It was supposed to be a sleepy Wednesday night at Northwestern and a quiet graveyard shift for University Police.
Tell that to officer Tanya Noble of UP, who hurtled down Sheridan Road in a squad car, lights flashing, in hot pursuit of a group of people dressed in black and carrying axes.
Sirens blasted and the radio crackled. Noble and other officers swept the four block radius of the corner of Sheridan Road and Emerson Street, searching for the ax-toting group.
“It’s probably kids going to a party,” said Noble, shrugging after the unsuccessful search.
Tell Sgt. Ron Godby of UP that Wednesday was supposed to be a painfully boring evening. He will point downstairs, to a man arrested and charged with driving under the influence.
Joseph Schneider of Highwood, Ill., was driving on the grass near Technological Institute when he was stopped around 11:20 p.m. by UP, Godby said.
Schneider, 22, failed a field sobriety test and police said he was cooperative until being taken to the police station.
“I have ADD, goddamn it!” he yelled at officers after he was taken to the station.
“Are you on prescription drugs, sir?” Noble asked.
Schneider replied that he had taken Adderall, a stimulant prescribed to treat attention deficit disorder. Schneider refused to take a blood alcohol test and cursed at the four officers present.
Officers found empty bottles of beer in Schneider’s car along with a receipt showing that some of the alcohol was purchased an hour before he was stopped by UP.
Godby said Schneider took pictures of officers and the police station with his camera phone. When officers searched Schneider, police found a bag in his wallet, which they said contained marijuana.
Schneider was charged in connection with the driving under the influence of alcohol, disobeying a traffic light, possession of 2.5 grams of marijuana, illegal transportation of liquor, operation of an uninsured vehicle and improper lane usage reported Wednesday night.
“This is one-tenth of what we have to deal with on a regular basis,” Noble said.
Later Noble and another officer headed to North Campus for a noise complaint at 12:30 a.m.
About 50 NU band members were playing in the fraternity quads as 100 other students looked on. The band members were wearing black hooded ponchos and carried metallic instruments. Noble said they may have been the group of people carrying “axes” that UP was looking for earlier that evening.
The crowd booed as police approached the band.
“Go home,” officer Ryan Obremski said. “Not tonight.”
One band member said that the event was a Homecoming tradition. Obremski responded that some NU students want to sleep so they “can wake up at 5 a.m. to go to the library.”
Noble added that many noise disturbance calls are from students, not Evanston residents. She said the police would leave but if they heard other complaints, they would issue citations to the band.
Noble said it is important, as a police officer, to focus on safety and not just to punish people.
“This job is about diplomacy,” Noble said as she walked away from the crowd. “It’s a really great job, but you have to sort out what’s important: preventing crime and protecting people.”
