GPSS IN THE NEWS
As the representative body for 11,000 graduate and professional students, GPSS is often in the news, both on campus and off. Members of the Press are encouraged to contact the GPSS President for interviews.
UW SHUT CASE DAYS BEFORE SHOOTING
Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Author: Ruth Teichroeb
Date: May 17, 2007
University of Washington police shelved their brief investigation of Jonathan Rowan five days before he fatally shot Rebecca Griego at her University of Washington office on April 2, then killed himself.
After an initial attempt to locate Rowan, the detective "inactivated" the case on March 28, barely two weeks after Griego first reported that her ex-boyfriend had threatened her life during calls to her Gould Hall office, according to police records.
"I think that's a problem," said Merril Cousin, executive director of the King County Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
"Cases with that sort of threat should get assessed. They treated it like just a case of telephone harassment."
Police should have recognized the red flags in the case, from Rowan's increasingly violent behavior to his alcoholism and suicide threats, Cousin said.
UW Assistant Police Chief Ray Wittmier said his detective followed normal procedure by inactivating the case when Rowan couldn't be found.
"There weren't any other leads to follow up," Wittmier said.
"Typically it just comes down to workload. You do as much as you can with the logical possibilities. ... It didn't turn out the way anyone wanted."
Griego first turned to UW police for help on March 15 when she phoned to report that Rowan had told her to "watch your back, and I'm gonna kill you." He made the threats during calls to her office on March 7 and March 14.
The day after calling police, Griego, a 26-year-old UW graduate who worked for the College of Architecture and Urban Planning, gave them Rowan's photo and a copy of the temporary protection order that she obtained from King County Superior Court on March 6. Her petition for the order described how Rowan hurled glass candlestick holders at her, tackled her to the floor and punched her in early January. The next month, he threatened suicide, she wrote.
The protection order had not been served because her stalker had evaded the Seattle Police Department detective charged with the task -- something that is actually quite common. Seattle police say they weren't able to serve about 40 percent of the 1,076 civil protection orders they received from the court last year, in most cases because the subject could not be found. Seattle police have the primary responsibility to serve protection orders within the city.
Rowan, 41, was moving frequently and using pay-as-you-go phones, Griego told UW police.
Fearing for her life, Griego made it clear she wanted Rowan to be prosecuted when he was found. She also went back to court and had the temporary order reissued when it expired after two weeks.
On March 22, a UW detective ran Rowan's name through Department of Licensing records and found a Ballard address. He checked a law enforcement database and discovered Rowan had a warrant on a 2006 drunken-driving charge. Once located, police could have arrested him on that warrant.
The detective called Griego, who said Rowan had moved from the Ballard address. She said Rowan was not a U.S. citizen and was here illegally.
On March 28, the detective wrote: "As of this writing, Griego has not received further contact from Rowan. Case inactivated."
Without contact information for Rowan, the Seattle Police Department was not obligated to try to serve Griego's protection order. The court expects victims who can't provide such information to arrange privately for the order to be served by a relative or friend.
But Seattle police Assistant Chief Nick Metz said two detectives in his domestic violence unit routinely follow up on every protection order they receive, regardless of whether addresses are provided.
Officers check Department of Licensing records and a law enforcement database and will track down any leads provided by a complainant. They'll stop by places an abuser hangs out or stop by a job site. But police can't forcibly enter a residence or access credit card records when serving a civil order, he said.
In Griego's case, a Seattle police detective went to Rowan's last known address on March 13 but found no one home. "I know we left a business card in hopes he would get it," Metz said. The next day a resident called back to say Rowan had moved.
The detective also checked back with Griego on March 27, but she had no new contact information for Rowan.
Sometimes an abuser can evade service simply by not answering the door, said Sandra Shanahan, supervisor of the Protection Order Advocacy Program of the King County Prosecutor's Office.
"That is our big obstacle -- when you don't know where somebody is but the threats are large," Shanahan said.
About one-third of temporary protection orders are not served during the two-week period they are valid, according to court statistics. A victim must then return to court and ask that the temporary order be re-issued. A temporary order must be served before a victim can seek a permanent protection order.
Oregon courts make it easier for victims by issuing temporary protection orders for up to one year, she said. An abuser has 30 days after being served to ask for a court hearing to challenge the order.
Safety planning is crucial when an abuser has dropped out of sight. Griego moved to a safer location, worked from home, asked her co-workers to alert her if Rowan showed up and reported his threats to police, Shanahan said.
"Rebecca was a very capable person who did try to use the system," Shanahan said. "He's the part you can't control."
No one knows whether Rowan would have been deterred by a protection order, she said. But such orders do work for many victims.
A 2002 UW study by Victoria Holt and co-researchers found that women with permanent protection orders suffered less physical violence from male partners than those without such orders.
Griego didn't get a chance to find out.
Rowan tracked her down at the one place he knew she'd be: her workplace.
In the aftermath of her slaying, university officials said that UW police and Griego's boss failed to notify a campus workplace violence-prevention assessment team about Rowan's threats.
"They failed to follow their own protocol in terms of increasing security at her workplace," said Cousin, of the domestic violence coalition.
What police and other officials missed was the big picture, Cousin said. "There were a lot of clues that this guy was really dangerous."
TIMELINE IN GRIEGO KILLING
MARCH 6: Rebecca Griego obtains a temporary protection order, citing Jonathan Rowan's abusive behavior.
MARCH 7: Rowan calls Griego at her Gould Hall office and threatens her life.
MARCH 13: Seattle Police Department detective tries to serve protection order at Rowan's last known address.
MARCH 14: Rowan phones Griego again at work and repeats his threat.
MARCH 15: Griego reports the threats to University of Washington police.
MARCH 16: Griego delivers photos of Rowan and the unserved protection order to UW police.
MARCH 20: Griego goes back to court to get her protection order renewed.
MARCH 22: UW detective runs address checks on Rowan and discovers DUI warrant; no current contact information.
MARCH 27: Seattle police detective asks Griego if she has any new contact information on Rowan.
MARCH 28: UW detective deactivates case.
APRIL 2: Rowan kills Griego and himself in her office.
After an initial attempt to locate Rowan, the detective "inactivated" the case on March 28, barely two weeks after Griego first reported that her ex-boyfriend had threatened her life during calls to her Gould Hall office, according to police records.
"I think that's a problem," said Merril Cousin, executive director of the King County Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
"Cases with that sort of threat should get assessed. They treated it like just a case of telephone harassment."
Police should have recognized the red flags in the case, from Rowan's increasingly violent behavior to his alcoholism and suicide threats, Cousin said.
UW Assistant Police Chief Ray Wittmier said his detective followed normal procedure by inactivating the case when Rowan couldn't be found.
"There weren't any other leads to follow up," Wittmier said.
"Typically it just comes down to workload. You do as much as you can with the logical possibilities. ... It didn't turn out the way anyone wanted."
Griego first turned to UW police for help on March 15 when she phoned to report that Rowan had told her to "watch your back, and I'm gonna kill you." He made the threats during calls to her office on March 7 and March 14.
The day after calling police, Griego, a 26-year-old UW graduate who worked for the College of Architecture and Urban Planning, gave them Rowan's photo and a copy of the temporary protection order that she obtained from King County Superior Court on March 6. Her petition for the order described how Rowan hurled glass candlestick holders at her, tackled her to the floor and punched her in early January. The next month, he threatened suicide, she wrote.
The protection order had not been served because her stalker had evaded the Seattle Police Department detective charged with the task -- something that is actually quite common. Seattle police say they weren't able to serve about 40 percent of the 1,076 civil protection orders they received from the court last year, in most cases because the subject could not be found. Seattle police have the primary responsibility to serve protection orders within the city.
Rowan, 41, was moving frequently and using pay-as-you-go phones, Griego told UW police.
Fearing for her life, Griego made it clear she wanted Rowan to be prosecuted when he was found. She also went back to court and had the temporary order reissued when it expired after two weeks.
On March 22, a UW detective ran Rowan's name through Department of Licensing records and found a Ballard address. He checked a law enforcement database and discovered Rowan had a warrant on a 2006 drunken-driving charge. Once located, police could have arrested him on that warrant.
The detective called Griego, who said Rowan had moved from the Ballard address. She said Rowan was not a U.S. citizen and was here illegally.
On March 28, the detective wrote: "As of this writing, Griego has not received further contact from Rowan. Case inactivated."
Without contact information for Rowan, the Seattle Police Department was not obligated to try to serve Griego's protection order. The court expects victims who can't provide such information to arrange privately for the order to be served by a relative or friend.
But Seattle police Assistant Chief Nick Metz said two detectives in his domestic violence unit routinely follow up on every protection order they receive, regardless of whether addresses are provided.
Officers check Department of Licensing records and a law enforcement database and will track down any leads provided by a complainant. They'll stop by places an abuser hangs out or stop by a job site. But police can't forcibly enter a residence or access credit card records when serving a civil order, he said.
In Griego's case, a Seattle police detective went to Rowan's last known address on March 13 but found no one home. "I know we left a business card in hopes he would get it," Metz said. The next day a resident called back to say Rowan had moved.
The detective also checked back with Griego on March 27, but she had no new contact information for Rowan.
Sometimes an abuser can evade service simply by not answering the door, said Sandra Shanahan, supervisor of the Protection Order Advocacy Program of the King County Prosecutor's Office.
"That is our big obstacle -- when you don't know where somebody is but the threats are large," Shanahan said.
About one-third of temporary protection orders are not served during the two-week period they are valid, according to court statistics. A victim must then return to court and ask that the temporary order be re-issued. A temporary order must be served before a victim can seek a permanent protection order.
Oregon courts make it easier for victims by issuing temporary protection orders for up to one year, she said. An abuser has 30 days after being served to ask for a court hearing to challenge the order.
Safety planning is crucial when an abuser has dropped out of sight. Griego moved to a safer location, worked from home, asked her co-workers to alert her if Rowan showed up and reported his threats to police, Shanahan said.
"Rebecca was a very capable person who did try to use the system," Shanahan said. "He's the part you can't control."
No one knows whether Rowan would have been deterred by a protection order, she said. But such orders do work for many victims.
A 2002 UW study by Victoria Holt and co-researchers found that women with permanent protection orders suffered less physical violence from male partners than those without such orders.
Griego didn't get a chance to find out.
Rowan tracked her down at the one place he knew she'd be: her workplace.
In the aftermath of her slaying, university officials said that UW police and Griego's boss failed to notify a campus workplace violence-prevention assessment team about Rowan's threats.
"They failed to follow their own protocol in terms of increasing security at her workplace," said Cousin, of the domestic violence coalition.
What police and other officials missed was the big picture, Cousin said. "There were a lot of clues that this guy was really dangerous."
TIMELINE IN GRIEGO KILLING
MARCH 6: Rebecca Griego obtains a temporary protection order, citing Jonathan Rowan's abusive behavior.
MARCH 7: Rowan calls Griego at her Gould Hall office and threatens her life.
MARCH 13: Seattle Police Department detective tries to serve protection order at Rowan's last known address.
MARCH 14: Rowan phones Griego again at work and repeats his threat.
MARCH 15: Griego reports the threats to University of Washington police.
MARCH 16: Griego delivers photos of Rowan and the unserved protection order to UW police.
MARCH 20: Griego goes back to court to get her protection order renewed.
MARCH 22: UW detective runs address checks on Rowan and discovers DUI warrant; no current contact information.
MARCH 27: Seattle police detective asks Griego if she has any new contact information on Rowan.
MARCH 28: UW detective deactivates case.
APRIL 2: Rowan kills Griego and himself in her office.