New York Times Columnist's Son Held at Gunpoint as Theft Suspect; Yale Investigating Matter
ByA Yale University police officer held a student, who reportedly fit the description of a theft suspect, at gunpoint Saturday night and the student's father is furious.
According to the Yale Daily News, the student was a young black male named Tahj who was leaving the library on the New Haven, Conn. campus when the officer started to follow. The student is the son of Charles Blow, a columnist for the New York Times who detailed his son's account in an article published Monday.
Blow said his son was ordered to get on the ground and show his ID, but the columnist also indicated the officer drew his gun first. Blow also took to Twitter to say he was "fuming" over the incident, because his son was not the actual suspect.
Yale released an email Monday indicating they will look into why the officer drew his weapon, while supporting the school's police department. The Ivy League institution noted Blow's son closely matched the description of a suspect in a string of thefts on campus, "including items of clothing."
"The actual suspect was found and arrested a short distance away," Yale's president, dean and police chief stated in the joint email.
In Blow's piece, his son said he turned to look at the officer, who then said, "I got him" into his radio. The student thought nothing of it and kept walking, but soon heard the officer yelling at him to "turn around," at which point the student saw the officer draw his gun.
According to the Daily News, the suspect had taken an iPad, a laptop, a wallet, a checkbook and was even caught breaking and entering before fleeing. The suspect also cashed checks and made charged on the credit cards.
Tahj has not spoken publicly on the matter, except for his father's article, and Charles has since spoken to CNN.
"He's a good kid, and just wants to go to school. But one thing that he told me was really astute and worth sharing: he doesn't want this story to only be about him," Blow said. "He realizes that there are other young people who have fewer privileges, less access and endure even greater traumas, but whose stories go unreported until something truly tragic happens. He wants the focus to remain on them. I couldn't be prouder of him for having the wisdom to recognize that."