After the same individual was arrested in West Campus three times last week, community members are calling on the University to increase public safety measures in the neighborhood.
The Austin Police Department arrested Aymen Labidi, who, according to registrar records, attended UT between fall 2020 and spring 2024, on April 8 on two charges of assault causing bodily injury and again on April 10 on three charges of assault causing bodily injury, an APD spokesperson said in an email. Labidi was arrested again for disorderly conduct on April 9, according to an arrest affidavit filed on April 10.
Labidi is being held in Travis County Jail and currently faces five criminal charges, including the three misdemeanor charges from April 10 and one second-degree felony charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
In an April 11 statement, interim President Jim Davis said he met with Austin Mayor Kirk Watson and Travis County Judge Andy Brown to identify a solution for safety in West Campus. UT System Chairman Kevin Eltife recognized the role of law enforcement in addressing violent and criminal behavior but said arrests were not enough.
“We must be able to work hand in hand with prosecutors and the local judicial system to make sure these offenders stay off our campus,” Eltife said in the statement.
According to a 2020 university press release, the UT System invested $8 million in safety infrastructure across the main campus and the West Campus neighborhood, including cameras and additional law enforcement. Despite this, there has been a consistent push from the community for increased safety measures in the neighborhood.
Joell McNew, founder and president of SafeHorns, a group of UT parents and community members advocating for increased safety measures in West Campus, said she has seen an increase in engagement since last week from students and parents coming forward to share information on social media.
“We’ve never had this many victims from one individual in our campus community in such a short period of time,” McNew said.
McNew and SafeHorns members called on community members to reach out to local prosecutors, including Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza and Travis County Attorney Delia Garza, in a series of Facebook posts on April 10.
“We have been in contact with law enforcement for the situations that occurred close to the UT campus last week and will continue to coordinate efforts to achieve the best possible results for all involved,” a spokesperson for the County Attorney’s office said in an email.
As the city continues to review code revisions for the University Neighborhood Overlay district over West Campus, McNew said she would like to see an increased emphasis on public safety.
“In this code revision, we want a serious outline of what safety is,” McNew said.
