According to police video footage, a party was held at the college students’ home on Labor Day weekend with people who had recently tested positive for the coronavirus.
Oxford police have cited six men who attended a house party outside the University of Miami on Saturday for violating state rallies and quarantine laws.
Bodycam footage shows an officer walking into a house near campus and finding men without masks on the porch.
One of the men tells police that there are 20 people in the house, double the number of people allowed to gather in Ohio. The officer asks the group to disperse while checking the identity of one of the residents.
“I’ve never seen this before,” an officer can be heard speaking to a student after checking his ID. “Is there evidence on the computer that you’ve tested positive for COVID?”
“Yes,” the student replies. He goes on to report that he tested positive the week before and that every person at the party is infected with COVID-19, including two people from a house across the street.
“Oh God. This is what we are trying to prevent,” the officer replies. “We want this city to remain open.”
The officer asked why students did not enforce voluntary quarantines for 14 days, as recommended by state and federal health officials.
More than 1,000 University of Miami students have tested positive for COVID-19 since class began this fall, according to the WKRC.
Gov. Mike Devine said in a briefing Thursday that cases in Miami are the reason Butler County remains at the third tier in the state’s public health counseling system.
The university still plans to start face-to-face classes on September 21. However, school officials warned that students who refuse to take the test will be denied access. at campus services and have to return to distance learning.
