Most crime dips over summer

Significant decreases in thefts, robberies and aggravated assaults highlighted the official statistics, which include crimes between June 1 and August 31. While Penn Police tallied 257 summer thefts last year and 375 in 1997, only 177 thefts were recorded this summer. Among this summer's total were 24 bike thefts -- a 50 percent decline from one year ago. Robberies, meanwhile, dropped 36 percent, from 36 last summer to 23. The number of aggravated assaults, which include stabbings, gunshot wounds and serious beatings, fell from nine last year to just four this summer. And for the third consecutive summer, burglaries held relatively steady with a total of 37, down two from last summer. That figure includes a number of burglaries allegedly committed by 29-year-old Casey Brunson, who was arrested on June 9 and charged with 10 counts of burglary dating back to mid-May. Police believe he was also involved in several other incidents. After they noticed a pattern in the crimes -- always at night and always on 41st Street -- the University Police, in partnership with the Philadelphia Police Department, deployed plainclothes officers who caught Brunson allegedly in the act. Auto theft was the only area of serious crime to increase, rising from 13 to 16 incidents. The statistics cover the University Police's patrol area, which spans from west to 43rd Street, south to Woodland Avenue, east to 30th Street and north to Market Street. They also patrol a small area north of campus near Presbyterian Hospital on the 3900 block of Powelton Avenue, and a property used by the Nursing School on the 4100 block of Woodland Avenue. Despite the drop in overall crime, the summer months were marked by a few serious incidents. During the early hours of July 25, two Penn students were held up near the corner of 41st and Pine streets. One of the two suspects flashed a handgun and proceeded to take a cellular phone and about $70 in cash. University Police are currently investigating the case. Just five days later, three men were arrested and charged with the shooting death of a man unaffiliated with the University on the 4400 block of Sansom Street. An investigation concluded that 30-year-old Michael Rainey was caught in the crossfire during a shootout, according to Philadelphia Police Department Lt. Susan Slawson. The three suspects have been charged with homicide and are currently awaiting trial. Penn Division of Public Safety officials said they were pleased with the steadily declining crime rate and offered praise for both the armed Penn Police force and the unarmed security officers -- such as Spectaguards and University City District safety ambassadors -- that patrol campus. "We never ever allow our guard to be down," University Police Chief Maureen Rush said. Deputy Chief of Investigations Tom King cited Public Safety's growing presence and "a higher level of personal responsibility and awareness" on the part of students as key factors in this summer's crime drop-off. "It's really just not a target-rich environment anymore," King said. King added that the recent downward trend has allowed the University Police to focus on less serious incidents, like theft. "Because of the decrease in crime, and certainly serious crime is down, it enables us to devote more resources to those so-called quality-of-life issues," King said.