Brown University Police Chief Suspended Following Fatal Shooting Incident

On Monday, Brown University’s president announced the decision to place its campus police chief on leave as the institution reviews its security policies. This move comes in the wake of a tragic shooting incident earlier this month that resulted in the deaths of two students and injuries to nine others.

The scrutiny surrounding Brown’s security measures has intensified since the December 13 shooting, which sent shockwaves through the Providence community. Questions have arisen regarding the presence of security cameras in the building where the attack occurred, as well as the accessibility of campus facilities.

University President Christina Paxson stated that Rodney Chatman, the current police chief, will be succeeded by Hugh T. Clements, the former chief of the Providence Police Department. Notably, Chatman had previously faced a vote of no confidence from the union representing school police officers in October. Reports indicated that the union expressed “serious concerns over the failed leadership, contract violations, and policies that jeopardize public safety.”

The heightened scrutiny has prompted an investigation by the U.S. Department of Education, which announced on Monday that it is seeking information from Brown to determine if the university violated federal campus safety and security regulations. This inquiry includes requests for security reports, audits, dispatch and call logs, as well as details on emergency notifications.

In a somber gathering, hundreds came together at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in downtown Birmingham, Alabama, to honor Ella Cook, a Brown sophomore who lost her life in the attack. On December 13, gunman Claudio Neves Valente, 48, entered a study session in a Brown academic building and opened fire, killing Cook and 18-year-old freshman Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, while injuring nine others.

Authorities later reported that Neves Valente, who had previously been a graduate student at Brown studying physics during the 2000-01 academic year, also fatally shot Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro at his Boston-area home just two days after the Brown shooting. Neves Valente, who had known Loureiro from their school days in Portugal during the 1990s, was found dead in a New Hampshire storage facility days later, having taken his own life. An autopsy confirmed that he died on December 16, the same day Loureiro succumbed to his injuries in a hospital.

At the funeral in Alabama, Cook’s family invited attendees to wear “Easter colors,” reflecting her Christian faith, during the Episcopal service that also acknowledged the Christmas season. The Rev. Paul F.M. Zahl, a former leader of the church, read letters from members of the Brown community addressed to Cook’s parents, Anna Bishop Cook and Richard Cook, who raised Ella alongside her two younger siblings in the affluent Birmingham suburb of Mountain Brook.

“Ella was smart, confident, curious, kind, principled, brave. She had a big impact on campus in only three semesters,” wrote David Skarbek, a Brown professor of political economy. “I used to tell Ella, ‘We need an Alabama to Brown pipeline.’ In fact, her nickname on campus was Ellabama.”

Zahl remarked that the funeral served as a “bigger stage” for Cook to share her Christian faith. He recounted a dream where he was skiing behind Cook and her family, recalling her confident call to him: “Come on, will you?” He expressed a belief that God had revealed himself through this dream.

“I pray now that everyone who has loved Ella so much in this life would be given a vivid, individual feeling of Ella’s love, still present with us,” Zahl said. “Because Ella’s love is eternal and entirely altruistic.”

Cook was not only an accomplished pianist but also a dedicated student studying French, math, and economics at Brown. She served as vice president of the college Republicans, a role that garnered attention from national and Alabama Republicans alike. In her memory, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey ordered flags to be flown at half-staff statewide.

Amy reported from Atlanta, Georgia

Photo: A security guard walks past a flag at half-staff on the main green of Brown University in Providence, RI, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, (AP Photo/ Mark Stockwell)

Copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics
Law Enforcement
Education
Universities

On Monday, Brown University’s president announced the decision to place its campus police chief on leave as the institution reviews its security policies. This move comes in the wake of a tragic shooting incident earlier this month that resulted in the deaths of two students and injuries to nine others.

The scrutiny surrounding Brown’s security measures has intensified since the December 13 shooting, which sent shockwaves through the Providence community. Questions have arisen regarding the presence of security cameras in the building where the attack occurred, as well as the accessibility of campus facilities.

University President Christina Paxson stated that Rodney Chatman, the current police chief, will be succeeded by Hugh T. Clements, the former chief of the Providence Police Department. Notably, Chatman had previously faced a vote of no confidence from the union representing school police officers in October. Reports indicated that the union expressed “serious concerns over the failed leadership, contract violations, and policies that jeopardize public safety.”

The heightened scrutiny has prompted an investigation by the U.S. Department of Education, which announced on Monday that it is seeking information from Brown to determine if the university violated federal campus safety and security regulations. This inquiry includes requests for security reports, audits, dispatch and call logs, as well as details on emergency notifications.

In a somber gathering, hundreds came together at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in downtown Birmingham, Alabama, to honor Ella Cook, a Brown sophomore who lost her life in the attack. On December 13, gunman Claudio Neves Valente, 48, entered a study session in a Brown academic building and opened fire, killing Cook and 18-year-old freshman Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, while injuring nine others.

Authorities later reported that Neves Valente, who had previously been a graduate student at Brown studying physics during the 2000-01 academic year, also fatally shot Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro at his Boston-area home just two days after the Brown shooting. Neves Valente, who had known Loureiro from their school days in Portugal during the 1990s, was found dead in a New Hampshire storage facility days later, having taken his own life. An autopsy confirmed that he died on December 16, the same day Loureiro succumbed to his injuries in a hospital.

At the funeral in Alabama, Cook’s family invited attendees to wear “Easter colors,” reflecting her Christian faith, during the Episcopal service that also acknowledged the Christmas season. The Rev. Paul F.M. Zahl, a former leader of the church, read letters from members of the Brown community addressed to Cook’s parents, Anna Bishop Cook and Richard Cook, who raised Ella alongside her two younger siblings in the affluent Birmingham suburb of Mountain Brook.

“Ella was smart, confident, curious, kind, principled, brave. She had a big impact on campus in only three semesters,” wrote David Skarbek, a Brown professor of political economy. “I used to tell Ella, ‘We need an Alabama to Brown pipeline.’ In fact, her nickname on campus was Ellabama.”

Zahl remarked that the funeral served as a “bigger stage” for Cook to share her Christian faith. He recounted a dream where he was skiing behind Cook and her family, recalling her confident call to him: “Come on, will you?” He expressed a belief that God had revealed himself through this dream.

“I pray now that everyone who has loved Ella so much in this life would be given a vivid, individual feeling of Ella’s love, still present with us,” Zahl said. “Because Ella’s love is eternal and entirely altruistic.”

Cook was not only an accomplished pianist but also a dedicated student studying French, math, and economics at Brown. She served as vice president of the college Republicans, a role that garnered attention from national and Alabama Republicans alike. In her memory, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey ordered flags to be flown at half-staff statewide.

Amy reported from Atlanta, Georgia

Photo: A security guard walks past a flag at half-staff on the main green of Brown University in Providence, RI, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, (AP Photo/ Mark Stockwell)

Copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics
Law Enforcement
Education
Universities