WATERVILLE — Police say they recently issued 34 summonses after responding to a noise complaint from a party at a Winter Street apartment with more than 100 young adults celebrating a Colby lacrosse victory.
A Colby College student in attendance told officers the party was to celebrate the Colby men’s lacrosse team beating Connecticut College 20-17 at home earlier that day.
According to Waterville Police Chief Joseph Massey, the group of students was “cooperative for the most part” as officers checked identification for more than two hours. “The two officers I got an opportunity to speak with said all the individuals they spoke to, which was at least half or more of the names listed here, were Colby students,” Massey said.
Waterville Police received a noise complaint at approximately 11:30 p.m. Saturday night, April 24, Massey said. Thirty-three people were issued summonses for possession of alcohol by a minor and the apartment’s renter was issued a citation for furnishing a place for minors to consume.
Police estimated the party’s attendance at 111.
In a prepared statement to the Morning Sentinel, Colby College officials wrote the party violated the college’s COVID-19 regulations that all students agreed to as part of coming to campus. After repeated testing, zero positive COVID-19 cases have been identified from the group, according to Colby.
“Students who participated are currently going through Colby’s conduct process,” the statement read. “Any disciplinary action will be appropriately calibrated to the different students’ situations and could include probation or suspension, loss of privileges and/or recognitions, and/or being required to leave campus and complete academic work remotely.”
In an article published by The Colby Echo, the school’s student newspaper, Colby Assistant Dean of Students Steve Moran told the newspaper “the off-campus gathering this past weekend was unfortunate and it is being taken very seriously. We are currently investigating the situation.”
In general, Waterville’s calls for services have been down during the coronavirus pandemic, Massey said.
“For us, it doesn’t matter whether they’re Colby students or they’re nonstudents, they need to be 21 to consume alcohol,” Massey said.
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