FBI, Pitt close Wheelock case

Because of a lack of evidence, the FBI and Pitt police have ended their investigation into the… Because of a lack of evidence, the FBI and Pitt police have ended their investigation into the events surrounding the noose found behind the lectern of black professor Stefan Wheelock.

The noose, which Wheelock discovered before his Nov. 21 class, was found next to a copy of Ralph Ellison’s “The Invisible Man.” Ellison’s novel concerns race relations in America, and was required reading for Wheelock’s introduction to critical reading course. Upon finding the book and noose, Pitt police were notified and conducted a joint criminal investigation with the FBI.

A statement issued yesterday by the University explained that the noose was fashioned from the pull cord of a window shade, and one of the window shade pull cords in Wheelock’s Crabtree Hall classroom had in fact been removed. However, numerous other shades throughout the building have had their pull cords similarly fashioned into nooses.

Robert Hill, Pitt’s vice chancellor for public affairs, explained, “The pull cords had been made into nooses years ago by medical students to symbolize that they were being worked to death. It was young doctors goofing off.”

Hill likened the original intent of the noose-makers to the pranks performed by the doctors on the television show “M.A.S.H.” Since the original nooses were made back when Wheelock was himself a student, he said, it was doubtful that they were intended as any kind of specific threat against him.

The book belonged to a female student in Wheelock’s class who said she had accidentally left it behind the week before. Pitt police and FBI could not determine whether the positioning of the book and this particular noose were related or intended as a threat.

Former Student Government Board member Jay Dworin said that he was unsurprised by the administration’s response to the incident.

Dworin said, “The fact of the matter is that they had the information a week in advance. They chose to hide the issue from black students and prevented the English department and the professor from commenting.”

Dworin went on to say that Pitt has a history of such incidents on campus that the administration must address and that for decades the University has shown racial insensitivity.

“Whether they believe it to be benign or not, this incident should be treated as though it was malicious in terms of the response the administration gives for the satisfaction of black students,” he said.

According to the University’s statement, because the incident was isolated and didn’t pose a direct physical threat, in addition to the fact that it lacked any confession or eyewitness, it would be difficult to prosecute anyone. The case is therefore now considered to be inactive.

Pitt police Chief Tim Delaney could not be reached for comment.