Campus incident leaves students in the dark

Student Union has prolonged closure over threatening messages.
The University of Tulsa was put on high alert after a threat was made against campus. At 4:07 p.m. on Friday, students and staff received a message stating, “ACSU is being evacuated. An emergency situation has been reported; authorities are investigating. Stay away from the area.” The fire alarm was also pulled to quickly evacuate students from the building.
News on 6 reported that two 19-year-olds, Michael Johnson and Marshon Duckett, have been taken into police custody after a picture of Johnson threatening the Student Union while holding a firearm was sent to Student Union workers. Johnson and Duckett were located in their home with two firearms according to police. They were taken into custody without incident.
Johnson has been charged with threatening a violent act and unlawful possession of a firearm. Duckett has been charged with two counts of possession of a firearm after adjudication.
Following the initial text, students did not receive further communication until 4:48 p.m. when university officials reported that, “The situation is still ongoing at the Student Union. Continue to avoid the area.” TU continued to leave students in the dark until another message was delivered at 5:26 p.m., reiterating that the situation was still ongoing and that the Student Union would be closed for the evening. At 7:33 p.m., a message was sent out stating, “Tulsa Police have moved their investigation to an off-campus location. Employees and students should remain vigilant. Call TU Security […] if you notice any suspicious activity on campus. We are continuing to monitor the situation.” Students received the all-clear at 7:53 p.m. but were not provided with any further information.
On Saturday morning, students and staff received an email that the university and the Tulsa Police Department were made aware of a possible threat of violence through an undisclosed social media platform. It stated that “The person believed to have made the threat is employed by a campus vendor, and the alleged threat was directed at another person employed by the same vendor.” The email further elaborated that “at no time during the incident was there an active threat on campus.”
Many students were unhappy with the lack of communication by the university throughout the incident. Student Eva Patton, a Greek row resident, said, “As a student and member of a sorority that is adjacent to the Student Union, hearing that there were evacuations next to my home is frightening. I would prefer to have more information about any dangerous threats on campus to correctly assess what I need to do to stay safe.” Patton continued, “I appreciated efforts made by campus security in these situations, but I want more timely information about what is going on in our community, especially in potentially dangerous situations.”