Coronavirus

[apl68]

On my campus we have a formal "incident report form" and that can trigger an investigation and could lead to probation, suspension, expulsion, or (worse) 'reeducation' where they may be required to write a paper on the dangers of what they did wrong.  (They try to push the 'reform' rather than the 'punish' side of things. )  BUT I Would certainly file such a form in this case!!

We've got incident report and patron ban procedures in place as well.  I just got an e-mail from the state level with the opinion that it was a bannable offense.  Waiting to see what the higher-ups here say--but I'm reasonably sure that our Board of Trustees will back me up.

[mamselle]

On my campus we have a formal "incident report form" and that can trigger an investigation and could lead to probation, suspension, expulsion, or (worse) 'reeducation' where they may be required to write a paper on the dangers of what they did wrong.  (They try to push the 'reform' rather than the 'punish' side of things. )  BUT I Would certainly file such a form in this case!!

We've got incident report and patron ban procedures in place as well.  I just got an e-mail from the state level with the opinion that it was a bannable offense.  Waiting to see what the higher-ups here say--but I'm reasonably sure that our Board of Trustees will back me up.

Not only bannable, but I'd think actionable if the employee were inclined to press charges.

Given that no-one has absolute assurance that they're not infected, given the layers of asymptomatic potential, and the high potential for infection from respiration by-products, that was an assault.

M.

[nebo113]

On my campus we have a formal "incident report form" and that can trigger an investigation and could lead to probation, suspension, expulsion, or (worse) 'reeducation' where they may be required to write a paper on the dangers of what they did wrong.  (They try to push the 'reform' rather than the 'punish' side of things. )  BUT I Would certainly file such a form in this case!!

We've got incident report and patron ban procedures in place as well.  I just got an e-mail from the state level with the opinion that it was a bannable offense.  Waiting to see what the higher-ups here say--but I'm reasonably sure that our Board of Trustees will back me up.

Not only bannable, but I'd think actionable if the employee were inclined to press charges.

Given that no-one has absolute assurance that they're not infected, given the layers of asymptomatic potential, and the high potential for infection from respiration by-products, that was an assault.

M.

A form of assault?

[Caracal]

On my campus we have a formal "incident report form" and that can trigger an investigation and could lead to probation, suspension, expulsion, or (worse) 'reeducation' where they may be required to write a paper on the dangers of what they did wrong.  (They try to push the 'reform' rather than the 'punish' side of things. )  BUT I Would certainly file such a form in this case!!

We've got incident report and patron ban procedures in place as well.  I just got an e-mail from the state level with the opinion that it was a bannable offense.  Waiting to see what the higher-ups here say--but I'm reasonably sure that our Board of Trustees will back me up.

Not only bannable, but I'd think actionable if the employee were inclined to press charges.

Given that no-one has absolute assurance that they're not infected, given the layers of asymptomatic potential, and the high potential for infection from respiration by-products, that was an assault.

M.

It would probably be hard to make it stick given that the risk of infection from just someone breathing on you for a few seconds is probably very low. Even so, it certainly is grounds for banning someone. He's deliberately trying to scare an employee and make them uncomfortable. That's hostile and anti-social behavior.

[Cheerful]

Sounds like good news about the two Missouri hair stylists with COVID who saw 140 clients.  Reportedly, no one was infected.  Hope scientists can learn from this case.  Masks seem to be a big factor in preventing infection. 

I don't understand why people want to politicize mask wearing and why people can't be courteous and just wear one.  Masks save lives.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/11/us/missouri-hairstylists-coronavirus-clients-trnd/index.html

[apl68]

Working on the ban notice today.  The employee involved took me aside today and said that she was worried about what this volatile patron might do if anybody approaches him about it.  I reassured her that this isn't going to be an issue.  Our ban notice procedure calls for having the police serve notice to the banned patron at home.  He'll be informed that if he comes here again after that, we'll be calling the police.  Should he come in today, before I can get the ban notice out, the staff has been instructed to just bear with him, unless he pulls something else that goes over the line.

It may not look like it to the staff, but I've been putting in a lot of work yesterday and today to prepare the ban hammer to come down.  I'm confident that the city and Board of Trustees will back me up, but I've got i's to dot and t's to cross to make sure it's all done in accordance with procedure.

[spork]

Working on the ban notice today.  The employee involved took me aside today and said that she was worried about what this volatile patron might do if anybody approaches him about it.  I reassured her that this isn't going to be an issue.  Our ban notice procedure calls for having the police serve notice to the banned patron at home.  He'll be informed that if he comes here again after that, we'll be calling the police.  Should he come in today, before I can get the ban notice out, the staff has been instructed to just bear with him, unless he pulls something else that goes over the line.

It may not look like it to the staff, but I've been putting in a lot of work yesterday and today to prepare the ban hammer to come down.  I'm confident that the city and Board of Trustees will back me up, but I've got i's to dot and t's to cross to make sure it's all done in accordance with procedure.

You are doing something important -- protecting your colleagues and the public.

[mamselle]

Yes.

Be sure to reward yourself after all the eye-crossing and t-dotting is done.

That's a serious sevice to your community you're performing.

I've wondered lately if some of the resistance-polticization of mask-wearing is a subtly anti-Asian thing, too.

We get a lot of Asian visitors who have worn masks for years, and I know I've overheard them being derided for it in casual, public-transit-like settings in the past.

Might not be related at all. But it did occur to me.

M.

[apl68]

Getting the ban notice done ate most of my day yesterday!  Twice before when we've banned patrons we had the municipal police deliver the notice.  This avoids the need to tell the patron in person and create a scene, avoids the risk of a mailed notice being lost or going unread, and puts the patron under the ban on notice that we are very, very serious (And that he's now on law enforcement's radar). 

This time around the patron lived in the unincorporated "suburbs" beyond the city limits.  The municipal police informed me that this put the patron under the county sheriff's jurisdiction.  So, I contacted the sheriff's office.  After being handed off to four different people there in a row, the senior person present finally told me that they could not serve a notice unless it had been issued by the court.  They said I would need to get an order of exclusion from the circuit court's office before they could serve anything to anybody.  I called the circuit court office and was told that they could only issue such orders in domestic violence cases.  I would have to go up a level to the district court. 

At this point I realized that it would take an act of Congress to get this exclusion order.  Which is not what I really wanted in the first place.  I spent a while pondering my options.  None of them looked good.  Finally I called the municipal police again and asked to speak to the chief, with whom I'm acquainted because we're fellow city department heads.  He wasn't in, but they could have him call me back.  We finally got in touch sometime after lunch.  He heard me out as I explained what I was trying to do and why.  He said he'd contact the sheriff's department and see what he could do. 

Less than an hour later, a uniformed officer came to the library and took the ban order.  Not long afterward, one of the staff got a call from the patron.  He'd received it and was incredulous over being banned for breathing on somebody around a sneeze guard.  But he didn't cuss, protest, threaten, etc. 

All the delays meant that my e-mail report to the Board of Trustees didn't go out until nearly closing time.  So I haven't yet received their feedback.  I anticipate no problems there.  They've been good to back me in the past.  I'm now here on Saturday morning to try to finish up an unrelated project that I'd hoped to finish yesterday before getting distracted by this business. 

[mamselle]

Glad you found a functional workaround...and had the appropriate good connections to get the ban put in place.

Maybe this will be a stepping-stone towards maturity in this patron's life-path.....(ahem).

I hope you get everything else done, and that you order yourself a nice, delivered lunch or dinner to a) save extra time and effort making a meal, and b) reward yourself for following through on such a difficult task.

Kudos.

M.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

So, our neighbor is having a party with a lot of kids and a bouncy house. I'm not sure what to think.

[Bonnie]

So, our neighbor is having a party with a lot of kids and a bouncy house. I'm not sure what to think.

Bouncy houses really seem to be Phase Not There Yet. Enclosed small ish. Laughter and yelling and maybe crying. And snot, IIRC.

[Anselm]

I just had 2 Covid-19 tests this past week, one before entering the hospital and then another before having a procedure done.  The tests are not fun. 

[apl68]

Yesterday our church resumed face-to-face worship services.  They put a full range of precautions in place.  We all wore masks, were seated apart by family groups (which put me sitting by myself), and had no choir up front.  We had two separate services to accommodate all the social distancing.  The services were also live-streamed for those still at home.

Awkward as it all was, it was so nice to be back around people again, instead of watching the service on my office computer!  The pastor was back in good form, with the interactive component his messages usually have. 

I also got to talk afterward with a couple I know who had been planning to go into the mission field this summer.  Those plans have been ruined, like so many others.  They're wondering what to do next.

[nebo113]

Yesterday our church resumed face-to-face worship services.  They put a full range of precautions in place.  We all wore masks, were seated apart by family groups (which put me sitting by myself), and had no choir up front.  We had two separate services to accommodate all the social distancing.  The services were also live-streamed for those still at home.

Awkward as it all was, it was so nice to be back around people again, instead of watching the service on my office computer!  The pastor was back in good form, with the interactive component his messages usually have. 

I also got to talk afterward with a couple I know who had been planning to go into the mission field this summer.  Those plans have been ruined, like so many others.  They're wondering what to do next.

Unfortunately, many churches in red country still think mountains and Jesus are sufficient protection:  https://news.yahoo.com/west-virginia-sees-coronavirus-outbreaks-in-churches-200854506.html?soc_src=hl-viewer&soc_trk=fb