New statistics posted for campus crime

There were about the same number of sex offenses and burglaries at the University last year as in 2001, but 2002 witnessed a record number of motor vehicle thefts, according to University Public Safety's annual Campus Security Report released yesterday.

This increase in vehicle theft, however, can in part be attributed to a new law, which now categorizes golf carts as motor vehicles.

"Nine or ten of those vehicles were golf carts, and most of them were recovered," said Systems Administrator and Crime Prevention Specialist Barry Weiser.

Incidences of burglary were more frequent this past year, numbering 68 on campus and 43 in residential facilities. Burglaries on public property were down to one from 32 in 2001.

Reported sex offenses were down from 10 on campus to eight, and from nine in residential facilities to eight.

Each year, in compliance with the Campus Security Act, Public Safety issues the report, which includes crime statistics from the previous three years.

In addition to those crime listings mandated by law — namely murders, forcible sex offenses and other crimes of similar magnitude — the University has chosen to volunteer additional information in its 32-page booklet. It includes issues such as sexual harassment, fire safety, and workplace violence.

The department also decided to include all sex offenses reported to any University official in the booklet, instead of just what is required by law — those offenses reported directly to Public Safety — in an effort to heighten student awareness of the problem on campus.

"A lot of institutions get nervous and scared when it comes to sex offenses ... [they get] worried about what others will think," Director of Public Safety Steven Healy said. "But I believe that it is better to be accurate at all times. We recognize what a serious problem it is, so we go above and beyond what is required by law."

Also, Healy has corrected what he believes was a "misrepresentation" of campus crime. In recent years, Public Safety has been over-reporting the number of criminal alcohol offenses on campus by including all violations in New Jersey state categories such as liquor law violations and drug abuse violations. Some of the campus violations, however, were in breach of University policies but not of state law.

Because of this correction, the number of judicial referrals on campus in liquor law violations dropped from 244 in 2001 to 46 actual violations of the law this past year.

The complete Campus Security Report, compiled with the collaboration of the Offices of the Dean of Undergraduate Students, the Dean of the Graduate School, the Princeton Borough Police Department, and the Princeton Township Police Department, is available at www.princeton.edu/ sites/publicsafety/CSR2003 and will soon be available upon request in paper form at Stanhope Hall.