Fullerton : Campus Restroom Shut After Reporter’s Inquiry

A Cal State Fullerton restroom that was the focus of a campus newspaper story about alleged homosexual activity was closed shortly after a student reporter began inquiring about the matter.

The story, published in the Daily Titan on Wednesday, said a men’s restroom on the second floor of the Performing Arts Center was widely known as a place for anonymous homosexual trysts. Such casual encounters increase the danger of contracting acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), health officials have said.

The restroom was closed about four days ago “for plumbing repairs,” according to campus police. But a secretary in the Performing Arts Building told The Times on Wednesday that she believes the restroom was closed because a student reporter was asking about alleged homosexual activity there.

“I’m convinced it was closed because of the (student) newspaper’s story,” said Melinda Niekum, a secretary who works on the floor where the restroom is located. Niekum said that the restroom has long been associated with homosexual activity.

“It’s been going on for at least four or five years,” Niekum said. “Students would complain to me about how they were propositioned in there.”

Capt. Dan Byrnes of Cal State Fullerton’s University Police said, however, that security officers have reported no unusual trouble with the restroom.

“No formal complaints about that place have ever come in,” he said. “We patrol that area the same as we do other areas--no more, no less.”

Byrnes said that the last arrest for a public homosexual act in the restroom was “about four or five years ago.” Byrnes said he thought the student newspaper report distorted the matter.

T. Roger Nudd, vice president for student services at the campus, said Wednesday that “the restroom there has been known as a bothersome spot” and that university police are taking action to curb illicit activity there.