University Police say it's too cold for crime

The recent sub-zero wind chills have not only numbed the ears, noses and fingers of students and faculty alike, they have also put a near freeze on campus crime. "It appears that significant incidents and incidents in general are down since we've been experiencing bad weather," University Police Commissioner John Kuprevich said last night. The coldest weather that the area has seen since 1985 has indeed had an effect on crime and on the way University Police operates, Sergeant Joseph Risoli said. "This weather we're experiencing right now has dented the volume of serious crime," Risoli said, adding that "crime's still happening." Just as almost every person in the Delaware Valley has had difficulty getting to work because of ice-covered roads, so have some University Police officers. But, if officers are late coming in, the department will hold over as many officers as needed from the previous shift to fill in, he added. "The full patrol will be out there," Risoli said. Kuprevich said under bad weather conditions, University Police must concentrate their forces in the area "closer in to the campus community." Under normal conditions, officers can respond quickly to any crime occurring within a designated patrol sector, he added. But in bad weather, it is necessary to contract the patrol area to minimize response time. "What tends to happen is we try to have more visibility to prevent things from occurring," he added. Kuprevich said if there are power outages today, University Police will focus on those areas without power because those areas are generally more susceptible to crime. But he added that power outages can affect University Police's ability to respond to crime. "Don't hesitate to report crime," he added. "We need eyes and ears."