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Students arrested after fights at Schine Student Center appear in city court

Six Syracuse University students arrested after fights broke out following an on-campus dance party and one who was arrested outside the John C. Dillon Public Safety Building in February appeared in city court Tuesday.

The students appeared in front of judge Karen Uplinger shortly after 2:30 p.m.

Six students were ordered to complete community service and one case was adjourned until mid-April. If the students meet their community service requirements by April 17, the cases will be dismissed after six months.

The students were arrested following the Feb. 2 “Faded” dance party organized by the National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations and the National Pan-Hellenic Council. The Syracuse Police Department told The Daily Orange in February the arrests occurred for both fighting and interfering with arrests.

Senior Vice President and Dean of Student Affairs Thomas Wolfe and Director of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Eddie Banks-Crosson also attended Tuesday’s hearings.



Uplinger ordered the students to complete community service as part of an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal. An ACD is not deemed to be a conviction or admission of guilt, according to New York law.

  • Alray Cromer, a student in the College of Visual and Performing Arts; Nahum Ducasse, a student in the L.C. Smith College of Engineering and Computer Science; and Grant Mayes, a student in the College of Arts and Sciences, were ordered to complete 30 hours of community service and to write apology letters to the police department. Cromer, Ducasse and Mayes were arrested on charges of disorderly conduct, obstruction of government administration, resisting arrest and harassment.
  • Michelle Desa, an Arts and Sciences student, was also ordered to complete 30 hours of community service and to write an apology letter. She was arrested on charges of disorderly conduct, obstruction of government administration and resisting arrest.
  • Daniel Boivert, a VPA student, was ordered to complete 10 hours of community service. Boivert was arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct.
  • Osarumewense Pat-Osagie, a student in the Martin J. Whitman School of Management, was ordered to complete 20 hours of community service. Pat-Osagie was arrested at the John C. Dillon Public Safety building on charges of obstruction of government administration and harassment when he went to check on a friend after the initial arrests were made, according to police reports.

• Onome Agbaza, an Arts and Sciences student who was arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct, had her case adjourned until April 17.

• Lawrence Jackson, a student in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, and Andre Sadler, a Whitman student, had their cases adjourned because they are out of town, said attorney Christopher Burke with SU’s Student Legal Services.

Wolfe, dean of student affairs, said it was important for him to attend the hearings to lend support to the students.

Said Wolfe: “I care about this group of students and I just wanted to offer my support.”





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