Evan Benson spent Valentine’s Day in the Sacramento County Jail after being arrested in the Recreation Room of Desmond Hall for assaulting another resident.

Benson, a computer science major, and the person he assaulted both admit they had been drinking prior to the fight. They came from an off-campus party and carried their argument into the Desmond recreation room where they got into a fistfight.

It was one of 17 alcohol-related incidents this semester.

“(Alcohol use) has gotten out of control on campus because of irresponsible drinkers,” said Director of Residential Life Cynthia Cockrill.

State and campus policy state that minors are prohibited from consuming alcohol in the residential buildings or on school property.

The 2002 Core Alcohol and Drug Survey specific to the Sac State campus revealed that 69 percent of male and female housing residents would not want to live in a designated alcohol/drug-free residence hall if one was available.

Five dorm residents this semester drank over their limit to such a degree that they were transported to the hospital for alcohol treatment.

Binge drinking, or high-risk drinking, is defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as five or more alcoholic beverages in a row for a male and four alcoholic beverages for a female.

Core Survey results show 35 percent of students said they believed the social atmosphere on campus promotes alcohol use. Nearly 80 percent of male and 60 percent of female students said they saw alcohol use as a central part of social life on campus.

It is up to the resident adviser’s discretion to educate their residents during their floor meetings and programs on how they can drink responsibly, Cockrill said.

Benson’s display of public drunkenness is one example of violent behavior when intoxicated.

According to an informal survey conducted by The State Hornet in the lower-classmen resident halls, 26 percent of male residents admitted that they have gotten into a fight while they were intoxicated.

Benson was charged with a felony, released the following day and scheduled to appear in court, said campus police Public Information Officer John Hamrick.

“The university’s primary concern is to help students to not ruin their lives,” Vice President of Student Affairs Shirley Uplinger said. The university intends to use the $50,000 from the Jesse Snow settlement to go to educational services to benefit students on campus, she said.

The money was funneled to the Safe Rides program to make sure students do not endanger their lives, Uplinger said.

“The issue is the level of responsibility of the drinkers at any age, whether they are 18 or 19 or 20,” said ASI President Eric Guerra. “What is important is that they do not go drinking, get into a car and then turn the key.”

Safe Rides is an ASI program that exists to prevent the incidence of drinking and driving among the students, faculty and staff of CSUS. Anyone requesting a safe ride home is driven home by a volunteer driving team, using their own car.

“Alcohol causes harm to every organ in the body, and the health of our students is so important,” said health educator Cyndra Krogen.

It might be impossible to eradicate drinking in college, but the university can promote student safety by making sure the students do not drink and drive through the Safe Rides program, Uplinger said.