Suspicions that the person who vandalized student artwork in Clement Hall and the Hopkins Center was a member of the studio art department were realized last week when Hanover Police arrested Emily Lewis '02 in Watertown, Mass.
Lewis will face charges of criminal mischief at an arraignment scheduled for April 23, Hanover Police Chief Nick Giaccone said. Since police allege the damage caused exceeds $1,000, the crime -- a Class B felony -- carries a penalty of one to seven years in jail and a maximum fine of $4,000.
According to an affidavit filed by Hanover Police at the Lebanon District Court, Lewis' mental well-being likely played a part in her alleged actions.
Faculty, students and family members interviewed by the Hanover Police expressed concerns related to Lewis' stress level and recent struggles. Michael Lewis noted that his daughter had experienced "some potential mental issues" and had visited a local psychiatrist for counseling on perhaps six occasions.
Students described Lewis, a biology and art student from Michigan, as very much liked and respected by her peers in the department, in BlitzMail messages to The Dartmouth and interviews with The Valley News.
Some studio art majors had previously said they felt the vandal was likely a member of the department because of the thoroughness and method of the defacement.
According to the police affidavit, Lewis first aroused the suspicion of authorities last Saturday, when interviews with certain art department students and faculty pointed the Hanover Police in Lewis' direction.
A preliminary search of Lewis' room in Russell Sage Hall and campus area parking lots located neither Lewis nor her car, a Subaru Legacy Outback.
Upon calling Lewis' father on Feb. 24, authorities determined that Lewis' bank had called to report unusual activity on her account, in the form of debit-card purchases of gas and clothing in Manchester, N.H., and Cambridge, Mass.
The news concerned Michael Lewis because Marjorie Lewis, Emily's sister, had arrived in Hanover that day for a planned visit. Michael Lewis described his daughter's short disappearance as "aberrant behavior," according to the affidavit.
A search of Lewis' dormitory room on Monday revealed a floor plan of Clement Hall's first floor bearing two drops of yellow paint and a "small vegetative leaf," both of which police Detective Lt. Frank Moran confiscated.
Yellow paint was used to mark student-made paintings and sculptures in the painting, sculpture and architecture studios, the printmaking shop and the Top of the Hop.
Additionally, professors and students told police officers that the roughly 300 clay sculptures found in Clement Hall's tool room resembled the style of works recently completed by Lewis.
As of last Monday, victims had reported 58 paintings, 40 drawings, 6 collages and numerous sculptures missing, according to the affidavit.
Authorities released Lewis on $5,000 personal recognizance bail.
Lewis focuses primarily on sculpture work and intends to graduate behind her class, in 2003. Early in the Winter term, she had worked on an installation piece in the rotunda at the entrance to the Hopkins Center.
Giaccone also said that authorities have recovered all equipment stolen from Poison Ivy last week. While no arrests have been made, he said police have a suspect who is not a Dartmouth student.
