A male Marquette student was stabbed outside Schroeder Hall early Sunday morning, according to residents and employees within the residence hall.
The incident occurred around 2:30 a.m., according to a female student eyewitness who wished to remain anonymous. The witness, who lives in Straz Tower, said she was walking her friend back to Schroeder when she saw several Department of Public Safety and Milwaukee Police Department officers gathered in front of the residence hall.
According to the witness, some officers also appeared to be searching through the snow outside Schroeder Hall. The witness said she believes they were searching for the weapon used in the attack.
It is currently unknown whether the weapon was recovered immediately following the incident.
Several sources say the alleged stabber is Eric Lipinski, a student in the College of Business Administration.
According to sources within Schroeder Hall, the victim was not seriously injured after being “slashed” with the knife. The identity of the victim has not yet been released.
As of 3 p.m. Sunday, Marquette had not sent out an e-mail safety alert or special news brief to students regarding the incident.
Anon • Feb 16, 2010 at 9:43 pm
Is it true that this student brandished a knife against another student with an intent to cause harm?
If so, this is not defamation. This is truth. The ultimate defense against libel.
No its not WHATEVER • Feb 16, 2010 at 8:39 pm
i’m really glad the tribune posted his name .. now the whole world knows this kid is a little bitch… and he shouldn’t be worried about that vs charges that could and should be pressed against him.
Whatever • Feb 16, 2010 at 7:39 pm
Ok, the issue here is the fact that the man’s name was published and there was a defamation of an awesome dude. Go fuck yourself tribune.
Anonymous • Feb 16, 2010 at 4:56 pm
wow, this kid needs to be disciplined with being expelled from the school. this is ridiculous that a marquette student is carrying around a KNIFE and has the urge to use it on another student. this kid is just plain stupid and knows he messed up by doing this and the only repercussion for him is to be removed from the school. it doesnt matter if it was a slash/stab/cut he used physical contact with a DEADLY WEAPON and touched another student. what if he would of slashed/stab/cut the kid in the chest area, he could have DIED! i feel bad for eric, his life will be forever ruined. think before you act DUMMY.
Anonymous • Feb 15, 2010 at 10:30 pm
“That’s great. Update your own story with that info. If you’ve got more details, add it.
“Also, here’s a tip from a professional journalist: Don’t patronize your readers. It’s unprofessional and unbecoming.”
Thanks, Adam, but it is not my story, I don’t work at the Trib, I am not a student — I also am a professional journalist. Your patronizing? It’s not only unprofessional and unbecoming but also says that you are a {*****). Stories do not need to be constantly updated by students staying up into the night just for you. If you are a professional journalist, I bet you know how to find lots of sources and click on links right in these comments, as even kindergarteners can do so.
Warrior Watcher and others, yet again: The link to TMJ shows that it stated that there was an arrest, many hours before you still claimed that the Trib made that up. Really, you also can just use your mouse to click on a link and learn a lot.
anon • Feb 15, 2010 at 10:06 pm
^ He’s probably some 40 year old virgin living in his mother’s basement!
Darth • Feb 15, 2010 at 9:52 pm
Yes anonymous everyone does have rights, but what you are forgetting is a little thing called the 1st amendment which guarantees freedom of the press, like any good newspaper the tribune has the right and responsibility to find out all the facts and pass them on to the reader. Just by saying several sources have state the kids name, doesn’t make their sources inaccurate. How do any of you know the victim gave them his name and just wanted to remain anonymous? These guys aren’t total morons, there is no way in hell they would publish a name unless they were certain who it was.
PS- Warrior Watcher- get a real job, stop trying to relive the glory days of college that you never had, and leave these college student journalists alone. Its a fucking learning experience at a college news paper not the fucking new york times!
Anonymous • Feb 15, 2010 at 8:19 pm
I have to say that I agree with the Warrior Watcher’s last statement. Everyone has rights, even criminals, and if you don’t believe that then I would encourage you to try living in a country that shares your viewpoint (Iran, for example) for a week and see how that goes.
Warrior Watcher • Feb 15, 2010 at 8:11 pm
@ Anony: I am saying that the one good thing that the private police do right is that they don’t list names of people suspected of crimes. I think that it is common courtesy to not label people, even as alleged, criminals prior to having the public records. The fact is that there is no way that the Trib actually checked the records before publishing the article. They even admit as such when they only list anonymous sources as their information. If they had checked the police records, then it can easily be concluded that they would have cited them. I see nothing wrong with citing public information, but the fact remains that the Trib never did that. They crossed over boundaries which not even DPS would cross, which truly shows how low they sunk with this article. In addition, at least as far as the university can be believed, the incident did occur on university property, meaning that DPS acting as agents of the owner actually have some general form of authority, e.g. they can briefly detain and interview individuals suspected of committing crimes on MU property.
For the record I am not supporting stabbings nor violent crime, but rather critiquing the ethical nature of releasing the name of an individual based solely upon accusations of anonymous sources, and not citing any form of public information nor officials who were present at the time of the incident.
Anony • Feb 15, 2010 at 7:53 pm
@Warrior Watcher, it appears after the TMJ4 report and the News Briefs that he was indeed cited for assault and battery that night. While I agree with you that they should have waited until hearing from some officials about the name of the student, if the officials, be they DPS or other University officials, would not cooperate then the Trib is well within their ethical journalistic rights to print this article. I do not know if this was the case, but considering that MU did not release anything until this afternoons news briefs. They did not say the student did it, just that he was the “alleged” student. Nothing wrong with that.
I also find it interesting that in your criticism of this article, you appeal to the same policies from DPS and University officials which you so frequently criticize in your blog. The citation issued by MPD for Eric is public record (which the Trib should have checked on and reported simply by taking a trip to MPD records). If DPS has no power as a private police force, why obey their policies in not releasing the name of the student?
I apologize if it seemed like I was directly adressing you with the libel comment, that was a more general response aimed at those pulling for Eric to seek a legal remedy.
Anonymous • Feb 15, 2010 at 7:40 pm
Some of the people posting here are either illiterate or have brain damage. Not a single person in any one of the 54 previous comments has claimed to be an advocate of “stabbing fellow students” — the debate is over whether it was right for the Tribune to publish an article about something they clearly knew nothing about.
I do not know any of the people involved in this incident, and if a crime was indeed committed, then of course there should be consequences for those involved. But that isn’t the issue here, it’s the fact that some people think guessing what actually happened, without any evidence whatsoever, is okay as long as the guess turns out to be right.
Jenkins • Feb 15, 2010 at 6:59 pm
Donovan:
I don’t see how this has anything to do with Dchi, but sure, keep making a fool out of yourself. And for those of you who forgot, this is about poor ethics and journalism.
Donovan McNab • Feb 15, 2010 at 6:44 pm
The victim probably made fun of Delta Chi’s weekly tradition of watching the OC together. Are they still doing that over at Delta Chi, or have they switched to Jersey Shore?
Anon • Feb 15, 2010 at 6:34 pm
The university labeled it a “physical altercation,” but how many times do you see incidents like this leap from the DPS reports and into the news briefs? Clearly, there is something here that’s more than a scuffle, and that something without a doubt ought to be written about.
Danielle • Feb 15, 2010 at 5:29 pm
watch your ethics MU Tribune. I am not a journalist but before you publish a student’s name, especially in a story such as this, it would be good to get your sources from officials. Students are not official even if they were “eyewitnesses”. Keep your ethics about you. And way to go closing the comment section of this.
MUstu • Feb 15, 2010 at 5:14 pm
Thank you Tribune for your article. It makes me apprehensive that people think that DPS reports or MPD reports are required to publish an article. Why would journalism exist if it needed to be approved by the institutions of our society? Eye witness sources are the sources for the journalists as well as the reports published by institutions. Everyone who believes that your should not have published is upset that there is not a institutional loophole for this suspect (not convicted – innocent until proven guilty) to exploit. What someone saw is what someone saw and should never be covered by some institutional decree. This goes much deeper than just our small community in this world. Thank you for your journalism.
Ewya • Feb 15, 2010 at 5:11 pm
I really do love how the Tribune is regarded as the liberal voice on campus, yet this article and resulting controversy make me believe that they have no desire to promote civil liberties or basic ethics.
Anon • Feb 15, 2010 at 5:04 pm
Mike and Jeffrey, clearly both of you are responding to this story from rumors you have heard. You are embarrassing yourselves and the Marquette name by looking like pompous morons. It is interesting that neither of you have taken the time to ask what happened or why Marquette, a respected university, found this incident worthy of being called “a physical altercation”, and not a “stabbing”. You both however have thought somehow that you are knowledgeable enough to post that this person is a “disgusting human being”. You should take interest in getting the full story before making judgements that make yourselves look pathetic and completely incapable of intelligence. The victim did not need stitches so whatever occurred during this altercation was clearly not gruesome or worthy of your ignorant criticism.
MK • Feb 15, 2010 at 5:00 pm
I would like to refer the last three entries to the latest one above by Anon, so I can avoid restating prior facts. Thank you.
Jeffrey • Feb 15, 2010 at 4:53 pm
Maybe people should stop stabbing other students.
Mike • Feb 15, 2010 at 4:52 pm
MK. The only thing behind this is that the person you are supporting stabbed a fellow student. You are a disgusting human being.
Joe • Feb 15, 2010 at 4:50 pm
Wow, I can’t believe that all these people are defending a person who stabbed a fellow student. I remember when it was cool to commit a violent crime…oh, actually I don’t because it is not. It is unbelievable that at a school like this something like this would not only happen, but then other students would defend this type of action. It is despicable to even think that this stabber is still a student at this University.
Anon • Feb 15, 2010 at 4:47 pm
4. Student issued citation for altercation
A physical altercation occurred between students early Sunday morning in the parking lot adjacent to Schroeder Hall. Marquette’s Department of Public Safety was on the scene within minutes and detained a suspect. The injured student was transported to Froedtert Lutheran Memorial Hospital and released by 9 a.m. with what was described as a minor wound. The Milwaukee Police Department also responded to the incident, and a suspect was taken into custody and later released after being issued a municipal citation for assault and battery. University officials are also investigating the incident and will take appropriate disciplinary action, which can include a range of sanctions up to and including suspension and expulsion.
No safety alert was issued to the campus community because the suspect was immediately detained and there was no danger to other students.
Note: “minor injuries.” “no danger to other students”
Emmit, stabbing in the abdominal area sounds a bit more dramatic doesn’t it? And Marquette did not seem to think mentioning his participation in a fraternity necessary to mention, so I’m not sure why you would. Where is your authority on this subject?
Randy • Feb 15, 2010 at 4:42 pm
Yeh alright cool Marquette…I remember when I got stabbed in my backyard
Gunther • Feb 15, 2010 at 4:40 pm
Actually the thing you need to realize is that the victim was slashed. How is that bad journalism? Beware! the Marquette slasher walks among us
MK • Feb 15, 2010 at 4:25 pm
Interesting you even mention the fraternity he is in Emitt this further fuels my belief that something was indeed behind this more than just reporting the news.
Emmit • Feb 15, 2010 at 4:18 pm
There is nothing to cover up. This person in question, Eric Lipinski, stabbed a Marquette Student near the abdominal area. I have seen the wound and in fact was in the Schroeder lobby when this student admitted to doing so. This is a stain on the community, as well as the fraternity he is affiliated with.
nd • Feb 15, 2010 at 4:11 pm
bottom line, this kid do it or not?
Warrior Watcher • Feb 15, 2010 at 3:28 pm
@ Anonymous at 11:27 am: Are you offering me a position with the Trib? If so, given that you claim to know both who I am and where I live, then come and make it in person.
@ Anony at 12:27 pm: I never claim that the article is libel, but rather state that the authors should apologize for releasing the name prior to the police releasing a report about the incident, mainly because the author has no information from witnesses of the incident.
In addition, even if I were to write occasional opinion pieces, as you purport that I do, that does not make me now, nor at any other point in time, a representative of the Warrior. If you were to see my blog, as you claim to have done, then you would notice that it has been operational for almost a year, and as such is not linked in anyway to any articles in The Warrior to which you have alluded. It is not my fault that people are claiming that I represent the Warrior, particularly given that I have stated multiple times that I am in no way affiliated with nor representative of The Warrior, and that this is a moniker which I have had for quite some time.
Given that the Milwaukee Police Department have yet to name any suspects in the incident and have yet to list anyone as having been arrested or cited, one cannot assert that the article is factually accurate, in regards to both the incident and the naming of the suspect. Moreover, in naming the suspect the Trib rejects the standard practice in regards to campus area crimes, that of leaving the suspect anonymous. The weekly DPS reports never name suspects, but rather just give a general description, e.g. that the suspect is male/female and a student. That is the only information which should have been released, and as such in releasing the name the Trib is acting in an unethical manner.
MK • Feb 15, 2010 at 12:32 pm
Anonymous seems to only be defending the article everytime someone attacks its obvious unethical and unprofessional statement. I do hope Marquette looks into the fact an organization with the Marqette name attached to it is clearly violating not only the law but also being unethical. Anonymous is clearly someone from the Trib attempting to put out the fire caused by the original writter which my bet is (due to personal knowledge) McLaughlin, and could even be McLaughlin himself. Who would be very smart to cover his tracks by taking his name off.
Anony • Feb 15, 2010 at 12:27 pm
In response to Warrior Watcher,I would caution you against the kind of self-promoting you engaged in on this blog under your current moniker. It’s bad enough to promote for yourself in comments of an article about a violent episode on campus, but whether intentional or not, it reflects poorly on the student publication The Warrior. I would also note that you are an occasional contributor to The Warrior, in particular with an article in a recent issue criticizing DPS. I commend you for quickly noting you are not representing The Warrior with your comments and blog, but the combination of your handle and occasional contributions to that student publication are enough to raise suspicion that should not be aimed at The Warrior which find is quickly catching(if not surpassing) the Trib in journalistic ability.
Addressing your actual arguments, this certainly is poor journalism. The overuse of anonymous sources is simply unacceptable, particularly none who actually saw the incident or any arrest or citation. Overall, I likely would not have published this article if I were the editor until more facts had come to light.
However, if they were confident in the truth of the article, which it appears is factually correct, it is not UNETHICAL to publish something they believe could be in the interest of public safety, which this arguably could be.
It also stops far short of warranting any legal remedy. As any student of libel will tell you, the best defense is that your article is true, and it does not appear that there are any factual inaccuracies in the Trib’s account.
Jenkins • Feb 15, 2010 at 11:28 am
Response… Tell me, do they put handcuffs on people that get arrested? Yes. I was there, and he was cuffless, also he willingly got into the squad car. That is called co-operating with police.
Anonymous • Feb 15, 2010 at 11:27 am
Warrior Watcher, come out of your hole in Cedar Square and help make the Trib’s journalism better, don’t just stay there and throw stones.
response • Feb 15, 2010 at 10:45 am
leeroy j….even if the guy was arrested, he wouldnt have gotten his miranda rights on the street…they only do that on tv, not in real life
Liz • Feb 15, 2010 at 10:40 am
I sent this story to a working reporter, who said, “bad journalism.” He also mentioned that if the kid isn’t charged, he’s certainly got a potential lawsuit against the university.
It is terrible to name a suspect without any kind of official statement. Just terrible.
Leeroy J • Feb 15, 2010 at 9:46 am
Being an eyewitness to the situation, the guy was not arested. He was not handcuffed, no miranda rights were stated, and I saw him open the door to schroeder for the cops. He supposedly got released several hours later. Does anyone even know what a citation is? it’s nothing! This article and what TMJ4 are doing, is blowing a minor incidet completely out of proportion. If this wasn’t a big deal to the police, then it shouldn’t be neccissary for somethong like this to be posted.
Warrior Watcher • Feb 15, 2010 at 7:45 am
^ So my use of the subjunctive voice in order to indicate a hypothetical is something to which you object? Apparently people can only use the indicative on these comment boards. I guess I am wrong for believing that all forms of the English language were allowed. Just so you realize, I never said in that quote that a cover up existed, but rather stated a hypothetical, hence the use of the word “could” instead of the word “is”. Check what I mean before stating that I am arguing that conspiracy theories in deed to exist, or that they are true. You are just misconstruing what I said in order to attack all of my ideas, rather than engaging in actual discourse about the ethical nature of the article.
Anonymous • Feb 14, 2010 at 11:51 pm
“I agree they very well could be trying to cover up something.” Do you know how this stuff even works? Every time something is updated/modified, the user logged in who changed it is shown as the author.
Warrior Watcher • Feb 14, 2010 at 11:45 pm
^ Point out where I state something which is not factual.
Anonymous • Feb 14, 2010 at 11:43 pm
Seriously, “Warrior Watcher”, your comment about the switching authors makes you sound like Mel Gibson from Conspiracy Theory. If you enjoy criticizing The Marquette Tribune so much, then why don’t you make an effort to work for either them or The Warrior, instead of hiding behind an online blog account. Maybe the next time around, you’ll get your facts straight and not throw others under the bus for your own self promotion.
Warrior Watcher • Feb 14, 2010 at 11:31 pm
If one watches the news coverage, available at the same tmj4 link, one will see that the Milwaukee Police Department has yet to release any information whatsoever regarding the incident. All of the information about arrests etc. is coming from MU and not MPD, and as such naming the individual is well beyond the ethical limitations of proper journalistic activities, insofar as the individual has not yet been charged. Moreover, there cannot be any official police reports cited by the Tribune, nor seen by its writers, given that the police have yet to confirm that any incident whatsoever occurred, let alone that the individual has been charged. So yes it was unethical of the Tribune to release the name of someone who has not been confirmed to even have been involved in the incident. The only sources the Trib has are several anonymous students, who, given their nature as not having been involved in the incident, are not inherently credible. Moreover, the fact that the first witness described in the article was not even present, goes to show that the Trib is working with little, if any, actual information, and is instead going off of hearsay. So no, this is not a legitimate journalistic piece, nor is it ethical. The author(s) should apologize to the student who was named, and should take down the article.
Adam • Feb 14, 2010 at 11:24 pm
That’s great. Update your own story with that info. If you’ve got more details, add it.
Also, here’s a tip from a professional journalist: Don’t patronize your readers. It’s unprofessional and unbecoming.
Anonymous • Feb 14, 2010 at 11:11 pm
A desk editor files a breaking news story and sends out a reporter to the site and to sources to then file a longer story. This is not news, as regular readers of news know. This is how news media work.
Readers who follow links to later stories from other media outlets, like the links here, also know that there was an arrest. This is how readers who want updates work, with many media sources, some right here in the comments.
Anon • Feb 14, 2010 at 10:45 pm
Regarding theories about supposedly suspicious author attributions, Krasin is currently an assistant editor at the Tribune. The fact that the author changed doesn’t necessarily mean anything–McLaughlin was probably the person that actually uploaded the article, meaning his name was probably automatically attached to it. Stop trying to manufacture a conspiracy.
Adam • Feb 14, 2010 at 10:39 pm
If the Trib is citing an arrest record in naming that student, then it should say so, very directly and specifically. It doesn’t. “Sources say” is not the same as “Police records identify.” Like I said, I’m willing to give the Trib the benefit of the doubt here, but doubt definitely still remains. And if it doesn’t, then the article needs to be updated to reflect that.
Anonymous • Feb 14, 2010 at 10:28 pm
IF it turns out? There was an arrest. That is public record.
There is no “journalistic offense” here. There are a lot of offensive comments because of inability to read or lack of knowledge of the legal process or, well, other reasons are self-evident in the comments.
Adam • Feb 14, 2010 at 10:11 pm
If it turns out that the kid named in this article did indeed do it (or is formally accused in whatever police/DPS/court filings that come out), then there’s nothing wrong with the Tribune naming the suspect. On the other hand, if it turns out the facts as reported are wrong, this is a MAJOR journalistic offense. I sincerely hope, for the sake of all involved, that the Trib got this one right.
Anonymous • Feb 14, 2010 at 9:58 pm
As the above Anonymous said, if you’re going to take the liberty to carry a knife and then use it on someone, you’re going to have to face media coverage and potential name disclosure.
Warrior Watcher • Feb 14, 2010 at 9:44 pm
^ The classy thing about that tmj4 article is that it doesn’t act like the Tribune. It doesn’t name the person who was cited. It has journalistic integrity, unlike the person/people who wrote this article.
Nope • Feb 14, 2010 at 9:35 pm
http://www.todaystmj4.com/news/local/84353202.html
Warrior Watcher • Feb 14, 2010 at 9:24 pm
In response to I. James, I just want to clarify that I am in no way affiliated with The Warrior, the Marquette student publication. At no point in time did I claim to be so, so please refrain from attacking it as promoting itself, given that it is not.
Anonymous • Feb 14, 2010 at 9:14 pm
This article doesn’t make any sense because it says the “witness” didn’t even see the “stabbing”. She saw the DPS officers gathered looking for an object. I don’t understand how any editor could let a story like this be published, there is not evidence or official reports.
I. James • Feb 14, 2010 at 9:00 pm
This is a poorly written article and shows a blatant disregard of journalistic ethics by the Marquette Tribune. The editor that cleared this story as well as the writer should both apologize for their lack of integrity regarding this story.
Also, the Warrior’s attempts at capitalizing on this bungled situation are atrocious. The self-advertising they have displayed shows why they remain as disreputable as the Tribune.
Anonymous • Feb 14, 2010 at 8:58 pm
stab (v.) – To inflict a wound with or as if with a pointed weapon.
So technically yes, this would be considered a stabbing. And even if you don’t want to call it that, a knife was pulled and contact was made so the intent was there. If you dont want your name out there, dont pull a knife on someone.
Multiple people collaborated on this story and you can see when it was updated throughout the day, so it is ridiculous to call this a coverup.
Anonymous • Feb 14, 2010 at 7:07 pm
^ If you click on her name, and if I understand it correctly, Sarah’s last article was in 2008. It seems odd that the writer’s name would get changed to someone who hasn’t published anything in 2 years. Definitly looks like a cover up for a terrible attempt at a story. I agree that Eric should look into legal options.
Warrior Watcher • Feb 14, 2010 at 6:20 pm
^ I agree they very well could be trying to cover up something. Be it shoddy journalism, or something worse, the name change does not look good for the Tribune. It could also be that Jim is the editor of the Trib and Sarah is an assistant editor, so he could be trying to pawn off the blame on her.
John • Feb 14, 2010 at 6:10 pm
^ or they are trying to cover something up.
Warrior Watcher • Feb 14, 2010 at 6:07 pm
Did anyone else notice that the author of the article has changed since it was originally posted? The first author was listed as Jim Mcluaghlin, now it is Sarah Krasin. It’s kind of odd that authors would change on an article, usually whoever posts the article knows who wrote it. That is if anyone with a functioning upper nervous system is involved in the process of posting or writing these articles.
Anonymous • Feb 14, 2010 at 6:04 pm
As someone with firsthand knowledge of what happened at Schroeder, I can say for a fact that this article does not have its facts straight. And even if they WERE correct, the fact that the Tribune would publish a completely unsupported article, with no evidence whatsoever, is still an absolute embarrassment to the writer, the paper, and the university itself. Anyone and everyone involved in the perpetuation of these rumors should be ashamed of themselves.
Sean Cottini • Feb 14, 2010 at 5:57 pm
You have no proof or any official information from dps or even mpd that a stabbing occured. your supossed eyewitness to the situation was most likely inebriated, making your facts skewed and flawed. Get your fucking facts straight before you decide to ruin a fellow students name.
John • Feb 14, 2010 at 5:57 pm
If I were Eric, I would sue the university for allowing this to be published. This is obviously defermation of character.
Warrior Watcher • Feb 14, 2010 at 5:52 pm
If you would like an analysis of the journalistic inadequacies of the Tribune, and a look into what actually happens at MU, check out this blog:
http://warrior-watch.blogspot.com
Warrior Watcher • Feb 14, 2010 at 5:51 pm
Great job Tribune. You really have outdone yourself with this one. No real facts, just speculation and rumors, because that is the hallmark of great journalism.
Scott T. • Feb 14, 2010 at 5:06 pm
You should in no way post an article like the one above making accusations that you do not know if they are true or not, especially when you include a student’s name. When the actual story comes out you will look like a fool for making one of our students look like a criminal. I feel that this shows why people do not read the school paper, and why the paper just seems to be another tabloid.
Matt Toellner • Feb 14, 2010 at 4:06 pm
This is Bullshit. You honestly post this without any solid information? You have a student account, No dps report and No mpd report. Congrats on ruining my roommates reputation forever. Get your facts before you toss caution to the wind.