Arena Reconsiders Re-Entry Policy In Wake of Morgan Harrington Murder

The night 20-year-old Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington went missing from a Metallica concert at the University of Virginia's John Paul Jones Arena, she was reportedly denied re-entry to the concert after somehow ending up outside the venue. And she was never heard from again.

Now, two months after Harrington's remains turned up in a remote hayfield some ten miles away from the site of the concert, officials at UVA are reconsidering the arena's no re-entry policy, telling John Paul Jones Arena staffers to allow re-entry if anyone is showing true signs of distress. According to reports, Harrington was bleeding when she attempted to return to the concert; police claim she fell at the concert, sustained a cut on her chin and was still denied entry to the arena.

Officials are also calling for staffers to be re-trained, so that they'll be on the lookout for people who appear hurt or in distress. They're also being instructed to contact campus police and their immediate superior if an impaired or distressed person attempt to leave the arena during live events.

The venue's policy at that time of Harrington's disappearance would have directed employees not to allow her back inside. According to Morgan's father, Dan Harrington, "In this whole situation with Morgan, if one thing had been different we would have a live daughter today."

Police are still investigating Harrington's disappearance and murder, but so far, they have no solid leads to work with. Dan Harrington says he does not blame the university or the arena's policy for Morgan's slaying. "That's not taking away Morgan's responsibility and the decisions she made," he explained. "She certainly was an adult. I wish she had made some different decisions, and I wish other people had made different decisions, too."

He hopes the switch in policy will one day save another women from suffering a similar fate.