By Linnea Cavallo (Whetstone Staff Writer)

Vaughn-Reese_480x270A student who was arrested for bringing a gun to campus last week was sent home last semester after telling his fraternity brothers he had suicidal thoughts.

Vaughn Reese, 19, a sophomore, also had been harming himself with matches, his friends said.

Reese returned to campus this semester, but during the second week of classes, his fraternity brothers discovered a gun in his backpack Sept. 10.

“Two of my brothers in Alpha Phi Delta alerted security,” said the fraternity’s vice president Alex Dello Buono. “We think there was only one bullet in the gun, but we’re not really sure.”

Last April, Dello Buono and other fraternity brothers took Reese to the hospital after he exhibited “generalized anxiety and suicidal thoughts,” Dello Buono said.  “When we took him, he was shaking, crying and having a panic attack.”

Walt Beaupre, head of safety and security, said he believed the purpose of the gun was self-protection.

“I interviewed students who had information concerning the gun,” he said. “I reviewed the student’s schedule to determine where he might be, then notified the Dover Police and developed a plan for contacting the student.”

Reese was in Dr. Jill Cole’s Writing Across the Curriculum class in Budd Hall when he was removed from the college.

“A security guard knocked, stood in the doorway and quietly asked for Vaughn,” Cole said.

Alainna-Caitlyn Earl, a friend of Reese’s, said Reese was convinced he was going to get beat up so he had a gun for protection.

“Before he dyed his hair and got rid of his classes, he looked like Harry Potter,” she said. “Everyone made fun of him because of it and called him Harry Potter.”

Dello Buono said Reese was getting help and taking medication.

“Everyone thought he was doing better and was OK to come back,” he said. “Vaughn is one of the nicest, smartest people I know. He is a published poet and is very involved in APD and the community. He didn’t show any signs of aggression. Vaughn is mentally ill, he’s not a criminal.”

Cole said she didn’t find out what happened with Reese until the email was sent to students, staff and faculty alerting them of the incident.

“I was shocked,” she said. “I have only had him for three class periods but he was quiet, attentive and polite.”

Dello Buono said he and his APD brothers convinced Reese last semester to see Ann Rogge, the director of counseling service.

“Before he pledged, he was burning himself with a match,” he said. “He wore long-sleeves all of the time because of this. As a family, we were concerned about his well-being and we knew he needed help because of his burning and suicidal thoughts.”

When Reese was hospitalized in the spring, a national representative from the fraternity who lives in Delaware helped.

“He made sure Vaughn was OK,” Dello Buono said. “He talked to the police about what was going on and APD brothers called his parents to inform them.”

Dello Buono said all he wants is for Reese to get better.

“We want him to be OK and be healthy for himself,” he said. “If he needs a mental health professional, then he needs to get as much help as he can. I want to see him get the education and this will just delay it.”

Reese is now in the James T. Vaughn Correctional Facility. He’s charged with carrying a concealed deadly weapon in and having it in a safe school zone.