Brown University Places Police Chief on Leave Amid Security Review After Campus Shooting

In response to the December 13 campus shooting that resulted in two student deaths and nine injuries, Brown University has placed its police chief, Rodney Chatman, on administrative leave. University President Christina Paxson announced the decision on Monday, stating that the leave is effective immediately.

Hugh T. Clements Jr., former chief of the Providence Police Department, has been appointed as interim vice president for public safety and chief of police. Clements will oversee an after-action review of the incident and assume day-to-day leadership of the department.

The university is also commissioning an external review to assess campus safety policies, procedures, infrastructure, and training. This review will include an on-site physical security assessment of building perimeters, access points, cameras, and other infrastructure conditions.

The U.S. Department of Education has initiated an investigation to determine if Brown University violated federal campus safety and security requirements under the Clery Act. The department is seeking information on security reports, audits, dispatch and call logs, and the use of emergency notifications.

The December 13 shooting occurred during a study session in the Barus & Holley engineering building. The gunman, identified as 48-year-old Portuguese national Claudio Neves Valente, was a former Brown graduate student. He entered the building and opened fire, killing sophomore Ella Cook and freshman Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, and injuring nine others. Valente was later found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a New Hampshire storage facility.

President Paxson emphasized the university's commitment to safety and accountability, stating that the appointment of Clements underscores a focus on clear leadership and a sustained emphasis on campus security during this critical period of healing and recovery.