On Friday the campus police was tested on its ability to rapidly respond to a life-threatening situation, and they passed with flying colors. Campus police reacted in a little over a minute when a 76-year-old woman went to the rec sports desk and complained of chest pains before collapsing inside the University Union.

The actions of the police force should instill confidence in the student population.

The woman, who was not a student at Sacramento State, was transported to Sutter Memorial Hospital and was pronounced dead. The identification of the victim had not yet been released at the time of this publication. Union director Leslie Davis said she hoped to have an identification of the woman as early as Tuesday.

University Police Lt. Dan Davis said that campus police received the call at 12:02 p.m. and an officer responded to the scene at 12:03 p.m. The officer and a nurse attempted CPR on the woman before contacting the Sacramento Fire Department when a pulse on the woman could not be found.

The campus police deserve positive recognition for their speedy response to the situation. Even though the woman could not be saved, it is reassuring to know that the police at Sac State respond quickly to calls. The massacre at Virginia Tech showed us that response time from a college police department is paramount. This particular situation did not pertain to any threat of violence, but the quick response shows how coordinated the police here are.

Some people may feel that the police are not doing enough to prevent theft and vandalism on this campus, but the truth is they cannot be everywhere at once. The job is thankless and difficult, but the police should be commended on a job well done.

This tragedy could not be avoided, but all those involved did everything that they could to prevent the woman from dying. That is all anyone can ask for. The victim was attended to almost immediately, so it is doubtful that she could have been saved.

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