Author Archives: Lian Parsons

Two female suspects sought in two attempted robberies, stabbing

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Temple and Philadelphia police are looking for two suspects for two attempted robberies which happened around 4 p.m Wednesday, one on the 1400 block of Diamond Street and the other on the 1500 block of Broad Street.

Witnesses on the 1400 block of Diamond Street said a suspect – described as a female about 18 years old and 5 feet 3 inches tall – struggled for a bag with a female around 20-24 years old before the suspect sliced her with a utility box cutter, injuring the victim’s arm and forehead.

Police said another suspect drove a vehicle but did not leave it, and no description was offered. The alleged victim is not affiliated with Temple.

More people who were at the scene of the Diamond Street incident said they arrived after hearing a scream. Witnesses stopped and crowded around the alleged victim, using towels and compression to prevent her bleeding as she sat on the front steps of a building.

Charlie Leone, executive director of Campus Safety Services, said in an email that the two suspects drove a 2005 white Buick LaCrosse with a sunroof. Prior to the first attempted robbery they arrived at 7-Eleven at Broad and Diamond streets and went inside for a short time, then traveled west on Diamond Street to the site of the first incident, he said.

Leone said the suspects returned to their vehicle after the first robbery attempt and drove south on 15th Street from Diamond Street.

A police officer arrived at the site of the Diamond Street incident by 3:55 p.m. and an ambulance arrived by 4:02 p.m. The victim was taken to Hahnemann University Hospital, but was not seriously injured.

Two TU Alerts were sent out, the first at about 4:50 p.m. describing the Diamond Street robbery attempt and noting two suspects and the description of the vehicle. The second, sent around 6 p.m., noted the Broad Street robbery and had the same description of the two suspects.

Leone said Temple Police officers had stopped one car fitting the description in the alert, but it was not the suspects.

Temple and Philadelphia police are reviewing security footage, as well as footage from 7-Eleven, Leone said. Anyone with information is encouraged to call 911.

Lian Parsons can be reached at lian.parsons@temple.edu or on Twitter @Lian_Parsons.

TSG discusses new library

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Temple Student Government hosted committee meetings at its general assembly meeting Monday afternoon in the Student Center.

The Student Affairs committee discussed the new library that will be opening in Fall 2018. For this project, Barton and Beury halls will be deconstructed, beginning with Beury this summer.  Barton Hall will become the new library and Beury Hall will become green space as an extension of Beury Beach.

Classes located in Barton and Beury halls are relocating to the new SERC building.

Sally Abbas, committee director for student affairs, asked students at the meeting for potential ideas or improvements for the new library. Students made suggestions that included having a “quiet zone,” investing in inviting decor and cozy furniture, having more printers and electrical outlets for laptops, opening a cafe in the building and having 24-hour availability.

Abbas said the Paley Library building will still be used, but instead of being a library, it may become additional classroom space.

Erika Firestone, director of grounds and sustainability, outlined the upcoming activities for Campus Sustainability Week, which is this week. Upcoming events include a presentation by Community Energy, the company that installed solar panels at the Edberg-Olson practice facility.

The Student Organization of the Week was Her Campus Temple, which ran an all-male pageant for the title of “Mr. Temple.”

A preliminary version of the TUnity Statement, which is about diversity and inclusion of all students regardless of their characteristics, has been on TSG’s website for about two weeks, Jalen Blot, director of campus life and diversity, said.  Blot said this Friday he will conduct a final review of the statement before its launch event on Oct. 28.

Another upcoming TSG event is the “Adopt-a-Block” Day this Saturday.

Lian Parsons can be reached at lian.parsons@temple.edu or on Twitter @Lian_Parsons.

Controversial evangelists draw crowd at Bell Tower

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A group of six evangelical self-titled Christian missionaries arrived on campus around 11 this morning. Stationed at the Bell Tower, they spoke about their beliefs to a growing crowd of students.

The men were from different churches around the country, including Poquoson Baptist Church in Poquoson, Virginia and Lighthouse Bible Fellowship in Fremont, California. They were organized by Robert Parker of Christians from Bread of Life Fellowship in New Jersey.

“We travel to college campuses because we want to make [the Gospel] known to this current generation,” Virginia retiree Don Karns said. Karns also said the “cross-country evangelism” is performed by independent born-again Christians across the US, organized via Facebook groups.

At its peak, there were approximately 100 people gathered around the Bell Tower. Most in the crowd were students, with some faculty members interspersed.

Temple Police also arrived to monitor the situation.

The evangelists and students engaged in heated discourse about topics like evolution, premarital sex and same-sex marriage. There was no physical violence but several students came close to the evangelists and several of them were shouting.

Students held up handwritten signs saying, “On behalf of the Christian people, I apologize” and “Coexist” to counter the evangelists’ “Evolution is a lie” posters.

“It’s a complete waste of time on both sides,” Eddie Ntuk, a junior biology major said. “People are just spitting opinions. They come close-minded.”

Several students spoke individually with the evangelists. Other students gathered into smaller discussion groups. The evangelists visit Temple approximately two times a year.