U-M police ask man to stop approaching women on campus and asking them on dates
University of Michigan police made contact with a man believed to have made unwelcome advances to female students in the North Campus area and asked him to stop.
Courtesy of U-M Police
Police spokeswoman Diane Brown said Thursday that police talked to one man and said his behavior was not criminal.
“We identified one individual, spoke with him, told him he was making people uncomfortable with his behavior and asked him to stop,” Brown said.
All of the reports were made to Housing Security and no police reports were filed, Brown said. Women reported a man coming up to them, saying they were pretty and asking them out on a date. On more than one occasion, the man attempted to kiss the women.
Brown said none of the women wanted to file police reports and there was no element of a crime in any of the incidents.
However, Brown said the individual who has been identified may not be the only person who has approached women on campus in a similar way. She said the man who police talked to mainly spoke with women in the North Campus area, but other reports of similar behavior have come from Central Campus as well.
“It’s unlikely that it was one individual,” Brown said.
Kyle Feldscher covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kylefeldscher@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
racerx
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 2:13 p.m.
Dude. Wrong place. First go to any campus bar, buy the woman a drink first. Then ask her out. Only difference he wasn't in a bar!
Jon Wax
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 1:03 p.m.
blame parents. they keep raising their kids to be sissies. and then when something "Scary" happens the kids freeze up like a deer in headlights. Peace Wax
RFD
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 12:38 p.m.
With all the incidents of sexual assault, inappropriate attacks of 'groping, etc on the UM campus, and city streets, how would you advise your daughters, sisters to handling these types of potentially dangerous encounters. This is a sincere question. Also I would asked those heterosexual males who think this is an over reaction on the part of these young women, how they would react to unwelcome and unsolicited offers of dates and kisses, by these guys?
Bertha Venation
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 12:36 p.m.
So, is that ol' Georgie Porgie at it again???
nickcarraweigh
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 12:13 p.m.
College town eccentric, or guilty at least of generally vile behavior? The right to be yourself versus the right to be alone. This one's got Supreme Court decision written all over it.
buvda fray
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 11:40 a.m.
Just stunning. Man asking women on dates requires police intervention on a college campus. Further stunned by the fact that the guy is imperfect in his technique and tries to kiss a girl while asking her out and this makes it a police case. This poor dude is a dork and he is busting a move he saw in a movie or on TV and it's not working. His dad was absent or didn't explain things very well. Same with girls - they were going off to college and someone needed to explain that there are also males present and some of them are dorks. End of story. Cops not needed.
Paul Wiener
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 11:10 p.m.
Since no description was offered the public, how do we know it was a man? How did the women know?
Kyle Feldscher
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 2:13 p.m.
Paul - In the initial story yesterday, there is a description of the man. I didn't find it necessary to put it in this story when he is being cleared of any criminal action.
buvda fray
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 11:41 a.m.
In the filed report, it was noted that he was humming the tune to "Dude looks like a lady."
Phil H
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 10:07 p.m.
@PaprikaZ I've had complete strangers ask me out on dates. It's not psychologically scarring, it's annoying, and you don't call the police to get somebody to stop annoying you. With that in mind, what effect does my not being female have on the validity of my arguments?
a2xarob
Mon, Jun 17, 2013 : 6:43 p.m.
You're probably right, Phil. The fear of rape does probably make us more likely to be concerned/scared to death when we are approached in a lonely place, as N Campus can be sometimes.
Phil H
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 9:05 p.m.
This is so ridiculous. I wish I could say I'm aghast at this, but this is Ann Arbor we're talking about: the city where Political Correctness rules. A man in that city can't grow up without having the cops busting down his door for hurting some woman's feelings. Can you imagine what it's like for little boys to grow up in a place like that? a2scio, you need to get some perspective. Also, you need to stop treating women like they're these poor helpless pixies who can't do anything for themselves against teh big bad menz.
M-Wolverine
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 1:07 p.m.
@Paprika Z Well, it probably depends on where that stranger is asking you out (a bar, or party? Or as you're jogging down the street?), and who it is doing the asking: http://youtu.be/gBVuAGFcGKY
southyoop
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 1:41 a.m.
better get a gun pap - oooohhhh that is not allowed....
Paprika Z
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 9:10 p.m.
Clearly, Phil H, you've never been female. It's no fun to have a stranger come up to you and ask you out. Who knows what he will try next? And to have a stranger try to kiss you? That's totally inappropriate. It's not a question of being a helpless pixie, it's a question of being safe.
Chris Doemer
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 8:59 p.m.
This is silly. People need to grow a back bone. As if it's against the law to be awkward.
DannnyA
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 8:49 p.m.
Ummmm, who cares?
a2scio
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:42 p.m.
Some of these comments are offensive. I see sensitivity training in your futures. Any unwanted conversation or unwanted physical contact needs to be taken seriously, criminal or not.
a2xarob
Mon, Jun 17, 2013 : 6:38 p.m.
Phil H - How do you know "that's usually all it takes?" That is not true in my experience, but that is a sample size of only one. You?
DBH
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 10:37 p.m.
OK, Craig, I agree with your point as well. I remain puzzled, though, how the authorities fail to perceive this as a possible assault, given the reported attempts to kiss some of these women. It certainly appears to consist of the women feeling they were under threat of offensive contact (see my first post in this thread, 3rd comment in).
Craig Lounsbury
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 6:36 p.m.
DBH, I appreciate your point. My point wasn't the nuances of assaults and or batteries it was the notion that "unwanted conversation......needs to be taken seriously" is problematic as the first amendment probably protects "your pretty would you lie to go out with me? " .
DBH
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 3:12 p.m.
Craig, check your definitions of assault and of battery. Simply put, assault is the perception of a threat, battery is the actual unwanted physical contact. They are 2 different components and each can occur without the other. Of course, they can occur together. In this case, at the most this guy would be at risk for being charged with assault since there was no physical contact reported.
Craig Lounsbury
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 12:48 p.m.
unwanted physical contact is assault or assault and battery. Unwanted "conversation" needs to cross a pretty serious threshold to surrender its 1st amendment protections.
ThinkingOne
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 10:45 p.m.
a2scio The police located the individual and questioned him and warned him to stop. How is this not taking it seriously? Are you disappointed he wasn't taken downtown and booked? And 'any unwanted conversation' - really? Not just something threatening or sexually explicit, but ANY unwanted conversation? Someone walks by and says 'Nice day, isn't it?' and you get all offended because you think it 's a bit too chilly? Normally I get a kick about people complaining about Ann Arbor sensitivities; but I've got to say I just don't get this one.
Phil H
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 10:12 p.m.
No it doesn't, the people at the receiving end just need to grow a backbone and tell the others to leave them alone. That's usually all it takes.
Jon Wax
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 9:36 p.m.
comedy ain't pretty. Peace Wax
Paul
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:28 p.m.
Ashame these gals just can't talk him down at his own game. Bet those Vegas gals could handle him, lol
Paul
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:24 p.m.
I heard for every 10 U ask, one says yes
djacks24
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 3:25 p.m.
Just like the old saying, if you are planning on a party for 10 invite 100.
Eep
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:26 p.m.
Yes, the one that is actually crazier than you.
treetowntenor
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:24 p.m.
Just another form of panhandling, I guess.
Paul
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:25 p.m.
Lol
whojix
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:13 p.m.
What's the penalty for unwanted social interaction these days?
John of Saline
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:23 p.m.
As your company's HR department.
sidwally
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:09 p.m.
Guys asking girls out on a college campus... really shocking behavior... this is absolutely ridiculous.
ddjames
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:19 p.m.
You don't go up to a complete stranger and ask them out on a date. Agreeing to such a thing means you exchange personal phone numbers, emails, addresses, type of car you drive, etc. It's just not safe to do so. That is the reality of living in 2013.
ffej440
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 6:57 p.m.
Must have seen the vid on Youtube "put your number in my phone"
DBH
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 5:35 p.m.
"Police spokeswoman Diane Brown said Thursday that police talked to one man and said his behavior was not criminal." "On more than one occasion, the man attempted to kiss the women. Brown said none of the women wanted to file police reports and there was no element of a crime in any of the incidents." Were the attempts to kiss the women considered not to be criminal in nature simply because none of them wanted to file a report? It strikes me as fitting the definition of assault: "an intentional act by one person that creates an apprehension in another of an imminent harmful or offensive contact." See http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/assault
Katie
Fri, Apr 26, 2013 : 1 p.m.
DBH- I felt the same thing when I read this statement. These women should report him, because next time it might not just be a kiss he wants.
Paul
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 7:26 p.m.
Its border line. I bet if he keeps it up, he get arrested on something.
A
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 5:09 p.m.
How bad does your game have to be that the cops have to tell you "just stop bro"
Bcar
Thu, Apr 25, 2013 : 5:05 p.m.
shotgun method?