Langston U. Student Held on Attempted Robbery Charges

By Tatyana Johnson
Black College Wire

Photo credit: Langston Gazette Steffon Lewis Jr. was being held in the Logan County, Okla., Jail

Steffon Lewis Jr., a 21-year-old biology major at Langston University from Ardmore, Okla., was being held in the Logan County, Okla., jail on charges of attempted robbery with a firearm and possession of a weapon on school property. Both offenses are felonies.

On April 21, the Langston University Police Department received phone calls from residents that a black male dressed in a dark suit jacket and dark dress slacks was walking with what appeared to be a rifle past the Baptist Student Union in front of the Langston, Okla., city post office. One witness identified the man as Lewis. Lewis' roommate, Dameron Bates, a senior theater major from New Orleans, directed police to their apartment in the Scholar's Inn campus housing complex.

There, police said they found Lewis at the kitchen sink washing off dirt and grass from a pair of black dress shoes. According to officer Stanley Timmons, assistant to the university's chief of police, and the Logan County Sheriff's Department police report, Lewis was told to stop and to lie down on the ground. After refusing to do so several times, officers forced Lewis to the floor and handcuffed him. According to Bates, Lewis appeared to be puzzled about why he was being arrested and kept asking police for an explanation.

Police said two cardboard boxes were on the bedroom floor, each containing part of a rifle, and said they found five shotgun shells on the dresser in Lewis' room.

Officers said they saw a brown paper bag with eyeholes cut out of it and a dark suit jacket and dark slacks in the closet. That led police to consider Lewis a suspect in an attempted robbery the night before at III G Dollar Store in Langston. Before Lewis' April 22 arrest, police said, they had no leads. In the dollar store incident, store owner Gary Williams told police a man approached him from behind as he left the rear door at closing time. As Williams fled, the man chased after him and fired off a shot.

Lewis was arraigned April 24. His bond was set at $20,000 for attempted robbery with a firearm, and $2,000 for possession of a weapon on school property. A court date was scheduled for May 25.

According to the police report, attempted robbery with a firearm could bring a sentence of 2 ½ years to life, and possession of a weapon on school property carries a fine of $5,000 and imprisonment for two years.

Lewis was regarded by many students as a quiet, somewhat withdrawn person who seemed to be in constant thought. He was often observed walking on campus by himself with his head down. Lewis recently began missing classes and hours at his work-study job on campus. He told his teachers he had constant headaches and migraines. He suffered from a seizure in the cafeteria less than a month ago.

Lewis' roommates viewed him as a reserved person who stayed mostly to himself and rarely came out of his room. "Lately, I noticed that he wasn't himself. He had become very withdrawn after having a seizure a few weeks ago," said Chris Peters, a freshman computer science major from Columbus, Ga.

According to Marc Flemon, assistant to the vice president for student life at the university, Lewis' school status has not yet been determined. Flemon said he hoped that incidents like this would be avoided through student counseling.

"I am surprised to know that one of our students was caught up in a situation like this," Flemon said. "If any students are experiencing problems, I hope that they take the opportunity to use our mentors, the counseling center, talk with faculty or staff members in times of a crisis or when they feel they are in need."

Tatyana Johnson, a student at Langston University, writes for the Langston Gazette.

Posted May 1, 2006