Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Statement from UNCW Chancellor Rosemary DePaolo in response to the Wilmington Police Department's and District Attorney's decision regarding the tragic incident at Carleton Place:

It is impossible to find the right words at a time like this to provide comfort for the families and friends who were impacted by the tragic circumstances that occurred this past weekend at Carleton Place. We are all deeply saddened, and our hearts go out to the Flinn family as they grieve the loss of Sam.

Early Sunday morning, UNCW immediately reached out to provide support to our students. During the aftermath, we worked cooperatively with the Wilmington Police Department, encouraging our students to provide any information they had to the police. Clearly, the safety of our students continues to be our number one priority.

UNCW supports the decision that has been reached. And, similar to the requests made by the Flinn family, Chief Evangelous and Ben David, we hope this tragedy is a reminder of the unintended consequences drugs and alcohol can have. We encourage individuals, impacted by this tragedy, to seek appropriate counseling, so they can move on with their lives, having learned from this experience. As an institution, we will continue our efforts to educate our students about these important issues.