Loney interview--rough draft

Nothing strikes fear in a college kid’s heart like the back seat of a police car on a Saturday night. Unless of course that college kid is climbing in to Police Chief Carl Loney’s car. Then he’ll likely be met with a smile, a “where to?” and a quick trip home. No questions, and absolutely no vomit allowed.
“If you’re smart enough to get in the car we don’t want you in trouble,” Chief Loney said on Friday. For the past eight years Loney has served as the chief of police at Wittenberg University, where programs such as the aforementioned car service have helped to improve relations between the students and police force.
In those eight years Loney has seen his fair share of college crimes, from the wicked to the weird. He’s had to step in to save students from the “can man,” who in addition to collecting cans was caught inside student’s homes making sandwiches and phone calls. Others he lets go, such as the infamous streaking the hollow.
“It ain’t like robbing a bank in my book,” Loney said.
Born in Springfield, OH, Loney got his start at age 18 in the Clark County Sheriff’s office, where he spent 30 years before joining the Wittenberg police. The force currently employs 13 officers and handles 80-90% of crimes on campus, according to Loney.
The past few years have seen a general improvement in student behavior. Loney reports that the biggest campus crime is alcohol infractions, which have dropped from 210 in 2006 to a much-improved 106 in 2008.
“Things have changed for the better,” Loney said, “Students seem to be a lot more respectful.”
This positive trend could in part be attributed to the police force’s big-brother approach to the job. While Loney makes an imposing figure with his strong build and close-cropped hair, he seems more likely to smother a student with a bear-hug than a ticket. He keeps the communication lines open between the students and police, and his frequent campus e-mails have earned him the title of “e-mail man”.
Of course, even seasoned veterans like Loney can’t be prepared for everything. Just ask the boy in Meyers Hall who found himself face-to-face with a fugitive snake in the men’s urinal and called in Loney for backup. The snake got away, but the story “was one for the books,” said Loney.
While that remains Loney’s weirdest encounter, he always has a campus full of students to keep life interesting. Does he enjoy the job?
“I wouldn’t trade it,” he said. Snakes, streakers and all.