A male student in Revelle College who was living in the Village East Tower died early Saturday morning after Sun God Festival 2014, according to an email sent out to the A.S. Council listserv and two UCSD students who wished to remain anonymous. The anonymous sources confirmed to the Guardian that the student died in the Village sometime after midnight while he was sleeping.
An article by NBC 7 San Diego article published early Monday stated that school officials had confirmed the student had been found dead after 2:30 a.m. Saturday morning, but that they had said the cause of death was not yet determined.
UCSD administration had not released any information to the public as of Monday afternoon, but the email sent to the A.S. Council listserv by Associated Students Director Heather Belk stated that a male student had died early Saturday. The email did not disclose the student’s name.
“I have a heavy heart as I write to inform you that a UCSD student passed away early Saturday morning,” Belk wrote in the email. “He was a Revelle College student living at the Village, and a member of several involvement communities here on campus.”
As of Monday afternoon, the UCSD Police Department had not released any public information regarding the death, and the San Diego County Medical Examiner had also not released any records
Some residential advisors, including those in Warren College, were notified of the death in an email sent out by a Reslife staff member whose name was signed as “Pat.” According to one of the sources, the email was later removed from the listserv.
Representatives from A.S. Concerts and Events, and the UCSD Police Department did not respond to the Guardian’s request for a comment on the story at this time. The May 16 police logs were expected to be released late on Sunday but had not been released as of Monday afternoon.
The story will continue to develop as more information becomes available.
Additional reporting by Aleksandra Konstantinovic and Dorothy Van.
Sammy • May 20, 2014 at 5:38 pm
This is unfortunate, but those who are demanding others to hold off speculation as to how he died are just wasting their time. We’re still going to have our own opinions, until the cause of death is determined. I personally think that someone just had too much to drink.
As a student at UCSD, I loved to drink/party. But I hated Sungod. It was the one day of the year where most people drank for the first time. Too many people were obnoxious and selfish when it came to drinking. Instead, I’d just get a good buzz on and walk around and make fun of those who couldn’t hold their liquor.
For those of you complaining that UCSD sucks at socializing, you aren’t trying hard enough. You can have a good time if you know the right people and actually go out. I agree that the RSOs/RAs need to remove all phallic-shaped objects from their rectus maximus, and let more on-campus people have fun. As for off-campus events, the geography of the school plays a big part on its demise – nothing is even close to campus and this is a relatively conservative town. All the other big schools have housing right next to campus where everyone lives and parties. Because of this, UCSD will never become the big party school everyone dreams of.
John • May 20, 2014 at 8:30 pm
I agree with everything you just said.
Pedro G, Class of 2013 • Jun 5, 2014 at 12:27 am
RIP Ricky. You will always be remembered. Semper Phiota
Rita • May 19, 2014 at 4:18 pm
It is a terrible tragedy. It is something awful and so sad. For everyone who loved him and have known him, I am so sorry for your loss, regardless of the cause. Just truly sad to hear a young life lost.
UCSD Alum • May 19, 2014 at 2:42 am
As an recent graduate I have to say the only way to teach the students more responsibility is to just take away Sun God for a while. I know that it’s a sacred tradition and I would love to see it continue on but it’s gone to far. In the past the majority of the stupid actions were committed by guests so it made sense for the administrators to keep guests out of the event. But now the students have shown irresponsibility on their part and I think to school will have had enough. I get it was only one student, but it only takes one person to ruin everything. Plus I heard from many friends who are 3rd and 4th years that there was a rumor floating around that this year was the last Sun God regardless and that they decided to “go all out.”
That being said I think one of the issues with Sun God is that it has all been centralized to one area of campus. Looking over the years and talking to friends who attended UCSD before me, it seems the precipitous rise in incidents associated with Sun God has happened since moving it to RIMAC field. Because it’s in one location and people are able to move in and out, so many people can just go to ERC, I-House, and The Village to binge drink before going back into the event. At least keeping the event spread out (but still moderated) could help decentralize the excessive partying. Yes the school limited partying in these areas w/ specialized wristbands, but speaking to friends it doesn’t seem much was done to stop the residents.
At the end of the day though this all goes beyond administrators, students, and Sun God. We lost a fellow Triton and we should mourn his death and celebrate his life. RIP
Britbomber • May 19, 2014 at 12:06 pm
There is no confirmation either way as to the cause of death, or if the student in question even attended the festival, so if is unfair to blame their unfortunate demise on Sungod. That being said the campus admin has been trying to kill Sungod for years now, and this may well give them the excuse they need, as they clearly cannot handle a typical college Friday for even one day of the year.
All in all it is just a sad reflection of the degredation of UCSD’s social scene that has proceeded at a noticable rate even during my three years here. Thanks to utterly draconian police measures even the smallest, least offensive, on campus parties are broken up within thirty minutes of starting, often without anyone complaining. My first two quarters I-House was a party Mecca and a great place for students missing their homeland to reconnect and party the night away. Now its a ghost town, and virtually everyone I know who lives on campus, and lives close enough to do so, goes home nearly every weekend.
To summarize, perhaps if UCSD actually treated us as adults rather than high school students then things like this would be less likely to happen.
Typical Friday? • May 19, 2014 at 1:40 pm
So, what you’re saying, is on a typical Friday night at any college in the US you will see anywhere from 20-47 people hospitalized, Emergency Medical Resources sucked dry, numerous sexual assaults, and even a possible fatality? Sounds like an “excuse” to shut down Sun God to me……
Anonymous • May 19, 2014 at 2:18 pm
Sadly, yes that could be a typical Friday night at a college. If you’ve gone to schools like UCLA on a Thursday when the whole school goes and drinks, there are ambulances called all night long. I think although it is terrible that people are being harmed so frequently by partying (often it’s self inflected by wanting to go hard) I think the best way to truly fix these problems long term is to teach kids to be responsible and educate people and not to just take things away and repress the students. I think kids at UCSD are more irresponsible when partying BECAUSE they don’t do it often as don’t know their limits or since they don’t do it often instead of drinking mode really they go all out. Also having RSOs and CSOs out to look for kids who look like they need help and are throwing up or stumbling rather than just trying to ticket anyone who’s drinking underage and trying to break up parties. I have had RSOs give me trouble just being near an I-house party even though I was perfectly fine and not troubling anyone around me and did not need any assistance from being “too drunk”. Kids will always drink even if underage and it’s better to acknowledge that it does happen and to watch out for their health when it does happen rather than just trying to stop it.
Nice try^ • May 19, 2014 at 2:31 pm
I work on an ambulance, and oftentimes at the fire stations in the area of UCSD, and run calls there frequently (even when it isn’t Sun God). I’m also an alumni, with friends at other college campuses around California, where I have spent time, and those statistics are ABSOLUTELY NOT normal at other colleges on a “normal” Friday. I personally know the San Diego Medical Director, who has informed me the other campuses in the area do not face anywhere close to the same problems that UCSD does during Sun God, even during the beginning of the year. This isn’t just my anecdotal experience we’re talking about here. Our Emergency Services System is NOWHERE, and I mean, NOWHERE close to as overloaded during those times as it is during Sun God. It’s ridiculous that UCSD has to hire around 10 units of private ambulance coverage as well as set up a makeshift ER in RIMAC with Doctors and Nurses on overtime pay in order to treat all of the emergency cases that Sun God produces. Sorry my friend, but you’re talking about something you have very limited knowledge of. I’m sorry you’re being so “repressed” by people who are just trying to keep the campus safe.
Blah Blah • May 19, 2014 at 2:33 pm
STFU you don’t go to this school. Your opinion doesn’t mean sh*t!
Anonymous • May 19, 2014 at 2:43 pm
True enough. My opinion means nothing. But don’t delude yourself into thinking just b/c you’re a student your opinion is more valid than mine. It isn’t. You’re not special.
Anonymous • May 18, 2014 at 10:50 pm
Have some respect for the death of a loved one!! It’s time for the family to mourn the death of a loved one. Please think before you put things that hurt a family in a tragic time. Please and thank you have respect!!!!
Anonymous • May 18, 2014 at 8:26 pm
Well aren’t you clever? I’m sure your life is just full of good choices and nothing lucky every happens to you. You deserve everything that’s been given to you don’t you? I hope people know you and say the same thing about you, that’s what you do deserve.
John • May 18, 2014 at 8:28 pm
This was in response to another comment, no idea why it got placed up here…
Second Chances • May 18, 2014 at 7:37 pm
CANCEL SUN GOD, MAKE UCSD NCAA DIVISION I, AND START RECRUITING THE NEXT PAC 13 FOOTBALL TEAM
Anonymous • May 18, 2014 at 7:35 pm
Honestly, I think most of you guys are idiots. This isn’t a time to criticize the UC system, campus, or administration. This is a time to mourn the loss of a fellow Triton, son, boyfriend, friend, and brother. Post your criticism on another page.
RIP Rick. Loving son, brother, and boyfriend.
Anon • May 18, 2014 at 8:20 pm
Sorry, but I can’t mourn for somebody who made a stupid decision and then paid for it with his life.
Anonnymous • May 18, 2014 at 8:58 pm
How in the hell do you know the events that led to his death? You are pathetic.
Sevinex • May 19, 2014 at 2:42 am
You know no more about this then anyone else in this thread, and yet have the audacity to call another user “pathetic” for voicing his/her opinion? Quite frankly, you are pathetic. There was ABSOLUTELY no need to bring name calling into this, an opinion is an opinion, and we are all entitled to our own. The internet (and life as we know it) would do well to rid itself of people like you. For all you know, he may have committed suicide. Regardless, what happened here was the fault of no one else except the deceased. He CHOSE to partake in whatever substances ultimately lead to his death, not anyone else. Yes it is unfortunate that a life was lost, but I, along with the aforementioned anonymous user, have no sympathy for circumstances such as these. He made the mistake of mixing/overdosing on illicit substances, and this was the result.
anon • May 19, 2014 at 12:13 pm
uhhh sorry but you don’t even know what happened. everyone is ASSUMING it had something to do with drugs and/or alcohol, and ill admit i won’t be surprised if thats the case. but until theres some actual information out, do yourself a favor and stop “voicing an opinion” thats based on assumption. how stupid will you feel if it turns out he passed away from something completely unrelated? until the facts are out, keep your damn mouth shut about “not feeling sorry” for someone who lost their life.
Rita • May 19, 2014 at 4:11 pm
You cannot mourn for someone who made a bad decision and paid for it with his life????
You obviously made the right decision every time….but I dont think so, because your comment was the mist insensitive of all. You ahould be ashamed of yourself!
ghikl • May 18, 2014 at 11:52 pm
To all the people who say the administration should not be criticized:
As a person who spent four years in the Greek system, I know for a fact that ours is a campus where there is a strong culture of “sleep it off”. The Responsible Action Protocol, AKA medical amnesty policy for drug/alcohol emergencies, is broadly ignored because it’s poorly marketed and because it’s a hopelessly weak form of amnesty- social hosts still face legal repercussions, it can only be invoked once every 2 years per student, the person must notify ResLife first, etc.
In a boardroom somewhere, these must all seem like Reasonable Enough Restrictions That The Kids Should Be Able To Follow. But are any of them worth a human life? Unless this person was drinking alone on Sun God, he was with friends, and at some point those friends made the decision not to seek help for him. They made that decision because they were inebriated and the fear of consequences for them, him, or the host made them think it would be better to risk sleeping it off.
We NEED to ERASE this mentality, PERIOD. We need a medical amnesty policy that gets NO ONE in trouble, so the choice becomes as easy as possible, even for someone whose judgement is impaired. Anything less is risking the lives of students. You can harp on about personal responsibility all day long, but you’ll never change the fact that college kids make poor decisions about substance abuse and will continue to do so until the end of time.
This is far more important than whether Sun God continues, because if we can’t get it done, this kind of tragedy will inevitably occur again.
Restrictions took a human life? • May 19, 2014 at 1:50 pm
You can take this argument one step further and say that the University should be responsible for medical bills (in the thousands of $) as well, as to not discourage people from seeking help. That’s a consequence too, right? No consequences, and these problems will disappear? Making UCSD more of a babysitter, and less of an environment trying to educate and raise up conscious and responsible adults, is probably not the solution.
If your suggested scenario above truly did occur, maybe it wasn’t fear of consequences, maybe it was just extreme inebriation and ignorance that kept them from seeking help?
The Greek system could be a catalyst for change in the opposite direction. Instead of trying to remove restrictions, it could convince its members that being so intoxicated that you endanger yourself or others is irresponsible. The change will start with the culture, from the bottom up. Not removing restrictions and having a free-for-all society where people are coddled through dangerous actions.
Rich J • Jul 28, 2014 at 10:26 pm
Not punishing people for seeking medical help for their dying friends is “coddling”? Really?
News flash—in the real world, police won’t care about whether you or your friend have been drinking underage if you’re in the process of taking their dying body to a hospital, because they aren’t totally callous and insane, and they recognize that not letting someone die is priority number one.
At UCSD, it’s quite the opposite. Maintaining the outward appearance of being tough on drinking is priority number one. Far from being “coddled” about alcohol, UCSD students are routinely searched through forced entry “welfare checks” that are explicitly prohibited by the tenant’s rights provisions of California law.
aaaaa • May 18, 2014 at 7:29 pm
Please Donate!
Peter • May 18, 2014 at 6:00 pm
Somehow, I knew something bad was going to happen this weekend. It was Sun God again, the village had obnoxious and questionably legal restrictions being put up disallowing guests and fencing off the community. All ineffective draconian tactics better suited for herding cattle or punishing young children rather than young adults.
I look forward to more information related to the circumstances. As it stands my first guess is that it might have been drug related and directly connected with Sun God. It’s only a convenient “it makes the most sense given the background information” guess, of course. But I’m sure we’re all thinking it.
John • May 18, 2014 at 4:34 pm
All of you who have used this as an avenue to critique UCSD and the Sun God Festival should be ashamed. A death is not representative of the culture here, it is representative of the deceased alone. Use hospitalization statistics, use testimonies from other students but DO NOT use a death alone to channel your absurd conclusions and generalize an entire populous. You ignorant assholes. Grow up, this is a dead human being and all you can do is complain about how dumb the rest of us are.
As an aside, I cannot imagine what the family must be going through right now and if you’re reading this, I’m so sorry for your loss.
anonymous • May 18, 2014 at 3:33 pm
If this had been a different situation, and instead some outsiders came in a raped a bunch inebriated girls, people would question: why wasn’t the village on lock-down? The circumstances were unfortunate, yes, but I think the decision to only allow students into the village was the right one. The event was a student-only event anyway. This is no time to be pointing fingers, eventually all the details will emerge and then any wrong-doing can be addressed. My heart goes out to the family of this student.
Anonymous is RIGHT • May 18, 2014 at 10:24 pm
These “Draconian” policies everyone is so upset about were put into place because a large amount of the 47 hospitalizations during Sun God 2013 were guests, and most of the sexual assault incidences that also happened were in the Village and I-House. I’d say rape and the over-saturation of the Emergency Medical Services in the area are grounds for making a change. This mindset of “let us do whatever we want and bad things won’t ever happen” is ridiculous. The student body has proven time and time again that although we are of age, we do not act like responsible adults when given the chance. Less regulation in an event that has already become a serious Public Health concern is not going to make it any better.
I work on a 9-1-1 ambulance in the area, and 47 hospitalizations takes up EVERY bed in both Scripps La Jolla and UCSD Thornton ER’s. What about the elderly person that has a stroke that night? Someone who has an acute heart attack? Someone injured very badly in a major trauma motor vehicle collision? THEY HAVE TO BE TRANSPORTED AT LEAST ANOTHER 10 MINUTES because of a college student’s irresponsible decision to intoxicate themselves into oblivion, and saturate those ER’s, consuming already precious and thin spread resources. The difference of 10 minutes can be permanent brain, heart, and other tissue damage, as well as severe hemorrhage, that all can lead to death. OUR DECISIONS AT UCSD CAN KILL OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS. Sun God festival has become a Public Health concern for not only UCSD, but the City of San Diego itself.
Furthermore, the University, and especially SARC went above and beyond in spending its resources on prevention programs, like the “floaties,” and different kinds of gear like the collapsable water bottles in order to keep students safe. To blame the University and “draconian” policies is ignorant, devoid of any factual support, and relinquishes all responsibility for our student body to step up their game and take care of one another. The city of San Diego and the Medical Director took a chance by allowing Sun God to go on this year despite the negative impact it has, and hopefully, the deceased had nothing to do with severe intoxication leading to death, saving what little left Sun God has of a reputation.
His death is heartbreaking to the community, no matter how it occurred, and making assumptions would be disrespectful to his memory. Regardless, this young man was a valuable human being and his death is a tragedy. However, if it is confirmed that he died due to participation in “festivities” related to Sun God, getting an attitude with the university is pointless and immature. They will have no power over whether or not to continue when the city or county of San Diego and their respective medical directors deem it is a Public Health and safety hazard, and that UCSD students can not be trusted to take care of themselves or others. Sun God will be shut down indefinitely, and if it had been last year, after another piss poor display of college “independence,” this young man wouldn’t have died.
I always find it interesting that people want to find someone to blame that they don’t associate themselves with. Yeah, let’s blame administration and their restrictions, because I don’t identify with them or their “rules”.
Meanwhile, I think we should ask ourselves the question, “is it selfish that I get so hammered or high that I don’t notice when someone needs my help?” Maybe a little reflection on ourselves as individuals and a student body responsible to care for one another is more necessary than finger pointing at “the powers that be.” The same ones that gambled on launching Sun God 2014 just to keep the student body happy.
My heart goes out to the friends and family, as well as the medics who transported this young man, and the doctor who pronounced him dead. This stuff is hard on everyone in the community. RIP brother.
^correction • May 18, 2014 at 10:27 pm
May not* have died. Apologies on that one.
Nick • May 18, 2014 at 10:51 pm
“This mindset of “let us do whatever we want and bad things won’t ever happen” is ridiculous. The student body has proven time and time again that although we are of age, we do not act like responsible adults when given the chance.”
My god, thank you. Why does no one understand this.
SDSU_student • May 18, 2014 at 2:49 pm
You know — I went to SDSU in the late 90s before transferring back east to finish. SDSU was known as the “party school” — but most of parties had social drinking. Heavy social drinking — but college level social drinking nonetheless. UCSD was a whole other story. Parties I went to there, people were getting F$@KED UP! People puking, passing out, pissing themselves, and almost every party had at least one incident of alcohol poisoning where the person had to be hospitalized. And this was before the Greek system. From what I see of UCSD today — honestly it looks like the party school to me. Little kids run around with hipster glasses and right-looking physics notes or what have you, and think they have the “nerd look” down pat and that they have everybody fooled.. To me it just looks absurd. With the high tuition, all of these stupid festivals, the Greek System.. I’m not impressed. Looks like one big ball of hype to me …
UC Stop Drinking (It doesn't exist) • May 18, 2014 at 2:26 pm
I take it that most UCSD students don’t go to other college campuses and party. Most people that think Sungod is outrageous probably haven’t experiences parties or festivals in the real world. That’s fine, but realize that your frame of reference is severely distorted.
Most other events or universities have a more realistic stance on partying–open door policies or to not arrest every guy that stumbles and realize that his friends will take care of him. It’s just, for most of the year, UCSD students are expected to take the drinking off campus and the admin/RAs/CSOs can turn a blind eye to it. This isn’t realistic, and doesn’t happen at most university football games, concerts, or their version of “Sungod.” Our high arrests/incidents are indicative of our “Over-regulation” and how just slight alcohol consumption WILL land you downtown. (Let’s face it, there’s no way we go harder than EDC and Coachella, we just arrest everyone.)
It’s disturbing how repressed UCSD is, and its increase of prohibitions this year is only proof of this mentality.
My heart and prayers go out to the deceased and his family. Rest in Peace, he will be missed. There is a link on FB for donations to his family for funeral costs. I urge everyone to check it out.
Coachella • May 18, 2014 at 2:12 pm
Coleen’s never been to Coachella if she’s comparing it to Sungod. (LOL Woodstock? That’s just embarrassing.)
Source: Coachella. .
blank • May 18, 2014 at 12:18 pm
My condolences go out to his friends and family!!! May he be remembered for his kind acts in life and not for the mistakes he made.
Gary Daniels - UCSD '06 • May 18, 2014 at 10:50 am
Deny, deny, deny. How long will UCSD administrators deny that their campus has a closet drinking problem?
I am not surprised a student died in a dorm room the night of the Sungod festival this year or any other year, because UCSD administrators continue to drive campus drinking into the closet. “Out of sight, out of mind,” is the current policy. UCSD administrators deny they have a drinking problem when they really have a denial problem.
Without a doubt, the student caused his or her own death, but what factors, if any, contributed to this student’s poor judgement? Family? Religion? Stress? Finals? Adderall? We will never know, perhaps.
A more likely indirect cause of this death is the daft, arrogant, irresponsible UCSD administrators who continue their flawed policy against responsible drinking. They rightly enforce their mandate to curtail underage drinking but fail to educate students on how to drink responsibly if and when they decide to drink, because, let’s face it, regardless of legal age, college students are going to get drunk, right? I want to say it again: Perhaps this tragic death was caused in part by individual UCSD administrators and their paranoid anti-drinking policies and their flat-out denial of the need to educate students on how to drink responsibly. It’s time for UCSD to evolve from the ’20s prohibition era and let students be students every day of the year, instead of going apeshit and near-killing themselves or actually killing themselves on the day of the festival. It’s time for UCSD administrators to admit they have a campus full of closet drinkers. Its time for UCSD administrators and students to start an open dialogue about how to remedy their closet drinking problem.
Josh Kenchel • May 18, 2014 at 11:43 am
I agree with your view that prohibition only leads to more and more dangerous drinking habits. However, we don’t know for sure yet how this person died. Please, out of respect, at least wait until we have all the details and until the shock and loss have died down a bit before turning this into a political issue.
Kevin Katz • May 18, 2014 at 11:44 am
Gary, using this as your soapbox is absolutely inappropriate. You may be correct, but fuck off for now.
Sam • May 18, 2014 at 12:44 pm
I’m not sure what information you’re basing your claims off of but there was a MASSIVE campaign to inform students on safer drinking habits and to pace themselves if they decide to drink. They plastered our bathrooms with safety information and who to call if things go bad. They handed out little foldable pamphlets with safety reminders related to drinking. In addition, there were posters all over campus letting us know how the numbers of hospitalizations have increased over the past years and that the event was under threat of being cancelled due to it becoming an extremely high risk event.
What was the result of this campaign? A massive decrease in the number of hospitalizations and visits to detox, despite the unfortunate death that occurred in the village.
This death was a fluke. It was massively unfortunate and my condolences go out to the deceased’s family and friends, but it does not represent the entire student body’s out of hand behavior.
Jet • May 18, 2014 at 5:24 pm
seconded
Anonymous • May 18, 2014 at 10:15 am
None of you have any idea what happened. I knew this person. Please respect his life and have your discussion about the turn out of next year’s sungod on another page. No one cares what your solution to this “problem” is. YES people get out of control. YES it’s once a year, but that DOES NOT give you the right to assume how he left this world. It may or may not have been drugs or alcohol, but the point is that he is gone. RESPECT his life, and show some decency.
anonymous • May 18, 2014 at 1:00 pm
I’m sorry your friend died, but you can’t stop everyone from speculating, just because you knew him. You’re the one with no right here.
Josh Kenchel • May 18, 2014 at 1:07 pm
It is only decent to reserve judgement until all the facts have come to light. For now, this issue is very raw, and speculation and arguing can only serve to increase the pain for those directly affected. You have every right to think and say what you want; it is your choice whether to inflict that pain on others.
sally • May 18, 2014 at 9:28 am
Since UCSD has become such a sensible place full of sensible, well educated and cultured people, it should be obvious to everyone that there is only one real solution to this problem. Canceling Sun God would only effectively crush the last bit of school spirit that still strives in the hearts of the hopeful, and pretty much just make this place a dungeon of studious suck. Yet having one day where we find it socially acceptable to have fun has proven to cause an overload of harm. So the very best thing we could do is to have 2 Sun God Festivals instead of one. This way people can spread out their ambition over two days, thereby only partying half as hard. And if this seems absolutely ridiculous to you then it may suggest that we do not have an alcohol problem, nor a Sun God problem but rather a problem with the culture we have created on this campus. To each their own.
My condolences to the young fellow who passed away. I’m sorry for the families and friends who have suffered a loss and I hope he finds peace.
Coleen • May 18, 2014 at 8:32 am
SunGod Fest has evolved into a basic Woodstock/Cochella type event. It has lost it fun, beginning of Summer end of school charm. When the whole goal for the last 4 or 5 years has been to get as messed up as possible as quickly as possible with no reguard to safety or common sense. The UCSD Spencer’s this event and in doing so has a responsibility to its students and parents to make it as safe as possible by not condoning this type of behavior.. When the surrounding stores in the area run out of alcohol the night before, I mean out, then there is a problem that needs to be addressed. At no other event I can think of, football, baseball, concerts that this behavior is condoned. Any place else you are asked to leave and not allowed to return or arrested. Maybe if there were consequences to their actions they would think twice and party with in their limits. This doesn’t even address drinking under the age of 21 issue, or the prevalence of drugs. Yes they have free will, but by condoning this behavior they have now made it the standard for this event, and tragically a life has been lost.
Stacy • May 18, 2014 at 10:34 am
People like you are the problem – quick to blame the institution instead of facing the hard reality that this student made their own irresponsible decisions. These students are 18 years old and older, therefore have to take responsibility of their lives. UCSD does their part in banning illegal substances and even took extra steps this year in the hopes that students would make safe choices. Students have to learn their limit, although this is a tragedy, it’s no one’s fault but this person…
none • May 18, 2014 at 11:10 am
UCSD obeys all state and federal laws and it is currently illegal in the state of california for anyone under the age of 21 to be drinking alcohol. UCSD in no way condones breaking these laws. UCSD realizes that some students will not obey these laws, and therefore does 2 things: enforces the laws and provides health and emergency services to assist those who need it. This is not condoning behavior, but planning for the worst case scenario and having the resources to help.
Coleen: what, praytell, would be better for a student who is caught drunk at an event?
(a) Take them to detox and give them a chance to sober up under the administration of medical personnel?
(b) Arrest them and put them up in the county jail waiting to be bailed out?
(c) Kick them out, leave them in their impaired state of mind to hopefully get themself someplace safe and not do anything dumb?
Bert • May 18, 2014 at 12:49 pm
A and b are both reasonable. You can’t have it both ways. Doing nothing condones the activity of drinking underage. Maybe if they were taught as children there are consequences to your actions they would think a little more. If you get caught drunk driving or shoplifting they don’t take you to detox, they punish you. You get arrested..
none • May 18, 2014 at 2:17 pm
UCSD does both A and B. Thats my point. If the students are in dire need of medical attention, they receive it. After they have received it, UCSD evaluates the need for pursuing B, but not before pursuing A because the safety and well being of the student, no matter how much they may have made a mistake, is first and foremost.
Anonymous • May 18, 2014 at 8:01 am
This is horrible…. R.I.P. To the kid who passed away. I really hope this was not drug related. Before Sungod I started see a lot of posts on social media promoting drug use at sungod as a way to get around the alcohol crack down. I sent a facebook message to the sungod page with screenshots of all the posts and also sent emails to the AS President and the person in-charge of concerts and UCSD Health and safety urging them to take preventive measures and ban people opening promoting drug use…. What followed next was pretty unbelievable in my opinion. Some in AS then sent messages to the people say hide what you posted so you dont get in trouble. They did not inform the administration nor the police which they should of done first. And I got this email “Thank you for bringing this post to our attention. Each time we make a change for the festival we must be cognizant of the unintended consequences that result. This post is not conducive to the new health and safety initiatives we have installed this year and does not promote a safe festival. With that being said, this post was made on a student’s private facebook page. We do not have the capacity to deny access to the festival based on social media posts. Had this post been directed to us(it was the sungod page was tagged in it), we would have followed up with our health and safety information as well as festival guidelines(which they did not).” Everyone knows preventive action is the best course to take. If this turns out to be drug related there should be a full investigation of AS and people who failed to take action and ignore warnings should be kicked out of UCSD.
Swagattack • May 18, 2014 at 1:26 pm
Lol you’re an idiot.
Bob Rifo • May 18, 2014 at 7:41 am
Well, it looks like UCSD’s idiotic policies around alcohol have finally killed someone.
You know what happens when someone falls down drunk out in the quad? They get taken to the hospital. You know what happens when someone passes out drunk in a private room, under a draconian regime with the most bare-bones medical amnesty policy imaginable? They die.
Good job, UCSD, your valuation of upholding social host laws and other inane bureaucratic demands over the LIVES of students has, tragically but totally unsurprisingly, killed a student.
Of course now you’re going to cancel Sun God and place even more heavy-handed restrictions on alcohol, which will drive end-of-year partying toward more secluded spaces where sexual assaults and alcohol poisoning deaths become more likely, because you are insane, backwards morons.
This is typical of UCSD’s attitude toward the harms of drugs and alcohol—keep it out of sight and it will go away! And then they wonder why it keeps increasing every year. Maybe if this year we keep doing the SAME THING, but MORE INTENSELY, the climbing incident rates will suddenly reverse!
Good thinking.
Burt • May 18, 2014 at 8:53 am
Better question why is the “end of the year partying” more important than common sense even if they relax the standards, it will be taken advantage of and more deaths will occur. Society has rules and accepted behavior, thus making it UCSD’s fault is wrong. They did not pour the alcohol down this persons throat nor did they give him drugs, they tried to prevent that. If people are going to hold UCSD responsible for the students and their actions, (making them legally held responsible and probably going to be sued) they have a duty to put in safeguards to prevent this from happening as much as they can. How about you holding the students responsible for own actions.
Nancy Drew • May 18, 2014 at 9:23 am
A beach is notorious for drowning incidents because it is so densely populated that all of the lifeguards in the town can’t even keep track of everyone. One day the officials decide to fence off the ocean altogether. That day, some people decide to climb the fence into the ocean; the lifeguards climb over and retrieve most of them, but a young man escapes their attention and drowns. Is it the officials’ fault that he died? Did anything compel the climbers, besides their own desire to swim regardless of the consequences? Does the efficacy of the fence now come into question, even though drowning rates significantly decreased?
Please stop whining about the dystopian society you think you’re living in. This ain’t 1984, kid. It’s tragic that this fellow died, but blaming the institution is not only nonsensical – it will probably make matters worse.
Unwanted • May 18, 2014 at 5:59 am
I think what Kirra is trying to say is that, while it most definitely is the students fault. after you start drinking at a certain point you don’t really have much common sense, or any real sense at all really. But due to the ridiculous UCSD enforcement this year they, like she said “Ensured no one would be there”. I will tell you that there have been a few times that if my friends, or boyfriend hadn’t been there I could of been seriously hurt, or worse. But it’s not like I don’t know my limits, but there are those few times you cross the line and don’t realize it until it’s too late. And if there is no one there to help you then even alcohol poisoning could mess you up.
So yes it was the students fault, he took his life into his own hands like we all do. But if the village wasn’t on lock down then maybe there would of been someone there to call 911 sooner and maybe saved his life.
It’s all speculation of course since I don’t know all the facts but people think that by creating a stricter environment they are creating a safer one, where in fact people will go to much more drastic measures to ensure they get what they want. Regardless of what happened though, this is a sad situation and while it could have been prevented, if it was in fact related to drugs or alcohol, it shouldn’t matter because it’s done. Someone lost their life and there is nothing that can be done. I hope his family and friends can mourn in peace.
Kirra • May 18, 2014 at 1:57 am
I know a friend of the student who died. It’s not UCSD’s fault for the student’s stupidity. He had a girlfriend and because he lived in the Village and she didn’t, she couldn’t spend the night with him. Had UCSD not banned non-residents from going into the village, would she have prevented his death? The decisions made by administration did not put drugs in this poor person’s hand, but it certainly ensured that nobody would be there to keep him alive through the night.
mascot • May 18, 2014 at 4:54 am
I like it how u pretend to blame the person at first but then actually shift towards blaming the village. That guy should of been drinking responsibly knowing full well that outsiders are not permitted in the village – a just action taken by the village. It’s his fault and his fault alone, u shouldn’t blame the village even to make yourself feel better. That’s just stooping low.
none • May 18, 2014 at 11:16 am
What about his roommates? Or could he have not stayed with the GF? As the barriers were up a few days prior to the event with full knowledge of who was allowed into the village, he could have asked his GF if he could have crashed at her place for the night since he knew he would not be able to bring her over to his place at that time. Or maybe arrange with friends ahead of time to do something similar.
UCSDAlum • May 18, 2014 at 1:46 am
UCSD Is in not at fault for this. They had an aggressive campaign this year to stop binge drinking and drugs, and they made it clear that students should know their limits. They were actually going to cancel Sun God this year but allowed it to continue with many restrictions in place. There needs to be responsibility on the student’s part as well. UCSD cannot babysit all 20k+ students. The housing area where this death occurred was plastered with reminders about alcohol consumption…
Mary Shelley • May 18, 2014 at 7:45 am
This is like saying, “It isn’t the state’s fault that pregnancy rates are increasing, because our abstinence education is even more expansive this year!”
Doing something ineffective is stupid regardless of whether it’s well-intentioned, especially when coupled with restrictions that compound the problem.
sarah • May 18, 2014 at 8:17 am
In that case, it would not be the state’s fault. UCSD knew that they were not going to be able to stop alcohol and drug use; the only effective solution to this would be to breathilize everyone at the entrance, or to cancel the festival altogether. The University merely hoped to make the festival safer and to cut down on hospitalizations. Since many college students are hell-bent on getting piss drunk and/or high, sad as it is, the institution has limited options. There were even complaints this year about how “we are living in a police state,” yet the students who complained were the ones who could not handle themselves. This, again, is completely separate of the death, and is a response to the accusations against the university.
J • May 18, 2014 at 1:44 am
Honestly, the poll for who is responsible of this student’s death is inappropriate. The bottom line is that a young life has been lost. While many are inquiring the cause of death and so eager to place blame on the institution AND the deceased, the individual has friends and family who are grieving over this tragedy. They should be given that time to grieve without having to worry about personal information of their loved one being released or having their loved one accused of reckless behavior.
Yes, on campus deaths should be reported and made public. However, this poll for who should take responsibility over the death is completely unnecessary and invasive at such an early stage after the death.
aisha • May 18, 2014 at 8:06 am
Agreed. I have an immense amount to say about US D’S idiotic policies and they really don’t seem to understand students. Regardless the poll posted by the Guardian is disgusting. Someone just died of causes that are officially unknown. Even if they were known, your first response is to go on a polling spree to see who is “right”?? Imagine if we had surveys after every death that occurred, do you have any moral sense?
Guardian Staff • May 18, 2014 at 8:58 am
Hi guys, my name is Aleks and I’m the multimedia editor at the guardian. While I firmly believe in staying out of the fray and letting students discuss on our articles, I do want to address this, because I also found the poll horrifying and inappropriate.
We work with an outside company who runs the polls on our website, and while they’re usually totally innocuous, they apparently put this up after we had all logged off for the night and we didn’t catch it till now. I believe this demonstrated an extreme lapse in judgment about the sensitivity and importance of this issue on their part.
I wanted to let you know that I’m working as quickly as I can to get it removed from the bottom of the article and from the website, and I’m truly sorry that it someone felt it would be appropriate in the first place.
Thank you for your comments.
John • May 19, 2014 at 2:33 pm
UCSD confirms death
http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/pressrelease/statement_on_the_passing_of_two_valued_campus_members
Winston • May 18, 2014 at 1:09 am
Honestly UCSD and AS is partly responsible. Inviting artists like Diplo and Juicy J to the concert and then turning around and enforcing all these alcohol rules just seems very hypocritical, afterall, what do you think their music stands for other than partying and getting wasted?
vt • May 18, 2014 at 2:59 am
Right, because the only reason these students were partying was because of the lyrical content of the artists invited. I’m sure if the Jonas Brothers had been invited this never would have happened. =|
Students are going to party because it’s Sun God not because Juicy J and Diplo told them to. It is deeply unfortunate that a life was lost but the choice of artists is completely irrelevant.
JoBro • May 18, 2014 at 1:08 pm
Hey now, You sound as if we wouldn’t want the Jonas Brothers here. We just don’t have the money.
UCSDSenior • May 17, 2014 at 11:21 pm
First off, UC San Diego does not support irresponsible behavior. There was an aggressive safety campaign for months regarding Sungod. UCSD wanted to keep Sungod for the students.
All the housing communities and staff such as HAs/RAs were on board with the new safety rules.
UCSD is not a babysitter though, and it is the student’s who are responsible for the actions they choose to make. This is tragic, and it’s horrible it happened, but blaming UCSD does not make sense. It’s unfortunate that Sungod may be cancelled.
LBobR • May 18, 2014 at 7:47 am
UCSD was not a babysitter, but the deceased student’s girlfriend would have been, if she was allowed to be with him in the Village.
Bubbles • May 18, 2014 at 10:40 am
Seriously? So his gf was the only one who coulda taken care of him? Was he living alone? His roommates weren’t there? Oh and if you say his roommates were probably partying too blah blah blah then what’s to say his gf wasn’t partying or unavailable to take care of him. IF his death was related to drinking/drugs the best way he could’ve been saved was by using his common sense and exercising some self control. You can’t blame UCSD or the Village or anyone else for the actions of the individual.
OK • May 18, 2014 at 2:19 pm
She could have had him stay with her too is she was worried about his safety.
B • May 17, 2014 at 11:20 pm
The death of a student is tragic, and my prayers go out to the family and friends of the student. However, I find that the accusations against the institution, while merited in some respects, are broad and uninformed. The University in no way supported binge drinking or the use of illicit drugs; in fact, the festival’s continuation was threatened this year as a response to major issues last year. Ultimately, the students decide to endanger themselves by drinking uncontrollably and not knowing when to stop. They are 100% responsible. It sucks for those of is who are responsible and want to enjoy the festival for what it is: a celebration of great music. This is not a response to the student’s death, as it would be wrong to assume that it was caused by drugs or alcohol. Rather, it is a defense of Sun God and the institution. And news is news; journalists didn’t wait a week to enlighten the public on the events of 9/11 for “sensitivity.”
Nic • May 17, 2014 at 10:35 pm
Honestly it’s crap that “UCSD has been doing g everything in its power” to make sure the students are safe. Allowing alcohol purchases at the event rather than cutting off the main source of rest and alcohol causes students to massively binge and then stay out to the unbelievable heat without adequate water supply. The two water dispensers were out by 4. I am also surprised that the event was hosted in light of the air quality from the fires. Albeit I don’t know if the cause of death was alcohol or some other drug, but I found lots of gaps in “safety precautions” taken at Sun God this year. other than frightening the students with increased police force and dumb regulations. Some might say it was “successful” due to less EMT/detox numbers. I’m going to say that most people ended vomiting half the night without proper surveillance.
Elias • May 17, 2014 at 9:05 pm
I understand your concerns, but as others have stated UCSD did everything they could to keep the event safe and under control despite a lot of student resistance to the strict rules. The administration held firm and the tightening of regulation actually payed off. There was a massive decrease in EMT calls and and first aid and detox centers saw minimal use, especially in comparison to past years.
The student who passed was a 4th year student, likely 22 and a legal adult and of legal drinking age. Even first years are mostly 18, legal adults. The university as a responsibility to protect its students, but also to respect their independence and personal freedoms. The school can’t be monitoring students at all times, and from the news that has emerged so far, the deceased passed away in his dorm in his sleep, away from the medical and security support present at the festival, unobserved by others.
It is tragic this happened, but to hold the university responsible is to underestimate the responsibility and independence of the students. While I am deeply saddened by this turn of events, the deceased was of legal age and ultimately responsible for their own actions.
My condolences to those affected.
Anonymous • May 17, 2014 at 8:50 pm
I agree, the passing of this student is tragic for his or her family and loved ones although the student his/her-self made the conscious decision to partake upon whatever risky behavior they were doing that caused their death. What used to be a fun event for students before summer is now solely a school sponsored rave.
Furthermore, I strongly believe the University of California, San Diego is insensitive to even have a SunGod Festival this year considering the state of emergency in San Diego. Fire personnel and paramedics, who should be tending to the fires destroying all these homes in San Diego, are instead forced to tend to students who drink irresponsibly or use illegal narcotics because of SunGod. It’s a crime of opportunity. For peats sake UCSD, at least postpone the event one or two weeks until we’re in the clear in terms of the fire. Although I have attended SunGod Festivals in the past and had my fun, I am ashamed of our university for its decisions.
the truth will set you free • May 17, 2014 at 9:11 pm
Each person is responsible for THEIR OWN actions. Each one of us DECIDES/CHOOSES to do whatever we want or desire. No one but our self Must be judge on our own actions and be held accountable for it, NOT our friends, OR environment.
For the parents who think Institutions are in charge of teaching us what right or wrong.Remember that common sense education of what is right or wrong starts at home, from our parents NOT the Institutions we attend. Please keep that in mind.
1 • May 18, 2014 at 12:20 am
“Postponing” Sun God amounts to cancelling it. There is no way that you can find replacement talent within a week’s time, and the artists on the roster are not going to reschedule their tours to accommodate. These artists are not doing one-off shows; it’s not economical and it doesn’t take advantage of the plentiful booking opportunities nearby.
Sun God doesn’t happen in a few weeks. It takes nearly a year to put on, and when a group like ASCE cancels on its artists, it reflects badly and makes a working relationship between the talent agency and the talent buyer much more difficult, since the agency’s trust in the talent buyer is eroded. This can mean several things: higher talent prices to offset potential income loss in the event of cancellation, less big-name talent available, or simply complete severance of all contact between the two organizations. It doesn’t help that a good portion of popular talent is managed by a handful of giants (ICM, APA, Windish, and WME, among others) and that the loss of one agency’s contacts can translate into a huge loss in opportunity.
Stage builders, vendors, and volunteers have all signed up with the mindset of setting aside one day as Sun God. They’re not likely to return if you postpone, since they also operate on tight schedules. Just about the only part of Sun God that’s expendable is Staff Pro.
Michael • May 17, 2014 at 8:08 pm
As a parent of a UCSD student, UCSD is allowing hazadrous activities at UNIVERSITY sponsored events.
Our heartfelt condonlences to the parents of this student.
Anna • May 17, 2014 at 8:23 pm
While I understand the concern of parents, UCSD and AS took every precaution possible to ensure the safety of attendees of the event. AS faced great backlash from the student population to enforce these safety regulations, and as far as the rest of the event was concerned, the event was much more controlled than previous years, or even comparable events. Other that strip searching every student that entered their dorm room after a full search of each room, UCSD did all they could to ensure that the event would be safe for all.
Note – I am not associated with AS, but I have closely followed the safety procedure implementation leading up to this event.
Stacy • May 17, 2014 at 8:27 pm
UCSD DOES NOT condone any hazardous activities or encourage students to drink or use drugs. Although this is a tragedy, keep in mind that any decisions this student made were made by him/her and not anybody else. I absolutely cannot stand when others are quick to blame the institution and don’t realize that these students have a responsibility for themselves.
None • May 17, 2014 at 11:33 pm
Michael: Does your child drive yet? How irresponsible of you to let them do so, because auto accidents are the #1 killer of teens in the USA. Are they allowed outside? How irresponsible of you to let them get skin cancer or some dangerous virus or kidnapped. Far fetched? You bet. The university is in no way a substitute for a parent, community, and common sense. The only thing we can do is instruct our children to give them the best chance they have to lead their life in a fulfilling matter.
james • May 17, 2014 at 7:41 pm
哪那么多尊重不尊重 穷矫情 没有真实的消息就是谣传 你们这些学生穷逼事儿就是多。逝者安息
Husky • May 17, 2014 at 7:59 pm
请你尊重这些”穷“学生记者们的努力。如果不是有这篇头条报道，你是怎么知道有人去世了呢？另外，这篇文章的真实性会被查证和确实的，而你又知道什么内幕来判断这是谣言呢？学生是物质上穷了点，但是在我看来你的狭隘更穷。为什么不敢用英文留言呢？
Armita • May 17, 2014 at 7:17 pm
it is incredibly disrespectful for you to release this story with no details and before the school has had a chance to adequately address it with the students. Guesses and hearsay are not how this student’s passing should be spread around campus.
Jin • May 17, 2014 at 7:22 pm
It’s a piece of news and they’re reporting on it. I find it dumb that you expect people should hold off news that is known to be fact until upper sources give a PR release. That’s not the kind of media I’d want in the world I live in. It’s not as if the article writer released the name of the deceased – that’s the only thing I would’ve considered to be disrespectful.
Armita • May 17, 2014 at 7:40 pm
While I understand your concern about ethical reporting, the “news” that you are referring to is only relevant when there is an immediate need for the public to know (ie a fire, international conflict, natural disasters, etc.). The reporting done here is in pursuit of being the “first” to get this piece of information out there, and I find that highly disgusting. To add to which, you have no way of knowing that the details of this article are factual. The “kind of media you want in your world” is one wherein the timeframe of the report is more important than the facts, and quite frankly that is the saddest thing I’ve ever heard.
M • May 17, 2014 at 8:02 pm
“Quite frankly,” if that is the saddest thing you’ve ever heard, then you must not have read that this story is about a student who died. Everyone is entitled to share their opinions on the quality of the newspaper, but you could have chosen a much more respectful time and forum to do so.
My condolences to this student’s friends and family.
Ry • May 17, 2014 at 8:04 pm
Had it been KTLA5 or some other news agency unassociated with UCSD or San Diego your comment would be completely warranted but this is the “UCSD Guardian” they report on news that happened on campus. This happened on campus. The student was a part of Revelle campus and he/she passed away after Sun God. If they release the name of the student without the school doing so first or without the permission of his/her family then that’d be disrespectful but to report on a death that occurred on campus is completely justified because UCSD Guardian’s jurisdiction is the campus….. a bit redundant but i’m just trying to get it drilled in there.
Jin • May 17, 2014 at 11:48 pm
By primary sources, I know the death of a student last night to be a fact. The situation surrounding it? No, neither does this article imply that it does either. Which is why I responded to your accusatory comment.
If I may contribute, I learned in grade school that the best types of sources are primary sources (yada yada). So, I stand my ground on saying that this article reported on a fact. As for everything else you said, you are entitled to your own opinions and assumptions as am I, so that’s that.
My condolences to the friends and family also.
Jack • May 17, 2014 at 9:12 pm
I completely agree with you Jin, this is a developing story that students need to know about. I’m sure as soon as an official press release has been given it will be added to this page.
Alex • May 27, 2014 at 7:21 am
Remember that a young man has passed away. His family and friends will be scarred for life when they remember SunGod!