After a phone call was made to the Georgia Tech Police Department about a ‘suspicious individual’ on campus, officer Tyler Beck shot and killed 21-year-old senior Scout Schultz. The caller was later identified as Schultz who held a multipurpose tool when four officers reported to the scene.
Many at Georgia State University reflect on the fatal incident, wanting to ensure that an incident does not happen again.
Joseph Spillane, Chief of Police for the Georgia State Police Department, reflects on the police department’s going forward.
“It’s a tragedy whenever something like that happens on campus or anywhere,” Spillane said.
“We have to just reflect on what are we are doing on our campus, could have it been prevented, what can we do to prevent future incidents like that. And are we doing enough?”
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation found that Officer Beck did not undergo Crisis Intervention Training before reporting to the scene. Spillane said more could be done by officers along with the training.
“I think the best way to resolve or solve most of these problems is to get as much training as you can,” Spillane said. “Be as much as trained up you can on everything from Crisis intervention to tactical de-escalation techniques. All the things we are trying to do to make sure we can actively protect the campus.”
Sarah Saintius, a junior at Georgia State University, said officers should reconsider their job if they cannot handle it.
“You can’t play that ‘I was in fear of my life card because you know what the job entails,” Saintius said. “You know that working this job your life is on the line every day. That’s a part of being a police officer.”
Schultz who was near graduation lived with mental illness. Jill Lee-Barber, the Chief Psychologist at Georgia State’s Counseling and Testing Center, says mental health needs to be a priority among students.
“I’m hopeful that over time we look at the source of the suffering is not being a mental illness that is not inherently present with sexual minorities, but that we can live well in a world that is not well,” Lee-Barber said.
Schultz was president of Georgia Tech’s Pride Alliance.
Taylor Trimble, co-president of the Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity at Georgia State, is addressing mental health by building a community of support.
“For the meeting, we started with a discussion about coping mechanisms both negative and positive and ended it with a game where we passed around a different colored balls where whatever students it landed with we able to speak about something they’re going through whether it be self-confidence or trying to navigate school,” Trimble said.
Officer Beck is on paid leave while pending investigation by the GBI.
Note: This story was written for PRN, the student-led news station at Georgia State University.
