone.

If You Are a Victim of Sexual Assault, You Might:

• Feel afraid, ashamed, angry, sad, lonely, betrayed, or depressed.
• Feel guilty and confused if you knew or had a relationship with the attacker, even though the assault was not your fault.
• Feel like you have no friends or that your friends won't believe you.
• Want to hurt someone else or yourself.
• Feel like taking steps to defend yourself.
• Feel helpless to stop the assault.
• Feel hopeless about whether anything can be done.
• Be afraid to go anywhere that the attacker might be.
• Feel anxious all the time.
• Feel bad about yourself or your body.

Stalking

Stalking is a crime. The US Justice Department defines stalking as engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for safety or the safety of others, or suffer substantial emotional distress¹.  For the purposes of this definition:

• Course of conductmeans two or more acts, including, but not limited to, acts in which the stalker directly, indirectly, or through third parties, by any action, method, device, or means, follows, monitors, observes, surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about a person, or interferes with a person’s property
• Reasonable personmeans a reasonable person under similar circumstances and with similar identities to the victim
• Substantial emotional distressmeans significant mental suffering or anguish that may, but does not necessarily, require medical or other professional treatment or counseling

Stalkers often try to intimidate, harass, and control their victims. They may do this in several ways. The behavior may start slowly and escalate. For instance, a stalker may begin by calling once or twice a day and progress to calling several times a day, following you, and waiting for you outside of classes or work.

Anyone can stalk or be stalked, regardless of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, ability, or income level. Stalking may involve family members, friends, intimate partners, classmates, coworkers, casual acquaintances, or even total strangers.

Most often, stalkers know their victims. Most female victims and many male victims are stalked by intimate partners. Stalking is most dangerous when it occurs as part of an abusive relationship. An attempt to end an abusive relationship often causes the abuser to become more possessive and can sometimes lead to stalking.

Online Stalking

Cyber stalking is the use of the Internet, email, or other telecommunication technologies to harass, threaten, or intimidate another person. It is an extension of stalking from physical space to cyberspace.

A cyber stalker is someone who methodically, deliberately, and persistently sends unwanted communications that do not stop even after the victim has requested that he or she end all contact with the victim. Cyber stalking may take many different forms. A cyber stalker may:

• Use the Internet to identify and track the victim
• Send unsolicited email, including hate mail or obscene or threatening messages
• Post messages about the victim or spread rumors about the victim through newsgroups
• Create websites that provide real or false personal information about the victim
• Assume the victim’s identity online (i.e., in chat rooms, instant messages, or email) to embarrass the victim, to pry into the victim’s personal life, or for other negative purposes

GET HELP

When LSU Health Shreveport receives a report of power-based violence, the Title IX Coordinator will determine whether the alleged conduct falls within the scope of power-based violence or Title IX Sexual Harassment. 

Power-based violence/abuse includes sexual violence, dating violence, domestic violence, stalking, sexual harassment, or any form of interpersonal violence intended to control or intimidate another person through the assertion of power over them. Abusive behavior can take many forms and be physical, psychological, or both.

Power-Based Violence includes the following:

Power-based personal violence is committed by…

• Strangers
• Friends
• Acquaintances
• Intimates
• Family

9 in 10 victims of rape and sexual assault know their offender