Brown University has placed its troubled police chief on administrative leave "effective immediately" following the devastating campus shooting that killed two students. Rodney Chatman, Brown University's vice president for public safety and emergency management, will be placed on administrative leave effective immediately, the school said on Monday.
Chatman had faced mounting criticism over what many viewed as insufficient campus security in the lead-up to the deadly shooting, and his leave comes as the university begins a broader review of its safety measures. Meanwhile, Brown University has appointed Hugh T. Clements — the former chief of the Providence Police Department — to step in as Chatman's temporary replacement, according to the university's statement.
Out After Backlash
The move comes as Brown University faces a federal investigation by the U.S. Department of Education into potential violations of the Clery Act. Passed in 1990, the law requires colleges and universities to follow specific campus safety and security standards in order to remain eligible for federal student aid, according to the department.
At the same time, Brown has launched its own independent review of the December 13 shooting that claimed the lives of freshmen Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokob and Ella Cook.
The review will take a hard look at campus safety in the lead-up to the tragedy, how prepared officials were, how they responded on the day of the shooting, and how emergency management was handled in the aftermath.
Ever since former graduate student Claudio Neves Valente stormed into a classroom and opened fire, serious questions have been raised about how equipped Brown's campus police were — and how they responded once the crisis began.
In the weeks leading up to the attack, warning signs may have been missed. A janitor told the Boston Globe that he had reported seeing Valente repeatedly "circling" the campus for weeks, but said no action was taken by campus police.
Surveillance footage later showed that Valente had been scouting the area around the elite Providence campus the day before carrying out the shooting, which killed two students and injured nine others.
Major Concerns Over Students' Safety
Concerns have also focused on what happened during the attack itself. According to a timeline published by the student newspaper, there was a 17-minute delay between the first 911 call about an active shooter and the issuance of a campus-wide alert — a gap that has intensified scrutiny of the university's emergency response.
Chatman's department, working alongside local and federal law enforcement, initially failed to identify a suspect in the school shooting. The case only began to break days later after a Reddit post drew attention to key leads.
A homeless man identified only as John ultimately provided key information that led authorities directly to Valente. While it remains unclear whether John will receive the promised $50,000 reward, a source told The New York Post that he is being "taken care of."
Valente was later found dead nearly a week after the shooting inside a storage facility in Salem, New Hampshire.
Authorities said he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Investigators also revealed that Valente had shot and killed MIT professor Nuno Loureiro at his home in Brookline, Massachusetts, on December 15.
Long before the tragedy, however, Chatman's four-year tenure at Brown had already been marked by controversy. Former officers leveled serious accusations against his leadership, including one who told the Brown Daily Herald in January 2025 that the chief was "vindictive" and presided over what they described as a "toxic" and chaotic department.
Chatman had faced two no-confidence votes even before the deadly shooting, with critics voicing "deep concern" about his ability to lead.
When he was first hired, Brown University President Christina Paxson praised his "values, skills, and experience." Now, in the aftermath of the violence, many students and locals are accusing the university of failing to protect its community, arguing that lax security policies left them dangerously exposed.
In 2023, a school administrator allegedly declined to cancel a children's reading event even after a campus safety officer warned of a credible shooting threat, reportedly made by the troubled older brother of former NFL player Aaron Hernandez, according to an exposé in the student newspaper.
In the wake of the recent shooting, Brown has pledged to strengthen campus security during the winter break and ahead of the spring semester. The university said it will double the number of police and security personnel and install additional surveillance cameras in areas where they are lacking—including inside the Barus & Holley building, where the attack took place.
