STUDENT ARRESTED AFTER CAUSING DISTURBANCE WITH NERF GUN
Bridgewater State University student, Christopher Tutkus was arrested on Friday, November 15, after entering the Maxwell Library and causing a disturbance.
According to the Brockton Enterprise, more than one person dialed 911 when they saw Tutkus go into the library with what appeared to be a rifle.
Police began a search of the library. In an effort to locate the suspect, the fire alarm was pulled and the library was evacuated. Officials arrested Tutkus when he left the building.
“Upon arrest it was learned that the gun was a Nerf gun wrapped in a dark cloth,” said Bridgewater State Police Chief David Tillinghast.
According to Tillinghast, Tutkus was charged with disorderly conduct, disturbing the peace and possession of a knife.
Tutkus was found to be in possession of a folding knife about seven inches long. He also told officials he was carrying the Nerf gun because he was a participant in a campus wide Humans vs. Zombies game.
Tutkus was released in court on $2,500 bail, according to Tillinghast. He was also ordered to stay away from the campus for the weekend.
Tutkus declined to comment for this story.
According to humansvszombies.org, the game involves moderated tag, and it is played on campuses, military bases, at camps, and neighborhoods around the globe.
“Humans vs. Zombies has been on this campus for seven years and we have always assisted the campus whenever there has been an issue,” said Tom Springford, one of the moderators for Humans vs. Zombies at Bridgewater State. “The game is played on campuses worldwide. We have been nothing but cooperative with police.”
Bridgewater State student, James Lind, told the Brockton Enterprise that Nerf guns are used by most players of the game. However, the toy guns must be referred to as “blasters” and cannot be modified.
Jennifer Christensen is a Comment news writer. Email her at jchristensen@student.bridgew.edu.
While I appreciate that The Comment tries to keep the student body informed about important events happening on campus, I would love to see them get their facts straight before running an article like this that could potentially damage someone’s reputation. I happen to be very close to this situation and know the victim personally, and there were a number of serious errors in this article that could have been easily corrected. First, there was only one call to the police, plus a concerned faculty member who was serving as a mediator between the police and the frightened student. Second, the Nerf blaster (they are not allowed to refer to them as ‘guns’ on campus) was not wrapped in a cloth, it had a bright blue bandana tied around the only grey part of the blaster in order to let people know that it was not a real weapon. The rest of the blaster was bright blue and orange, and it was approximately three feet long. Third, and most important, the knife itself only had a 3.25 inch long blade, which (according to the attorney) is within Massachusetts legal limits, and the victim used it at his on-campus job. It was a folding blade that can be purchased at Wal-Mart, and when unfolded (and taking into account the handle) it is indeed approximately seven inches long, but because the blade is the only part of the knife that matters in terms of the law, I feel that that should have been specified. I’m sorry that this whole situation got so blown out of proportion, but I would love to see an article run in The Comment that tells the story with all of the facts intact. Thank you for your time, I just felt the need to let you know that some of your sources apparently didn’t have accurate information.