Dr. Paul Halsall arrested after officers saw him on news

An assistant professor of history at the University of North Florida has been placed on administrative leave pending investigation of allegations he sold illegal drugs at a nightclub in May.

Dr. Paul Halsall, who was scheduled to teach courses this summer, was arrested May 16 after a warrant was issued charging the educator with selling approximately $150 worth of cocaine to undercover police at The Metro, a bar in Riverside, according to police reports.

A letter from Dr. Gerry Giordano, provost and vice president for academic affairs, was delivered to Halsall the day after his arrest, notifying him of his leave.

Halsall

“This action is occurring as a result of allegations of illegal drug transactions,” Giordano wrote in the letter. “Before any final decision is made by the university following this investigatory period, you will have an opportunity to respond.”

The letter’s purpose was to restrict Halsall from coming to campus, attempting to contact students or engaging in any university-related activities.

Halsall must correspond with the university’s Employee Assistance Program to address personal circumstances or any other concerns during his investigation.

The professor’s arrest followed an extensive investigation of The Metro for illegal drug transactions, but he was arrested for allegedly selling cocaine to the undercover police, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Public Information Office.

Before his arrest, Halsall appeared on a local news program protesting the raids on the club and asserting that the investigation specifically targeted the gay community. One hour later, he was arrested at his home. Halsall was unavailable for comment, and administrators declined to comment on the situation because of the pending investigation.

Halsall came to UNF in 1999 as an assistant professor of history from Fordham University, where he received his doctorate.

He has taught history courses throughout the United States and contributed to AIDS research at Columbia University, according to his curriculum vitae.

Junior secondary education major Melissa Cox had Core I with Halsall during fall 2002 and often served the professor at a restaurant where she worked that semester.

“He would come in with other assistants, sometimes to eat, and he was always pretty quiet, [which was] different from how he was in class” Cox said. “He was pretty much a no-nonsense kind of guy. The whole drug thing shocked me.”

Halsall had been scheduled to teach Myth Epic and Romance: Medieval History in Film during the Summer A term.

Contact Natasha Khairullah at spinnakernews@yahoo.com.