Madison area police officers are still investigating the whereabouts of 19-year-old Jesse Miller, who allegedly called a Dane County Crisis Center Tuesday claiming he wished to commit suicide or be killed by police.
The University of Wisconsin Police Department and the Madison Police Department are working together to locate Miller, although police do not consider him to be a "threat to the campus community at large," according to UWPD Sgt. Ben Newman.
UWPD Officer Jeffrey Ellis said investigations are ongoing and university police are very involved in the process, though no progress has occurred since Tuesday when the phone calls linked to Miller were first received.
Ellis said investigators are looking into the possibility of tracking the location of the cell phone the calls originated from, though he is not sure how long that would take.
UW senior Gestina Sewell, Associated Students of Madison Student Council Chair, praised the methods used by UW and how emergency e-mails were sent to most UW students.
University Communications also used Facebook, in addition to updates on the UW website, to send students messages, in efforts to more effectively disseminate the emergency alert Tuesday.
"The police did respond in a fairly quick manner that allowed students to know what's going on," Sewell said. "We hope that this young man gets help somehow, and we're thankful that the university did take precautions and the situation didn't become a situation that may have been harmful, not only to himself but others."
Sewell said ASM is working with university officials to improve security on campus and expand initiatives like the Campus Neighborhood Watch program.
"Safety is a great concern of ours, and it has been something we've been working with the university, the Office of the Dean of Students and the campus police," Sewell said.
UW junior Kelly Arendt, ASM campus safety campaign chair, said this fall the Campus Neighborhood Watch program will expand to include neighborhoods south of Regent Street and near State Street.
Last spring, the program was only a pilot, Arendt said, and this semester it will have six teams watching over three different neighborhoods.
More details on the Campus Neighborhood Watch program will be discussed during the program's kickoff Friday, Oct. 5, at Memorial Union.
