Bad judge of character

Dear Editor:

I am writing in response to the actions and articles of police and writers regarding the events of the last week’s arson investigation and the arrest of Andrew Hicken.

SMU PD and Captain Snellgrove are going to ruin the life of my best friend because of their need for a scapegoat. Last week there was a fire in Shuttles Hall, and upon investigation, they were led to my door, because some friends of mine and myself were in the wrong place at the wrong time. None of us did it, but because one of my friends, Andy Hicken, is not a student, he was blamed and mistreated because of it.

I have known Andy since September when a friend of mine invited him to come visit, and we, the residents of Shuttles, never let him leave. He has become, over the last four or so months, my best friend, and very good friends with almost everyone in the dorm. He needed a place to crash and there are enough empty beds in Shuttles to house half of sorority row, so when he needed help we welcomed him with open arms.

A lot of people outside Shuttles think that he lived with me for four months and was a nuisance. Snellgrove called Andy “a criminal trespasser … and a clear and present danger (to SMU).”

Andy was a better resident of Shuttles (or any residence hall, for that matter) than most of the students at SMU. If there was a hall meeting, Andy was there; if there was a hall function or party, he was doing his best to make the function more fun for everyone. He played on intramural teams with us. He treated the Residence Assistants and our hall director with the utmost respect. When hall evaluations were passed out to every student, Andy received one too. Shuttles resident Shannon Schmidt says of Andy: “He is a sweetheart, and he cares about Shuttles. He was just like any other resident, [but even more] he contributed to the community life in Shuttles and he was really the essence of Shuttles life.”

Andy is a great person and not a “clear and present danger.” But the SMU hierarchy of finger pointing needed a scapegoat. When they questioned me about my whereabouts at the time of the fire, I made my official statement. They asked to talk to Andy and immediately ran his name. It was very similar dialogue to, “Hi, I’m officer Jones – what’s your driver’s license number and your social security number? Why? Well, you are our only suspect and we would really like to find something on your record so we can dump this charge on you.”

Upon running his name a warrant for felony theft in east Texas showed up and he was arrested, IN FRONT OF A TOUR GROUP OF HIGH SCHOOL KIDS.

I received a call from Andy from University Park jail while I was waiting in the lobby because they wouldn’t let me see him. He said, “Justin, it’s Andy. I don’t know what is going on with this charge and why they brought me in, but tell me what’s going on and get me out of here.”

After hearing that and the police telling me how to bail him out, I went to Shuttles and the very people he was accused of mistreating rounded up the money to pay his bail. Other circumstance prevented the need for our fundraising efforts, but they were there if we had needed to use them.

That is all the contact they have let me have with Andy in five days. I don’t know what is to happen and what lies in Andy’s future, but I will go to the mat for Andy and I know a mob of others who would do the same. We love you Andy.

Justin Briggs

First-year